Hundreds Of Entrants Vie For $1 Million Grand Prize At Kentucky Derby Hole-in-one Contest

It has been 29 years since anybody claimed the grand prize bragging rights – or more importantly the $1 million haul that goes with it – in the annual Kentucky Derby Festival Hole-In-One contest, but who knows – this could be the year.

With prize money of that magnitude up for grabs and at just $1 per ball (and with 10 free balls being thrown in with the purchase of a $7 Pegasus Pin), it is easy to see why hundreds – if not thousands – will try their luck and test their skill to claim the cash. The contest is set to take place starting with a preliminary round running from April 19 through the 29th at the Seneca Golf Course Driving Range in Louisville, with the qualifying golfers advancing to the semifinals on Sunday, April 29 at 6 p.m. The final round of the contest will be held Tuesday, May one at Hole No. 8 on the Senaca Golf Course’s front nine, with the remaining players looking to score a cool mil.

Although nobody – not a once in a lifetime kind of lucky newbie nor even a certified scratch golfer – has been able to nab the whole million dollars by sinking a hole-in-one at the driving range of the prestigious course during the Derby Week festivities that is no reason for interested players to despair. Fueling hope that the trend of nearly three decades without an outright winner could be bucked this year, the event’s show runners are offering $5,000 to the golfer that comes closest to a hole-in-one even if they come short of actually making the shot. While no one from the Kentucky Derby Festival has issued a comment as to why they are so eager to part with the same unclaimed $1 million the organization has been holding onto for almost 30 years, we can only assume the folks running the show want to pose with a huge cardboard check.

Kevin Greenwell, the PGA pro stationed at Seneca Golf Course for the last 20 years’ worth of Kentucky Derby Festival activities, has seen just about everything that the contestants have thrown at the Hole-In-One competition. Accordingly, Greenwell has some sage wisdom for the folks lining up to take a swing at the million bucks that will – hopefully – go to the winner this year. Greenwell said that, while actually winning such a contest will come down to a lot of luck on the part of the victor, getting right with the Lord probably would be a good starting point if one really wants to stand the best chance.

“Start by going to church on Sunday,” he reportedly told local Louisville reporters, and only somewhat jokingly too. “But more seriously, the final yardage for the men is 150 yards and 135 yards for the women. I recommend that whatever club they use to hit that distance, that they practice a lot with it between qualifiers and the finals.”

Greenwell’s longtime involvement at the event comes down to his enjoyment working with the staff that actually runs the Hole-In-One contest and the inventiveness they bring to each year’s event. It really is work to continue drawing in new contestants every year, he said, and that is despite the gargantuan prize money on offer for whomever can nail the once in a lifetime shot. New for this year’s golf contests are a longest drive competition on April 25, and the Seneca Golf Course is also running several promotions aimed at bringing in seniors, junior players, first responders, military veterans and women. Seneca is offering discounted rates for golfers in those categories over a few days leading up to the Hole-In-One shootout during Derby Week.

Even if you do not have plans to participate in any of the above contests, the PGA pro said the opportunity for some prime people watching is almost too good to pass up. As one might imagine, a competition for up to a one million dollar prize will assuredly bring out some, shall we say “unique,” people vying for the life altering sum of money.

“Some people take it so very seriously and really think they are going to win that million dollars,” Greenwood told the press members gathered for a promo of the Derby Week contests. “Others just come out to have fun with a friend, and they say ‘Hey, it’s a great cause. What better [organization] could I give to as a Louisvillian than the Kentucky Derby Festival?’”

All moneys taken in by the Derby Week golf activities at Seneca Golf Course are donated to benefit the Kentucky Derby Festival.

If you think you have got what it takes to seal the deal on a hole-in-one shot and are in the area – or even if you aren’t – there are a heck of a lot of worse ways to spend you Tuesday than trying to win a million buckaroos. KentuckyDerbyPreview.com just wants you to be aware: you have to actually make the hole-in-one on the day of the finals in order to win the grand prize. For more information, head on over to http://discover.kdf.org for all the details about how you can get in on the action and maybe, just maybe, break that 29-year winless streak at the start of the 2018 Derby Week.

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