IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Bob Denney October 9, 2011 561/624-8582 [email protected]

TRIO OF THREE RECORD ACES ON SAME HOLE AT 23rd SOUTHWORTH SENIOR PGA PROFESSIONAL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

ALDIE , Va. – The 17th hole at Creighton Farms was the site of some extraordinary feats during the final two rounds of the 23rd Southworth Senior PGA Professional National Championship.

Perry Arthur of Plano, Texas and Mark Kirk of East Aurora, N.Y., each recorded a hole-in-one on the par-3 17th hole – coming 90 minutes apart – at Creighton Farms in Aldie, Va., during the third round, while Mike Gray of Jupiter, Fla., aced the hole during the final round.

Both Arthur and Kirk used a 5-iron from 197 yards during the third round to secure the first two aces of the week.

It was the first ace in competition for Kirk, a PGA assistant professional at Crag Burn Golf Club in East Aurora, N.Y.

“There was a lot of luck involved,” said Kirk. “I didn’t see it go in, but I knew I hit a good shot. The ladies started yelling at the green and that was when I knew it went in the hole.”

Arthur, a PGA teaching professional at Sherrill Park Golf Course in Richardson, Texas, posted his ninth race in competition and 11th overall.

“It was a low draw, the green slopes just that way and the pin was the middle so everything funneled right to it,” said Arthur. “When we walked up we started wondering if it had gone in, and sure enough it was sitting at the bottom of the cup.”

Gray, the 54-year-old PGA head professional at Indian Creek Country Club in Indian Creek Village, Fla., used a 4-iron to ace the 208-yard hole.

“It was a great time for me to get a hole-in-one,” said Gray. “I was 5 over par for the day before I got to the hole. I shook the hand of Mark Kirk (of East Aurora, N.Y.), who knocked it in yesterday. That must have been the good karma I needed.”

Gray finished with a 3-over-par 75, and finished tied for 17th, to guarantee a berth in the 73rd Senior PGA Championship presented by KitchenAid, to be contested May 24-27, 2012, at Harbor Shores in Benton Harbor, Mich.

Gray’s ace was the fifth of his career, and came 10 years after he posted an ace at Countryside Golf & Country Club in St. Petersburg in a casual round. “The ball never left the flag. I said, ‘Go in!’” said Gray. “We never saw the ball once it got to the green, though, and then found it in the hole. It hit about five feet in front of the hole and rolled in from there. I had hit a 4-iron yesterday on the hole and a 5-iron the day before.”