Dr. Steven Carlow had no idea where his tee shot ended up on the sixth hole during a recent round at Great Neck Country Club in Waterford.

He just felt good about his drive.

"My drive was headed right at the pin," Dr. Carlow said. "It is uphill over traps, so you can't see a thing. No clue other than I thought it was going on the green."

When he couldn't locate his golf ball, he checked out the backside of the green without any luck.

He never considered looking in the cup on the 270-yard, par-four hole, until his playing partners suggested to do just that.

Dave Sousa delivered the good news.

"It's in the hole," Sousa said.

Dr. Carlow's reaction?

"You're kidding."

Dr. Carlow's first hole-in-one came on a par-four hole that no one, at least in Great Neck pro Kevin Shea's memory, has ever aced.

"A lot of good golfers could probably reach it but he doesn't remember a hole in one," Carlow said of his conversation with Shea.

He pulled off the feat while playing in the 8th Annual Bill Bentley Memorial Tournament in late July. Scott Olmstead, Jeremy Fields and Sousa witnessed the ace.

"I think Bill Bentley was looking down on us that day at his memorial tournament and somehow got it in there because no one actually saw it go in…," he said. "I think Bill Bentley somehow steered it in."

His lucky day would have been even luckier if he aced the next hole - the seventh. It would have been worth a $15,000 prize.

Dr. Carlow, an orthopedic surgeon, belonged to the club for about 12 years during the New London Country Club days. He's now a member at Stonington Country Club.

He's had a memorable summer. His daughter, Allison, recently got married. The day before the wedding, he enjoyed a round of golf with his two sons.

This weekend, he'll be in Johnson City, Tenn., watching Kevin pitch for the St. Louis Cardinals' Rookie League baseball team. Kevin, who graduated from Brown and Fitch High School, is a middle reliever. After a rocky start, he's performed well lately, throwing five scoreless innings and allowing two hits while striking out seven in his last three appearances.

"He's doing okay," Dr. Carlow said. "The level is really pretty impressive."

It's a safe bet that he'll squeeze in a few more rounds of golf before the summer ends. He still has his lucky golf ball.

He almost forgot to put it aside.

"I think I was in shock, so I actually didn't put it right in my bag until a couple of holes later…," he said. "I washed it and it's still in my bag."

Short putts

• The Shennecossett Golf Course men's club championship will be decided this weekend.

In Saturday's semifinals, Steve Chevalier faces Ken Wetmore, a five-time champion, and 2010 champ Gary Jones plays Mark LaPietra.

Chevalier, the medalist in qualifying with a 3-under 139 (69-70), beat Tim Sisk in the quarterfinals on Sunday. Wetmore defeated Sean Grimsey and Jones knocked off Bill Ernst.

The A Flight semifinals will pit Tom Kiely against Carl Neville and Brad King versus Dave Murray.

Championship Sunday will be a 36-hole format, teeing off at 9 a.m.

• Roger Dionne shot a 75 to win the junior flight - ages 70 and over - at the Norwich Senior Invitational Golf Tournament on July 31. George Dumas took first in the sophomore flight (60-69) with a 71 and Dave Jones beat Tom Ward in a sudden death playoff to capture the freshman flight (50-59).

In the net competition, Jim Leone was the first freshman while Mike Bonagura and Walt Streigle tied for top sophomore and Bruce Foss won the junior division.

• Pete Stefanski defended his Elmridge men's club championship on Sunday, beating Dave Award, 3 and 2. He also won the club's senior title earlier this summer and set the course record in May.

• Adam Rainaud of Black Hall Club in Old Lyme has dominated the Connecticut PGA Assistant Championship in recent years, winning three of the last four titles including last year on his home course. He'll try for his fourth win overall on Aug. 19 at the Country Club of Woodbridge.

Tim Shaw (Old Lyme CC), Eric Smith (Black Hall), John Fuller (Old Lyme) and Gabe Carr-Harris (Stonington CC) also plan to play.

Rainaud earned the Assistants' Association Player of the Year last year.

• Phil Perry of Black Hall Club is expected to be one of the contenders at the 27th Connecticut Mid-Amateur Championship on Aug. 19-20 at Hop Meadow Country Club in Simsbury. He finished second last year.

Other local golfers in the field include: Bill Hermanson, Ron Soccoli, Jr., Black Hall Club; James Lawler, Dave Jones, Tony Susi and William Machnicki, Mohegan Sun Country Club at Pautipaug.

Upcoming events

• Shennecossett's member-guest tournament will take place on Sunday, Aug. 17. Cost is $125 per team. Stop by the pro shop to sign up.

• Elmridge is holding its member-guest tournament on the weekend of Aug. 16-17. The two-day, 36-hole, Four Balls stroke play event costs $180 per team. Golfers will play two different courses - White/Blue and Red/White. There will be a 1 p.m. shotgun start each day.

• Fox Hopyard Golf Club in East Haddam is hosting the CSGA's 33rd Senior Four Ball Championship on Aug. 25.

• The Mohegan Sun Country Club at Pautipaug will be the site of the 53rd PGA Pro-Am Championship on Oct. 6.

Staff writer Gavin Keefe covers local golf for The Day

Twitter: @GavinKeefe