Genesis Invitational
Will Zalatoris makes hole-in-one at Genesis Invitational, wins car for himself and his caddie (!)
LOS ANGELES — Making a hole-in-one is sweet. Making a hole-in-one in a tournament that is sponsored by a luxury car brand is that much sweeter.
On Friday at the Genesis Invitational, Will Zalatoris made an ace at the par-3 14th at Riviera. It instantly jumped him nine spots up the leader board, and then he instantly jumped into his caddie's arms. It was, as the kids say, a great celly.
"I think it was 180 pin back into the wind and we were just trying to hit it kind of right in the middle of that gap between the two bunkers," Zalatoris said afterward. "I just pulled it about 10 feet and it landed perfectly on the fringe and killed it. Lucky to go in. It was a nice little bonus."
As you can see, both Zalatoris and his looper, Joel Stock, seemed extra excited. For good reason. Zalatoris' miracle shot won both himself and Stock a car. Like we said, Willy Z picked a great tournament to make an uno.
"That was kind of a fun bonus," said Zalatoris. "Nice to add the shot into some of the fond memories of Peter Jacobsen hopping in the car. And same thing, Rich Beem, Beemer, same thing, hopping on top of it, so pretty fun."
For his efforts, Zalatoris will get a Genesis GV80 SUV, which, as a quick Google search shows, starts at around $57,700. Stock will receive a Genesis Electrified GV70, which is actually more expensive at $66,450. What an absolute HAUL.
Zalatoris said he went through a stretch in 2020 where he hade five holes-in-one. This was his first one since that stretch, and his 10th total. Casual.
Despite Stock getting what appears to be the better car, there will be no trade. That's a good boss right there.
"No, he can have it, absolutely, he can have it," Zalatoris said.