Holes-in-one are commonplace and, nowadays, it probably takes three players to win Lamborghinis in one week, as happened at the LPGA’s Pelican Women’s Championship, to make headlines. Either that, or a hole-in-one story that goes wrong. There are plenty of these, but the one I remember is attached to Argentina’s Eduardo Romero in the 2000 Qatar Masters.
Romero was playing with Seve Ballesteros and nothing of note was happening until, at a 176-yard par-3, the Argentinian had the first of several shocks to his system. With the lower half of the flag hidden from view, the two were up at the green before a referee advised that Romero’s ball was in the hole.
The round over, Qatari Golf Federation informed Romero that he had won himself a BMW and Romero, laughing hugely at his good fortune, was introduced to the vehicle at the BMW stand. It was a spectacular, £40,595 M Roadster in a metallic red.
Reporters and photographers gathered at the scene as Romero kissed the car for the cameras and even, for the purposes of CNN, came up with a proprietorial, “Would you like to see inside my car?” As it turned out, the car was locked.
Members of the media began to drift away when an official in dish-dash, asked for a word in the golfer’s ear.
In a revelation to leave Romero open-mouthed, the gentleman said that the car with which he had been photographed was not his prize. That vehicle was purely for show. His car was a green, £28,145 Z3 Roadster 2.8.
The inferior vehicle – it was a particularly sickly shade of green – pulled up as he spoke before, in the most seamless of moves, the driver switched from that vehicle to the red edition before making off at speed.
“But I was photographed with the red one,” said a disbelieving Romero as he watched the car disappear from view. “Surely, that is my prize.”
After the most genteel of arguments, it was decided that Romero would pick up his prize – the lesser one – from the BMW agent in Cordoba. (By then, Romero had probably decided that things could have been worse in that there was a motorbike sitting next to the green car.)
Five months later, at the Irish Open, I asked Romero if the situation had sorted itself out. He smiled and shook his head. And when, a few months further on, I asked for the latest news, he said that it was only after he and his lawyer had said “N” to an offer of £9,000 that the car had turned up at his door. This time, he viewed it with a less-jaundiced eye. Indeed, he saw its arrival as a more than minor triumph.
E-MAIL LEWINE
Lewine Mair