Local golfer drops hole-in-one

SANDPOINT — As holes-in-one go, this one was certainly a beast.

Sandpoint golfer Joe Bopp, 29, notched his third career hole-in-one Sunday at Stoneridge, acing the 255-yard hole No. 8 by striping a 3-wood directly at the flag stick and watching it one-hop into the cup.

“I pured it,” said Bopp, using a word that only a golfer would understand. “It took one hop and disappeared. We walked up and looked in the hole, and there it was.”

Bopp was playing with Sandpoint golfing buddies Dana Martin, Jody Martin and Haven Burton, and as tradition mandates, Bopp bought the group celebratory drinks after the round.

The group was playing the blue tees, and the pin was back on an already lengthy par 3.

“The guy behind us said, Lay it up short,’ ” recalled Dana Martin, who called Bopp one of the top golfers in Sandpoint. “Joe said, ‘No, I’m going pin hunting.’ Sure enough, it went in.”

Bopp, who not surprisingly carries a three handicap, recorded an ace at the old Hidden Lakes course when he was 16-years-old, and also had a hole-in-one years ago at La Quinta, Calif. Due to the gaudy length of the hole and the nature of the shot, the latest definitely sticks out.

“Amazing, it sits right on top,” said Bopp, who doesn’t think he’s through making the ultimate golf shot. “As much as I play, I better get some more.”