Treetops Resort Golfer Makes Two Hole-in-Ones in One Round
Mike Robertson, in 25 years of playing golf, had never had a hole-in-one. The Grand Rapids native had come close a few times but had started to believe it might never happen for him.
That changed dramatically last month. He was one of 16 golfers playing in a group outing at Treetops Resort on the Signature course, designed by the famous teaching pro and former Treetops professional, Rick Smith.
Robertson made two holes-in-one, not just on the same golf trip or the same day, or even in the same 18 holes, but in the same nine holes.
“I’m an eight handicapper, but if you look at the rest of my round that day, you wouldn’t think it was possible,” he said in an interview conducted by WJR radio in Detroit.
The odds say it’s nearly impossible, about one in 65 million, for a golfer to make two aces in the same round. Of course, the odds don’t realize there is hole-in-one magic in the air at Treetops.
Back in 2001, golf legend Lee Trevino made a million-dollar hole-in-one on the famous Threetops par 3 course, also designed by Rick Smith. It happened during the third Par 3 Shootout, a made-for-TV event that aired in prime time on ESPN. Trevino’s ace at No. 7 won him $1,090,000. The famous golf entertainer played it up for the crowd and generously donated the money to St. Jude Children’s Hospital. In 2021, Trevino returned for a special celebration of the “Shot Heard Round the World.”
Mike Robertson is not as famous as Trevino, but his feat is more remarkable. And more unbelievable. Mike himself didn’t believe the first one, on hole 2, playing at 165 yards.
“I hit an 8-iron, and it looked good in the air,” he said. “It landed maybe three feet past the hole and then came back down a little hill on the green right into the hole.”
He said he was stunned into silence, but his two regular golf buddies in the group, Kevin and John, and one of their friends, Nate, were going crazy. “They were high-fiving me and stuff, and I couldn’t believe it,” he said. “I was actually waiting to wake up from a dream at that point. It took a long time to register for me. I don’t think I got a word out for like 30 seconds. I didn’t believe it until I pulled that ball out of the hole.”
He was aware enough to put the ball in his bag for safekeeping and played for five more holes.
Then, at No. 8, he sized up another par 3 tee shot, this time 163 yards away. He said the hole was playing straight into a good wind, so he decided to try and hit a low shot with a 6-iron.
“I hit it kind of low, and it hit maybe five feet from the hole, took two hops, and disappeared – again,” he said. “We could all see that one, too. On that one, I started yelling and screaming and going crazy, and I turned around, and those guys were all just staring at the hole in disbelief.”
This time, he grabbed the ball out of the hole and forgot to put it in his bag. On the next tee, he hit his tee shot with the ace ball into the woods bordering the fairway.
“We looked for a few minutes and finally found it,” he said. “I took it out of play then.”
He has them in cases now for safekeeping.
As for the hole-in-one tradition of buying drinks, he did get called out after the round. “I paid for some drinks, but to be fair, they took it pretty easy on me,” he said. “It was just an amazing day. I’m still not believing it.”
Robertson called his visit to Treetops fabulous, and not just because of the two aces. “It’s really beautiful,” he said. “I enjoyed all the courses up there. They were so fun to play. It’s a perfect place for groups like us.”
And the perfect place for hole-in-one shots.
Treetops, of course, has five golf courses and is a flagship partner of the cooperative marketing group of 17 Gaylord area courses known as the Gaylord Golf Mecca. Learn more about the Mecca at gaylordgolfmecca.com. Learn more about Treetops at treetops.com.
