WATCH: Aaron Cockerill makes hole-in-one with a 9-iron at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship round 1
Aaron Cockerill had a promising start at the 2024 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. The DP World Tour playoff event started its first round on Thursday, November 7, and Cockerill impressed fans with a hole-in-one using a 9-iron.
He had an amazing start to his debut event in the DP World Tour playoffs. Having turned professional in 2015, Cockerill finally made it to the DP World Tour playoffs nine years later.
He had a decent start on the front nine before struggling on the tenth hole when he made a double bogey. However, the Canadian golfer soon bounced back with an eagle on the 13th hole by hitting a hole-in-one from 157 yards.
The DP World Tour shared a video of Aaron Cockerill’s impressive shot on its X (formerly Twitter) account, writing:
"HOLE-IN-ONE 🚨 @A_Cockerill aces the 157 yard 13th with a 9-iron."
The first round of the 2024 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship is still underway. However, at the time of writing, Aaron Cockerill completed his round, shooting a 3-under 69.
He started his campaign with a birdie on the third hole and then added three consecutive birdies from the seventh to the ninth holes. However, he also had a bogey on the sixth hole on the front nine.
On the back nine, he carded a double bogey, a bogey, a birdie, and an eagle to finish with a 69, and is currently tied for 39th place.
Meanwhile, Thorbjorn Olesen had a stunning opening round in the DP World Tour event, shooting a 9-under 63. Johannes Veerman also shot a 9-under 63, tying him for the lead.
Aaron Cockerill shared his excitement to play at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship
Ahead of the 2024 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, the first playoff event of the DP World Tour, Aaron Cockerill expressed his excitement over competing in the tournament.
Making his debut in the DP World Tour playoffs and still seeking his maiden win, the Canadian golfer took to his Instagram account and wrote:
"Very excited this week to be playing in the playoffs for this first time on the @dpworldtour Happy to have my family here and getting the opportunity to play so close to home. Amazing course and conditions for us at @yaslinksad ⛳️"
The 2024 Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship is a four-day event and will conclude on November 10. The tournament marks the start of the DP World Tour playoffs and features only the top 70 players in the Race to Dubai rankings. After this week's event, the top 50 in the standings will head to the season-ending DP World Tour Championship.