Frank Bensel hits two holes-in-one in a row at the US Senior Open

“It was like an out-of-body experience,” Bensel said before posing for photos with the ball, 6-iron and pin flags from the fourth and fifth holes at Newport Country Club.

“I’ve played a lot of golf in my life and it’s pretty rare to see a hole-in-one in a tournament,” he said. “The first one was amazing; I made it under par for the day. And the second one, I just couldn’t believe it. The idea that it could happen was amazing.”

It was only the second time a golfer had made two holes-in-one in the same round in a USGA event since the first U.S. Amateur was held in Newport in 1895. Donald Bliss made the eighth and 10th holes in the 1987 U.S. Mid-Amateur at Brook Hollow in Dallas; because he started on the back nine, Bliss made holes-in-one on his first and 17th holes of the day.

According to the National Hole-in-One Registry, the odds of one player making two aces in the same round are 67 million to 1. The odds of making aces on consecutive holes are unknown, but few courses have consecutive par-3s like the 7,024-yard, par-70 AW Tillinghast course at the mouth of Narragansett Bay.

They were Bensel’s 13th and 14th holes-in-one in a career that includes appearances in three PGA Championships and the 2007 U.S. Open; he has never made a cut on the PGA Tour. He said his career highlight was shooting a 67 at Southern Hills during the 2021 Senior PGA Championship.

Or at least it was.

“After those two holes in one, I just didn’t know what to do anymore,” said Bensel, who teaches at Century Golf Club in Westchester County in the summer and at Mirasol in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., in the winter. “Oh yeah. Everyone’s going to want a lesson now — on a 6-iron.”

With his 14-year-old son Hagen as his caddie, Bensel was 4 over after the first round and bogeyed the second hole on Friday. When he got to hole 4, a par 3 of 173 yards, his son recommended a 7-iron, but Bensel knew he didn’t want to leave it short.

The ball landed on the front of the green, bounced a few times and rolled into the cup. On the fifth tee, Bensel pulled out his 6-iron again and aimed for the pin 202 yards away.

“I was trying to calm him down. Just bring him back, you know?” said Hagen Bensel, named after Hall of Famer Walter Hagen. “It landed perfectly. And he said, ‘How about another one?’ as it was going down.”

Frank Bensel followed up his consecutive aces with back-to-back bogeys, ending the day at 4-over 74 and surely missing the cut.

“I didn’t do anything great today, except those shots,” Bensel said. “I had hoped that I could have added many more good scores after that to make the cut, but that didn’t happen.”

Still, his club, ball and glove are on their way to the USGA museums in Liberty Corner, New Jersey, and Pinehurst, North Carolina, so Hagen Bensel will soon get a chance to see the artifacts — and learn more about his namesake.

“I don’t know much (about Walter Hagen),” he said. “I don’t pay as much attention to my parents, as much as I should. But I know he was a great golfer, one of the best to ever do it.”

When asked what awaits him now, Frank Bensel answers: “The original plan was to get some sleep and prepare for tomorrow, but that is not necessary.

“We’re going to have a good time and kick back a little bit,” he said, nodding toward his son. “He wants to play golf somewhere. Does anyone know where he can play?”

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