Standing over his ball on the driving range at Fraserglen Golf Course on Sunday morning, knowing that his next swing could net him seven figures, was an amazing opportunity for David Yaromich.
It was also incredibly stressful.
The 21-year-old construction worker from Abbotsford was one of three golfers, along with Bryan Payne and Kyle Gerard, to qualify for the finals of the Rotary Club of Abbotsford‘s Million Dollar Hole in One contest.
Over the previous eight days, golfers had purchased buckets of balls to take shots at a hole 95 yards away. Individuals advanced to Sunday’s quarter-final round based on their proximity to the pin, and others were chosen in a random drawing.
The quarter-final and semifinal results whittled the field of contenders down to the aforementioned trio, with each getting one swing to hole out from 165 yards and win $1 million.
Payne’s effort settled 32 feet, eight inches from the cup, while Gerard’s ball ended up more than 94 feet away.
Yaromich, the last to go, usually hits a seven-iron from a distance of 165 yards, but he elected to go with a six-iron on this occasion.
“I clubbed up an extra club because I was so nervous,” he said with a chuckle afterward. “It’s really nerve-wracking, that’s for sure.”
Speaking of nerve-wracking, Yaromich is planning to propose to his girlfriend this summer, and $1 million would have more than covered the costs of all those big-ticket items in his future, including an engagement ring, wedding and honeymoon. Alas, his ball wound up 27 feet, nine inches from the cup.
Finishing closest to the pin, though, yielded a prize package which included a Mercedes-Benz watch, lunch with Mayor Bruce Banman, and $500 gift certificate to the Cactus Club Cafe. Not a bad result for a relative newcomer to the sport.
“I started golfing three years ago, and I’ve just been getting better and better,” Yaromich said. “I don’t take lessons, I just practice with my brothers. We go out once or twice a week.”
The big winner was the Rotary Club of Abbotsford’s charity initiatives. The fundraising event generated just under $42,000 in sales of golf balls – a new record for the event, eclipsing the $39,000 raised last year.
The money will go towards Holmberg House, an adult hospice facility currently under construction which will be operated by the Abbotsford Hospice Society, and several other Rotary community projects.
The hospice facility is named for Dave Holmberg Jr., who died of cancer in March 2011 at the age of 48. His father, philanthropist Dave Holmberg Sr., announced during the opening ceremonies that he would match any money raised beyond $25,000.
So all told, this year’s fundraiser has generated nearly $59,000, pushing the Million Dollar Hole in One past the $400,000 plateau over its 13-year history.
“Dave’s matching really took it to another level,” marvelled event chair Hugh Ellis. “We feel wonderful about how it went. It was a great success, and we’re looking forward to next year’s event on May 31.”
Complete results posted here:
Winners list for Sunday, June 9, 2013
Top 10 in Semi-finals shooting for $100,000
1st Place Bryan Payne
2nd Place Jim Watt
3rd Place Henryk Burghardt
4th Place Brian Threlfall
5th Place Brent Wiebe
6th Place Dave Blanchard
7th Place Rick Barkwell
8th Place David Yaromich
9th Place Blair Coan
10th Place Kyle Gerard
Top 3 in Finals shooting for $1,000,000
David Yaromich
Bryan Payne
Kyle Gerard
Winners list for Saturday, June 8, 2013
1st Place Derek Currie
2nd Place Brian Threlfall
3rd Place Rick Barkwell
4th Place David Yaromich
5th Place Bradie Rogers
6th Place Andy Davies
7th Place Greg Buck
5 WINNERS OF A FREE PASS INTO THE
SUNDAY JUNE 9TH QUARTER-FINALS
Brian Stieb
Alan Champion
Sandy Watson
Tyler Coburn
Bryan Freeland
Winners list for JUNIORS on Saturday June 8, 2013
1st Place Sean Watt
2nd Place Preston Barkwell
3rd Place Matthew Guidon
4th Place Curtis Leitner
5th Place Dane Champion
6th Place Raymond Kobes
7th Place Alyssa Champion
Winners list for Friday, June 7, 2013
1st Place Bradie Rogers ACE
2nd Place Bob Simoes
3rd Place Gordon Lamb
4th Place Brock Ritchie
5th Place Eric Grant
6th Place Chris Gaudet
7th Place Rick Barkwell
5 WINNERS OF A FREE PASS INTO THE
SUNDAY JUNE 9TH QUARTER-FINALS
Shona Brown
Bill Whaley
Karen Landon
Neil Brown
Wally Remple
Winners list for Thursday, June 6, 2013
1st Place Grant McLellan ACE
2nd Place Rita Walker ACE
3rd Place Kyle Gerard ACE
4th Place Dave Parkin
5th Place Bryan Payne
6th Place Greg Buck
7th Place Brian Threlfall
5 WINNERS OF A FREE PASS INTO THE
SUNDAY JUNE 9TH QUARTER-FINALS
Jim Watt
Dave Dimen
Steve Yip
Jeff Payne
Jim Beale
Winners list for Wednesday, June 5, 2013
1st Place Dave Blanchard ACE
2nd Place Brian Threlfall
3rd Place Garry Dickinson
4th Place Brock Ritchie
5th Place Jim Watt
6th Place Brent Wiebe
7th Place Jim Stewart
5 WINNERS OF A FREE PASS INTO THE
SUNDAY JUNE 9TH QUARTER-FINALS
Bob Stacey
Kevin Clare
Dave Diamond
Karen McLean
Chris Clarke
Winners list (Ladies Only Results) for Tuesday June 4, 2013
1st Place Karen McLean
2nd Place Amanda Blanchard
3rd Place Brenda Giesbrecht
4th Place Carol Janzen
5th Place Sandy Watson
6th Place Jean Robertson
7th Place Michelle Holmberg
8th Place Sara Lawson
9th Place Pat Freeman
10th Place Maggie Fawcett
Winners list for Tuesday, June 4, 2013
1st Place Dave Parkin ACE
2nd Place Les Barkman
3rd Place Bob Wicks
4th Place Dave Holmberg
5th Place Dave Blanchard
6th Place Karen McLean
7th Place Brian Threlfall
5 WINNERS OF A FREE PASS INTO THE
SUNDAY JUNE 9TH QUARTER-FINALS
Loren Humeny
Nilde West
Brian Gaudet
Katie West
Barry Turchen
Winners list for Monday, June 3, 2013
1st Place Gordie Lamb
2nd Place Brodie Williams
3rd Place Tim Turchen
4th Place Tyler Jensen
5th Place Kyle Gerard
6th Place Brock Ritchie
7th Place Loren Humeny
5 WINNERS OF A FREE PASS INTO THE
SUNDAY JUNE 9TH QUARTER-FINALS
Derek Currie
Tim Phillips
Keith Colebank
Jim Schimnowsky
David Lordon
Winners list for Sunday, June 2, 2013
1st Place Blair Coan
2nd Place Dave Blanchard
3rd Place Rick Barkwell
4th Place Gordie Lamb
5th Place Barry Turchen
6th Place Brock Ritchie
7th Place Les Barkman
5 WINNERS OF A FREE PASS INTO THE
SUNDAY JUNE 9TH QUARTER-FINALS
Magnus Olsen
Jean Robertson
Carol Freeman
Henryk Burghardt
Barry Champion
Winners list for Saturday, June 1, 2013
1st Place Dave Blanchard
2nd Place Greg Buck
3rd Place Dave Holmberg
4th Place Les Barkman
5th Place Paul Sovio
6th Place Blaine Petruck
7th Place Andrew Hargraves
5 WINNERS OF A FREE PASS INTO THE
SUNDAY JUNE 10TH QUARTER-FINALS
Todd Chretien
Dan Denis
Andrew Nouangsouvanh
Barry Champion
Magnus Olsen
