Minnesota Golfer - Fall 2019 - 40
BACKSPIN
Ambidextrous Aces
* BY MARK CRAIG *
Lightning never strikes twice in the same place, but
hole-in-ones can.
T
he National Hole-in-One Registry tells us that aces
are made by golfers who have played the game for an
average of 24 years.
" But not Vernon, " says Clay Geary, Gophers receiver, avid
golfer and member of an ever-growing group of people who
consider Lakeville's outgoing Vernon Lomprey a friend. " Vernon
is the luckiest guy in the world. "
Lomprey's first of two aces came right-handed, just two
weeks after he started at the age of 47, now five years ago. The
second came left-handed on Father's Day this year.
" And both were on the same hole, " said Lomprey, referring
to Crystal Lake's par-3 No. 8. " I call it 'Great V-8.' "
The National Hole-in-One Registry lists
only three people-Don Warren of Topinabee,
Mich., Jeff McDaniel of Corona, Calif.,
and Lori Boettler of Morango, Calif.-as having
aces from both sides. The latter two had
theirs on different holes, and the site where
Warren had his second ace isn't mentioned.
Lomprey isn't mentioned yet, but both
aces had witnesses and were certified by the
Minnesota Golf Association.
Lomprey's unusual tale began June 27,
2014, when he grabbed his 8-iron and
stepped to the tee box at Crystal Lake's eighth
hole, which was playing 125 yards that day.
" Each hole that day had some sort of
VERNON
LOMPREY
contest for charity, " says Lomprey, now 52
years old. " For $10, you got a cruise if you got a hole-in-one. "
" I didn't pay the 10 bucks. Why would I? "
It was his 10th full round ever. Having just retired from
Polishing Touch, the cleaning company he and wife Rebecca
started, Lomprey was on his way to shooting 100.
" I've never had a hole-in-one, and I'm there when Vernon
gets one in his second week while playing the wrong hand, "
says Geary, who shot 79 that day. " Amazing. He's shooting 100
and it goes in, and the whole group goes nuts. "
One week later, Lomprey was already frustrated by his lack
of distance and rounds in the 100s, so he began taking lessons
with Sheryl Maize, Crystal Lake's director of instruction.
" One of the first things she says is, 'Are you sure you're
right-handed? " Lomprey says.
Actually, no. He's left-handed, but he used to be a switchhitter
in baseball. Growing up, any time he ever swung a club
just messing around with friends, it was a right-handed club.
" I had just bought a new set of Callaway right-handed
clubs, " Lomprey says.
Maize noticed that Lomprey struggled turning into his left
knee as a right-handed golfer. Besides open-heart surgeries to
fix a genetic defect at ages 22 and 45, Lomprey has also had
surgeries on his left knee.
" We switched him over to left-handed, " Maize says. " Within
five swings, he picked up 20 yards. "
" I still putt right-handed, " Lomprey
says. " But I had to go back out and buy a
new set of left-handed Pings. "
Fast-forward five years to June 16,
2019.
" My brother, Jeremy, and I get paired
with Vernon at Crystal Lake, " says Ben
Kirtz. " Never met him before in our
lives, but we're coming up No. 7 and he's
telling us his hole-in-one story. "
No. 8 was playing 108 yards that day.
Lomprey, who's best round is an 81,
grabbed pitching wedge.
" The ball landed three feet behind the
hole and spun right in, " says Lomprey.
People picnicking in nearby backyards erupted. A guy started
ringing a bell. The best part was that " they all started giving
me beers, " Lomprey says.
" We were high-fiving, running around, " Kirtz says. " We
didn't even know the guy. But I doubt Vernon has ever met a
stranger in his life. "
Nor will he ever pass up another $10 hole-in-one contest,
especially at the " Great V-8. "
" Never, " he says. " Never, ever, ever. "
Mark Craig is the NFL/Vikings columnist and a golf writer for
the Star Tribune.
Minnesota Golfer - Fall 2019
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Minnesota Golfer - Fall 2019 - Cover1
Minnesota Golfer - Fall 2019 - Cover2
Minnesota Golfer - Fall 2019 - Contents
Minnesota Golfer - Fall 2019 - 2
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