Horsey's Hole in One

David Horsey’s spectacular hole-in-one in the final round of the Trophée Hassan II has been voted by fans as The European Tour Shot of the Month for March. It is the second successive month that a hole-in-one has been voted as the Shot of the Month following Alvaro Quiros’ similar feat in the Dubai Desert Classic and, like Quiros’ ace, Horsey’s perfect shot propelled him to victory. Tied for the lead heading into the final round at Golf du Palais Royal in Agadir, Morocco, Horsey birdied the first hole before sending his five iron tee shot on the second straight into the cup from 180 yards.In the blink of an eye he was three shots clear, and while he was pegged back as the final round unfolded, the Englishman prevailed in a play-off against the defending champion Rhys Davies of Wales and Jaco Van Zyl of South Africa to claim his second European Tour title. Horsey’s ace polled more than 45% of the votes cast by fans on My European Tour, narrowly beating Kenneth Ferrie’s audacious attempt at the first 59 in European Tour history into second place.Ferrie was enjoying the round of his life on day three of the Open de Andalucia de Golf by Turkish Airlines, but his attempt to become the first player to break the 60 barrier on The European Tour looked to be well and truly over when he found trouble off the tee on the last. Needing to hole his second shot, Ferrie conjured an incredible recovery from the rough, hitting a six iron shot over the trees which came within a whisker of dropping into the hole and making history.Raphaël Jacquelin’s shot to the fifth hole during the final round of the Sicilian Open at Donnafugata Golf Resort and Spa claimed third place in the monthly competition, his beautiful approach stopping inches from the cup to set up a birdie which helped carry the Frenchman to his third European Tour title. For one lucky fan who voted for Horsey’s ace, a fantastic golfing break to Estonia beckons with a two-night stay in a golf villa at the stunning Estonian Golf & Country Club, plus unlimited golf on both the Stone and Sea Courses during the stay. Estonian Golf & Country Club is a European Tour Course, and the official venue of the Omega Mission Hills World Cup European Qualifier in 2009 and 2011. Regarded as Estonia’s finest golfing venue, it has taken its rightful place in Golf World Magazine’s prestigious Top 100 European Courses, a spectacular achievement for a venue in an emerging golf nation. The winners of each Shot of the Month Award will be put forward for The European Tour Shot of the Year, won last season by Graeme McDowell for his unforgettable birdie putt on the 16th green of The Celtic Manor Resort which helped Europe regain The Ryder Cup. The monthly winners so far are Paul Casey (January) and Alvaro Quiros (February).