My son Cole first swung a golf club as a toddler. He has chased baseball and basketball wide and far, and I've had the joy of seeing home runs, double plays, diving catches, clutch 3-pointers, and dagger free throws. None of those brought tears to my eyes... Today, this young man did just that. Today, he accomplished a huge personal goal of his, and accomplished a golfer's dream while doing it. Today, my 13 year old beat me straight up, from the same tees, with no handicap strokes given (his personal goal / granted, Daddy didn't put up much of a fight today...). While doing so, he made a hole-in-one on the par 3 eighth hole at Point Mallard Golf Course, as witnessed by my dear friends and brothers Phillip and Matt Farris, and yours truly. He hit a 6-iron into the 141 yard hole, over water and sand bunker, into a quartering headwind. On several occasions, Phillip and I have looked at the plaques hanging on the walls of Point Mallard's clubhouse that state the name of everyone who has ever hit a hole-in-one on the course, including the hole, yardage, and date. These plaques go back to the 1970s. We search for the 3 instances that his father Tommy Farris's name appears. We wish that someday our names would appear (neither of us have ever had one, or even witnessed one until today). Now, I know I will forever see my son's name there... I'll know it was the first time he ever beat me. I'll know that he'll show it to my grandkids, and hopefully to his grandkids... I'll remember my tears of joy, and my pride in him. Nowhere do I see more clearly his maturing process than I do on that course, acting as a peer to grown men, competing with grown men, and forged by the ultimate gentleman's game. I am so proud of him.