Stan shoots an Eagle

Photo by Tom Story

Stan with his eyewitness, celebrating at the CreeksBend 19th hole.
Greg's credentials are impeccable. He was a member of  the First Lutheran
Church in Alexandria --  where he and Stan never missed Sunday School.

No one in the threesome actually saw it happen. Sun, shadows and old eyes prevented clear observation of this singularly rare event. So when Stan approached the flag on the Par 5 No. 9 at New Prague's CreeksBend Golf Course and didn't see his ball today, the first place he looked was on the back side of the green. Victimized by ill-founded optimism many times before, he didn't want to jinx himself. So it was his playing partner, Greg Johnson, who actually discovered the ball down in the cup.
"Eagle," he declared simply, looking up, flagstick in hand.
Neighbor Tom Story and Stan have been out together many times in the past, but this was the first time either had played with Stan's childhood friend. Greg and Stan grew up in Alexandria, attending the same church and graduating from high school together. He was Mayo and Pearl's kid.

Tom

Greg was promptly awarded an assist for Stan's Eagle. Greg wears a handy-dandy range-finding Garmin (Costco, $149) on his left wrist and therefore was able to tell Stan that he was positioned exactly 113 yards from the pin on his third stroke, which happens to be the perfect distance for Stan's nine iron -- when he hits it properly and all the planets are in alignment.
Besides golf, some talk today was about Vietnam, where both Tom and Greg served in areas not too far distant. Then there was old home stuff: Greg took piano from Stan's Dad, hated it. Skipped out by steering his bicycle in the wrong direction on his way to the dreaded lessons. In Junior High, it was learned today, Greg and Stan were both asked out on separate occasions by the same really cute girl. Dumbfounded, both had dropped the ball.
Stories and laughter abounded, making it clear that it's not about the golf or the occasional accidental Eagle. It's about the beautiful fall day, lasting friendships and good times spent together.
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Personal footnote to Stan's sister Sosie:
An Eagle is a good thing that happens very rarely in golf. On a Par 5, you have five hits of the ball to get the ball in the hole and that's a good thing if you do (Par for the course). If you get the ball in the hole in just four hits, that's called a Birdie and that's a very good thing. However, if you get the ball in the hole in just three hits, that's an Eagle and that's a very, very good thing. Actually, it's more an accident than skill, but we like to think of it as pure skill nonetheless, and worthy of accolades and congratulations. So go ahead.