LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- After making a hole in one while surrounded by professional golfers, Maj. Damon Ragsdale left the Shades of Green Armed Forces Recreation Center with a newfound appreciation for being a soldier in the U.S. Army.
Ragsdale earned a spot in the pro-am portion of the PGA Tour’s FUNAI Classic at Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., by virtue of his runner-up finish in the 2005 All-Army Golf Championships.
During his first practice round, Ragsdale aced the 165-yard, No. 6 hole on Disney’s Magnolia Course.
“It landed about six inches away from the hole and just slid to the right,” he said of the 7-iron shot. “And in one bounce it dropped in, just disappeared. I couldn’t tell if it hit the flagstick or if it just found the hole.”
The hole in one made Ragsdale a mini-celebrity, prompting a weeklong parade of appreciation.
“From there on out for the entire week, even with the pros, I was known as the “hole in one boy,” said Ragsdale, 36, a logistics officer stationed at Fort Hood, Texas.
The next day, PGA Tour player Jeff Sluman gave Ragsdale a putter. They shared time on the driving range, where Ragsdale said he out-drove the pro. Word of that got back to fellow pro Frank Lickliter II, who rewarded Ragsdale with a custom driver. More golfers and manufacturer reps followed with handshakes, kind words, clubs, balls, shirts and hats.
“Mr. Sluman was saying ‘thank you’ for our service not only to me, but to all servicemen and women.” Ragsdale said. “He said: ‘This is just a little token of what we can do for you compared to what you’re doing for our country.’”
Ragsdale has been playing golf for only seven seasons but said this was his second hole in one. His first came last year at Legacy Hills Golf Club in Georgetown, Texas, where he aced the 174-yard No. 5 with a 6-iron.
That one, however, didn’t have the same zing as the one recorded on a course shared by Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh.
“I can always say to my children if I ever have any, or grandchildren, that I played the same day Tiger Woods did on the same course and I beat him on a hole,” Ragsdale said. “Nobody can ever take that away from me.”
Armed with his new driver, Ragsdale was paired with tour pros Daniel Chopra and Brendan Jones in the first round of the pro-am. He shot par that day. During the second round, he played with David Hearn and Kevin Sutherland. Playing from a closer tee box, Ragsdale shot 1-under par, one stroke better than Hearn, his pro partner.
At that point, Ragdale had visions of grandeur.
“All of a sudden, here I am hitting a hole in one and out-driving the pros and beating their scores,” he recalled. “It got me thinking: ‘Hey, maybe if I got the clubs fitted to me, hit balls every day, had an instructor, and played with the latest technology I might be able to do this for a living.”
It didn’t take long, however, for Ragsdale to revert to reality.
“I hit it just as far as they do, the big boys, but I also spray it left and right, unlike them, and that’s the difference,” he said. “That’s why they can earn a paycheck doing it and why I’m a major in the Army.”
Ragsdale received a standing ovation during the FUNAI Classic’s pairings party for his hole in one and bronze-medalist performance in the pro-am. He also was awarded a hole-in-one Mickey trophy.
“I was with pros I’ve seen on TV weekly and who I wished I could be like, and they were saying ‘thank you’ to me. It made me feel proud, it really did,” he said. “It validated why I wanted to be a Soldier and what we’re doing for our country, especially in this state and time of war.”
