Aliyah Ravenell knew she had hit a good tee shot as soon as it left her club. It wasn’t until she saw where the ball ended up that she realized just how good it was.
There the ball was, 127 yards away from where she clubbed it — at the bottom of the cup on Hole No. 7 at the Rolling Hills Golf Course.
“I was like, ‘whoa,’” she said.
Holes-in-one are reasons to celebrate for any golfer. But Aliyah is 10 years old, a fifth-grader. As she fished her ball from the bottom of the cup on Aug. 5, her father, Tremain, and the rest of their group continued to search for their own tee shots.
The clubhouse at Rolling Hills had already closed for the day, so they went back the following morning to get Aliyah’s name in the course record books.
Hitting a hole-in-one at any age is exceedingly rare. According to the National Hole-in-One Registry, the odds of an average player making an ace are 12,000 to 1. While 16% of those who fire holes-in-one are female, the average age of the fortunate golfer is 55. The average hole length for a hole-in-one is 143 yards — within 20 feet of the length of Rolling Hills’ No. 7.
While no one could have predicted Aliyah’s hole-in-one, it’s also not the case of beginner’s luck.
The Ravenells have a history with the sport. Tremain’s uncle Hank is a former PGA professional who used to run a junior golf program at El Rio Golf Course. He trained Tucson High grad Danny Medina, who went on to win the PGA Southwest Section Professional of the Year in 2018.
Hank Ravenell now serves as Aliyah’s personal swing coach, with lessons taking place every week. Aliyah first picked up the sport a year ago, starting a journey that she and her dad hope is the beginning of something special.
Aliyah has time to climb the ranks. Her profile on the Ricki Rarick Junior Golf Program’s website rightly points out her high school graduation year as 2028.
Playing golf is “peaceful,” she said. “I like it a lot.”
Tremain Ravenell and his daughter, Aliyah, at the Rolling Hills Golf Course clubhouse on Aug. 6, one day after she hit a hole-in-one on Hole No. 7.
Tremain Ravenell has also played an active part in his daughter’s golf development. The two play together at least once a week, usually waking up around 5 a.m. to secure one of the coveted early tee times. It helps that they live in the neighborhood that borders the Rolling Hills Golf Course on Tucson’s far east side.
When Aliyah isn’t competing against her dad — and often beating him — she takes part in the First Tee of Tucson program that develops golf skills in youth and reinforces core values.
“Integrity and responsibility,” Aliyah said, proudly.
Tremain Ravenell, who works as an associate director of development at the UA, said he’s proud of his daughter’s recent achievement and amazed at her ability to pick up the game so quickly.
“She’s been a natural,” he said.
