Acing the Course Record

The hole-in-one note below reminded me again of the queen of aces, Jacqueline Gagne. Gagne is the California woman who claims 16 aces since January.

Incredible, certainly, but for one cryptic comment made in passing in a Golf World blurb about her, Gagne's hole-in-one claims have so far checked out for any media outlet that has publicized its investigation of them. She was even caught on video holing out from the tee box.

But aces aren't the only unlikely thing Gagne has been doing this year. No, she reportedly has also been setting course records with microscopically low scores.

Back in July, Gagne claimed to set a course record at Eagle Falls Golf Course in Indio, Calif., with a round of 66. Later in the month, she claimed to have broken that record with a round of 61. These recordsetting rounds were acknowledged in the Palm Springs, Calif., newspaper, and later included in lengthy profile of Gagne that appeared in the newspaper on Aug. 27.

Let's consider this. Throw out the 66, it's not the lowest score anymore. Think about that 61. To me, that 61 is much more impressive and much harder to believe - and so requires stronger verification - than the aces. Gagne is a 47-year-old woman. How many 47-year-old women shoot 61s? Juli Inkster is a 47-year-old woman, and it's certainly within the realm of possibility for Inkster to shoot 61 at that age, but I doubt she's done it (and I know she hasn't done it in competition this year).

Just what is Gagne's skill level supposed to be? I recall in the earliest reports of her aces descriptions of her as an amateur, a recreational golfer - nothing to suggest she was extraordinarily talented. The clip in which she is caught on tape holing out from the tee displayed a swing that didn't appear extraordinary. Later, in July, she appeared on "The Today Show," with Peter Kostis, and her swing appeared much better than it had in the earlier clip, and Kostis came away impressed. That appearance happened during the time she was allegedly setting course records back in Palm Springs. (See the video here.) So perhaps she made remarkable progress in a very short amount of time.

I've put together a little timeline of press descriptions of Gagne's game combined with the mentions of her course records. It goes like this:

• 
  
• May 18: An article by the Wall Street Journal's Numbers Guy on May 18 says:
  
  
  Still Ms. Gagne persists in defying the numbers. She has a seven handicap, better than the typical amateur.
• Early July (specific date unknown): Shoots course-record 66 at Eagle Falls.
• July 10: Gagne is quoted in a newspaper article:
  
  
  "I'm not a serious golfer, but I've had to become a serious golfer," said Gagne, the Rancho Mirage, Calif., resident who gained international fame for scoring 14 aces between January and May. "I play for the fun, to go out and have a great time. But after all of these holes in one happened, you kind of have to get a little more serious about your game and play every shot."
• Late July (specific date unknown): Shoots course record 61 at Eagle Falls.
• Aug. 27: Article in Palm Springs, Calif., newspaper mentions the records:
  
  
  In the last few years, her handicap has plummeted to 6 or 7. "When I shot a 76 on the Dinah Shore course, one of the toughest here, my game came to a new level," Gagne says.

  ...

  The holes-in-one are exciting, but Gagne seems every bit as excited about breaking the club record at Eagle Falls Golf Course in Indio. She broke the record earlier in July with a 66, then broke her own record with a 61 later in the month -- shot from the Falcon tees.

  
  

Something's not right here. In May, Gagne was allegedly a 7 handicap. Perhaps the WSJ was lagging behind improvement in Gagne's game. Perhaps she'd improved significantly by then ... except that in late August, the hometown paper is still mentioning a "6 or 7 handicap" (albeit while being very imprecise about the time element). Only after noting that handicap does the article report a round of 66 and then one of 61, each shot a month earlier.

Let's be clear: It is impossible for a "6 or 7 handicap" player to shoot a 61 on a regulation golf course. It cannot be done. A 6 or 7 handicap is averaging somewhere around 80. And all of sudden she throws a 61 out there?

No. Something is seriously off in this picture. And maybe it's just the descriptions of Gagne's game that have appeared in these articles.

But throw out the handicap (a check of GHIN finds no listing for Gagne, which shouldn't be surprising since she's started accepting endorsement deals and so is no longer an amateur).

A 61 by any woman who is not a member of the LPGA Tour is incredible. Much less a 47-year-old woman with no history of competitive tournament golf. On the LPGA Tour, 99.5 percent of the golfers have never shot 61 in a tour event; 95 percent have probably never shot 61 in any tournament anywhere; 60 percent have probably never shot 61 under any circumstances.

The most recent LPGA Media Guide I have is from 2005. Through the 2004 season, in the entire history of the LPGA, there had been only nine rounds of 61 or better on tour. There have been a few more since then, but the number is still miniscule.

I attempted to contact a couple people involved in the Gagne story, including the golf beat writer at the local newspaper, and the manager at the golf course where these records were allegedly posted. Nobody was willing to get back to me. That could mean one of three things:

1. They're tired of having outsiders question the veracity of Gagne's claims and the community is closing ranks around her.
   
2. The community itself questions Gagne's claims, confidence in her is waning, and they just don't want to talk about it anymore.
   
3. They ain't interested in talking to no damn blogger!