One-Armed Golfer Gets Hole-in-One: 'Golf Gave Me the Will to Live'
An Irish golfer celebrated his first ever hole-in-one after learning to play the sport following an accident that left him with only one arm. He credits golf with saving his life.
SportsGNGV Editorial Team4 min readLast reviewed September 28, 2026
Patrick Duke, 67, beat the odds of 100,000 to 1 when he hit the perfect tee shot on the fourth hole at Overstone Park in England. The Irishman learned golf after a 2012 workplace accident that changed his life. "I'm not very good at golf, but it's saved my life," Pat told SWNS.
"Golf is not my game: I'm 280 pounds and 6-foot-2; my games were always rugby, Gaelic football, soccer and cricket. I couldn't see a way back for me, at times, but then a friend asked me if I had ever played golf." He developed his own one-armed technique with help from a pro.
