BATTLE CREEK – Norm Kersten is not your typical 90 year old.
He still plays golf once a week.
Heck, when the snow flies, he still goes downhill skiing.
So, whatever he does, shouldn’t come as a big surprise to his family and friends.
But for his golfing buddies, even this was a shocker.
The 90-years-young Kersten hit a hole-in-one at Cedar Creek Golf Club earlier this month, playing during his normal Tuesday morning time slot with his ‘Maple Hills Gang’ crew.
“I saw it go in the hole. It was perfect off the tee. It was amazing to see. This will be a a story I will be telling forever…. the day I saw a 90-year-old hit a hole-in-one,” said Roger Steele, who is part of the group that plays with Kersten each week.
Kersten hit a 5-wood on the 126-yard No. 16 hole at Cedar Creek and the result was a shock to everyone, including the guy swinging the club.
“How do you know how something like this happens? You just hit the ball, like you have done all of your life, and then, one of the guys says, ‘I think it went in,” Kersten said. “I said, ‘nah’, and then we start heading up to the hole. I had a stroke sometime ago and I don’t see real well. I see a few white balls up there on the green and, sure enough, we look in the cup and it was in the hole.
“The guys kids me because I don’t hit the ball very far, but it always goes right down the middle. And, this time it went right in the hole, too.”
Kersten, who has been playing golf for 74 years, is a retired teacher from Southeastern Junior High in the Battle Creek Public School system, where he was also a longtime football coach.
The playing group for Kersten included Glenn Ross and Al Lynd as well as Steele. Each came away amazed.
“You see someone hit a hole-in-one, that makes your day,” Ross said. “When you see someone do it who is 90 years old, it just tells you anything is possible. Age is not a factor.”
Cris Vocke, the longtime owner of Cedar Creek Golf Club, has seen a lot of golf in his career and several holes-in-one. He added there have been five holes-in-one on his course this summer. But he had never seen anything like this.
“We had a 78-year-old hit a hole-in-one earlier this year, that was kinda rare,” Vocke said. “But 90 years old. Never seen that. You don’t even hear about anything like that ever happening.”
Kersten doesn’t have an explanation, but he does credit a little heavenly help for what happened with his swing that day.
“I was watching the Tigers. I am a Cubs fan, so I don’t usually watch the Tigers, but it was pretty exciting at the end of the year this year,” Kersten said. “Anyway, you remember when (Kerry) Carpenter hit that big 3-run home run and the gal puts a microphone up and asks him about it and he says, it was all due to the grace of God. That’s how I felt hitting that hole-in-one. It was just by the grace of God that the ball went in.”
And, even more remarkable, it was the third hole-in-one he has had in his lifetime, with the other two coming almost a lifetime ago.
So, he was asked. Any more aces in his future?
“I’m going to keep playing, I know that. At my age, you have to keep going. If you don’t, life is gone, so you have to keep going,” Kersten said.
“But, I was thinking. I have hit a hole-in-one three times now. That’s about one every 30 years. So, now I have to wait 30 more years for another one.”
Bill Broderick can be reached at bbroderi@battlecreekenquirer.com. Follow him on X/Twitter: @billbroderick.
This article originally appeared on Battle Creek Enquirer: Ex-Battle Creek teacher Norm Kersten gets hole-in-one at 90 years old
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