BROUSSARD — Pat Sheffield may have had to hit a 1-iron, where many of the players were hitting 4- and 5-irons.

"Garrett Theriot was hitting right behind me," Sheffield said, "and he was hitting a 6. That’s the difference between him being 30 years old and me being 54."

But Sheffield had the last laugh Sunday, when his 1-iron landed 15 feet, eight inches from the pin on Le Triomphe’s difficult eighth hole.

That was the best shot in the finals of the Cypress Bayou Casino $1 Million Hole-In-One Shootout, and earned Sheffield a $1,000 gift certificate from the Chitimacha Louisiana Open.

"It’s like the old saying, me and God are the only two on the planet that can hit a 1-iron," Sheffield said. "It’s one of my favorites and I usually hit it pretty well."

Sheffield hit it well enough to rank as the best out of 50 total players who attempted the 182-yard shot in the annual kickoff event of the Louisiana Open.

Of that group — all of whom had to qualify for the finals at earlier events over the past three weekends — 13 found the green on one of Le Triomphe’s most difficult par-threes.

Nick Carroll was close behind Sheffield with a second-place shot that finished 16′ 4" from the pin and earned a $400 prize, while Bo Boudreaux finished third with a shot 20′ 7" from the flag.

A hole-in-one in Sunday’s final round would have been worth $1 million to the lucky golfer, but for the 20th straight year no one claimed the top prize. The Hole-In-One Shootout has been the first event of the Open every year of the tournament’s 20-year history.

The Shootout benefitted Krewe Des Chiens, an umbrella group that supports animal shelters and animal aid organizations throughout Acadiana. The group is best known for the Parade for Dogs held during Mardi Gras, but works year-round to support animal welfare groups like the Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF).

Nancy Tabb Marcantel, ARF founder/president and one of Acadiana’s best-known musical artists, spoke on behalf of the animal rescue groups.

"There are a huge number of animals in need of care and adoption," said Marcantel, "and fund-raising events like this are a big help in allowing us to care for shelter animals. It also helps us get the word out on how important it is for people to adopt our shelter animals"

Sheffield, a member of UL Lafayette’s Ragin’ Cajun golf team in his college days, hit 43rd out of the 50 players attempting the shot, and never wavered from his club selection.

"Everybody was hitting 4- and 5-irons," he said, "but I knew that (the 1-iron) was what I needed to hit. It cut into the wind pretty good, and looked like it went right over the top of the flag. It looked good all the way from where I was."

The Louisiana Open begins full-scale activities Monday with the Dwight Andrus Insurance Pro-Am beginning at 9 a.m. at Le Triomphe, and open qualifying for the 14 remaining spots in the field running all day Monday at The Wetlands and The Farm d’Allie courses. Practice rounds for the Nationwide Tour field are scheduled Tuesday and two more pro-am events are set for Wednesday prior to the start of championship play Thursday morning over the 7,061-yard Le Triomphe layout.

Hole-in-One Top 10

1. Pat Sheffield 15-8

2. Nick Carroll 16-4

3. Bo Boudreaux 20-7

4. Wayne Delcambre 21-6

5. Garrett Theriot 22-6

6. Carlos Espinosa 24-11

7. Bobby Foret 26-7

8. Kenny Crockett 26-8

9. Justin Muller 26-9

10. Cecil Guilbeau 29-2

Athletic Network Footnote: Click below for Pat Sheffield’s AN Profile

 http://athleticnetwork.net/site.php?pageID=55&profID=3457