After more than twenty years participating in the American Century Championship, Tim Brown finally achieved a hole-in-one.
The former Raiders wide receiver and NFL Hall of Famer made the shot at the 143-yard par-3 12th hole during the second round of the celebrity golf tournament at Edgewood Tahoe Resort in Nevada. Brown’s tee shot went straight into the cup, leading to a joyous celebration with his playing partners Marcus Allen and Jerome Bettis.
As the first player to achieve a hole-in-one at the 12th hole, Brown was awarded a MasterCraft boat that was conveniently placed near the tee box.
“I didn’t hit it the way I wanted to,” Brown said. “I was trying to hit it up to the right and I pulled it a little bit. I was starting to complain and noticed the ball was going at the hole. Of course I didn’t think it was going to go in. But then the crowd up there went crazy, and I didn’t even know about the boat.”
This ace marked the fifth of Brown’s career, with previous ones at Augusta National and TPC Sawgrass. Brown, a former Heisman Trophy winner at Notre Dame, has been a regular participant in the ACC, with this year marking his 24th appearance. He finished the round in eighth place with 17 points.
“I thought it was going to be short. All of a sudden you saw the people up there go nuts, and so it was sort of delayed reaction for us because we couldn’t see the ball go in the hole,” Brown said. “But it’s quite the moment. It’s one of those things you dream about, but everything is going to happen. So it was great.”
Brown, known for his remarkable career in the NFL, spent 16 seasons with the Raiders before finishing his career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He amassed impressive stats, including 14,934 yards and 100 touchdowns. Brown was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2015.