How did that ball get in my pocket?

By Paul Gueorgieff

How did that ball get in my pocket?

Unbelievable.

That’s the only word to describe what happened to me on the golf course last month.

No it wasn’t a hole in one, nor was it a hole in two on a par four. It was more miraculous than either of those.

I was playing at my home club of Manor Park in Wellington and we were on the sixth tee waiting to play our shots.

The fifth green is relatively close to the sixth tee and while we were waiting to play our shots there was a cry of fore came from the fifth tee.

We all went into a protection mode. I turned my back and bent my head down to hopefully avoid any injury from the errant shot.

We heard the ball hit the ground hard near us but when I turned around to see where the ball had finished, I couldn’t see it.

It was a cold morning and I had my hand in my right trouser pocket and when I pulled my hand out there was a ball in it.

That’s not my ball, I thought.

I asked my two playing partners where the errant tee shot had gone. No idea, they said.

I then showed them the ball in my hand and said surely this can’t be it?

There was a bemused look on the faces of the other two. Where did you get the ball from, they asked.

I replied that I think the ball from the fifth tee may have gone into my pocket. I didn’t notice the ball until I took my hand out of my pocket. Somehow there was a ball in my hand.

Surely not, can’t be, impossible, we started thinking.

I placed the ball on the ground near the mark where it had first hit the ground and waited for the following group to approach us.

I wasn’t going to believe what we thought had happened until we checked with the person who had hit the ball.

As the following group approached, one of them that started walking towards us looking for his ball.

What kind of your ball were you playing, I asked. A Titleist 3 he replied.

Well, I said, here it is and you are not going to believe what happened.

When we explained the ball had bounced into my pocket there was an expression of disbelief on player’s face. You have to be joking, I could imagine him thinking.

The area where the ball landed was very wet and probably softened the bounce of the ball which is probably why I didn’t feel the ball enter my pocket.

Yes, unbelievable.