Two golfers beat the odds by shooting an albatross at Dundee

DUNDEE – It has been estimated that the odds of shooting an albatross in golf as about 6 million to one.

It’s a shot many times rarer than a hole-in-one.

Also called a double eagle, an albatross is using just two shots to find the cup on a par-5 hole.

So, if the odds are six million to one, what are the odds of two golfers shooting an albatross on the same hole on the same course within a few weeks of each other?

They must be astronomical.

But that’s exactly what happened recently at Dundee Golf Club.

Bill Lietaert of Monroe accomplished the feat on Aug. 1 and Chad Waterstradt of Dundee matched it on Aug. 31.

Both did it on hole No. 4. It was playing at 475 yards when Lietaert got his and 490 for Waterstradt.

To make the odds even longer. The golfers are exactly the same age – 52.

“That is very amazing,” Waterstradt said. “It would have been neat to see his.”

Lietaert recently returned to golf after two decades away from the game.

“I played for a long time, then I quit for a long time,” he said.

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Why did he leave the course?

“I had twin boys,” he said with a laugh. “Children take all your money.”

Those twin boys, who are now 26 years old, also got him back into golf.

“They started playing and I figured I should play with them,” he said. “Last year, on Father’s Day we went out to Sandy Creek and I started playing again.”

Lietaert is part of a group of guys who play weekly at Dundee Golf Club, but his round with the albatross almost didn’t happen.

“We only had four show up because it was (Monroe County) Fair Week,” he said. “We decided to play two-on-two.”

Lietaert used his driver on No. 4.

“It went straight down the fairway, about 270 yards,” he said. “That’s about average for me. Sometimes I go 300 if I hit it just right.”

That left Lietaert about 192 yards from the pin. He pulled out a 5-iron.

“My 3-wood was too long and I didn’t have my 4-iron,” he said. “I played after the other three guys. It rolled up there, bounced on the front of the green, then disappeared.

“The other guys said, ‘It’s in the hole.’ I wasn’t sure.”

When the quartet reached the green, they found Lietaert’s ball in the cup.

“I was excited, very excited,” he said. “An albatross is more rare than a hole-in-one.”

Waterstradt also got to see his albatross drop into the hole.

He delivered a perfect drive.

“I was about 174 yards away, right in the middle of the fairway,” he said of his drive of more than 300 yards. “That’s a bit farther than normal.”

His playing partner Dan Townsend shot first and nearly had an albatross of his own. Waterstradt decided to use a hybrid.

“The guy I was playing with wound up about six inches from the hole,” he said. “Mine went right past his and went in the hole. … I just got lucky.”

Waterstradt is a very accomplished golfer who won his ninth club championship at Dundee on Aug. 20 and owns a trio of hole-in-ones.

He ranks the albatross among his greatest accomplishments.

“Everyone says it’s harder than a hole-in-one and I believe it,” he said. “I first started golfing when I was 8 years old and I am 52 now. This is the first time I’ve ever seen one. I’ve always thought about it, but I had never seen one.”

Waterstradt is a scratch golfer who plays at least twice a week.

“I am not as good as I used to be, but I might be smarter as I get older,” he said. “I truly enjoy it.”

Lietaert has never shot a hole-in-one. “No, not really,” he said when asked if an ace was his next goal. “I’m thinking about getting another albatross.”

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Two golfers land an albatross on No. 4 hole at Dundee Golf Club