A funny thing happened to me on the way to a golf game a few days ago – it had to be called off because of rain. In one of the hottest and driest summers on record, I just happened to pick a day in which it rained. On the one hand, I felt disappointed because if you’re a golfer there’s nothing worse than getting excited about getting out on the course, only to find out rain ruins it. As bad as I felt about having to take a rain check, I also felt good because I have to believe it has been a trying season for golf course operators, who have probably had to work extra hard to prevent their courses from drying up. There’s only so much sprinkling you can do.

You can say Inbee Park won the gold medal in the 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil, but really the biggest winner was women’s golf. On the biggest and most important stage in the world, the women aced it – literally and metaphorically. Park, the 28-year-old from South Korea who earlier this year met the criteria for the World Golf Hall of Fame, was a well-deserving winner, trouncing the field by five strokes and a score of 16-under-par.

For the all the hubbub controversy about problems heading into the 2016 Olympic Games, the return of golf turned out to be fantastic. It came down to a thrilling finale in the 72-hole tournament that, in the end, proved to be memorable for the players, some of whom declared after it was over about how much the experience meant to them personally and professionally.

In just a few days the world’s best golfers will compete at the Olympics for the first time since 1904. By the end of the weekend, there will be a new Olympic gold medalist in men’s golf for the first time since Canadian George Lyon claimed the title at Glen Echo Country Club 112 years ago. The question is, who will it be? Though some players have decided to stay home, the field competing in Rio will be one of the strongest of the year. That is why today we make our bets on the top-four most likely to find on the podium and what ball they’ll be using in their quest for gold.

Who could have ever guessed an island in Northern Michigan could have two golf courses, one of them associated with a historic building? I found that out while visiting Mackinac Island, specifically to see the 129-year-old Grand Hotel, which has lodged presidents and movie stars and was the site of the film Somewhere In Time. My wife, Jane, saw the film and said at some point in her life she wanted to see The Grand Hotel. So off we went from our home just west of Toronto in Mississauga. It took us about 10 hours.

The name Hawerchuk is synonymous with greatness in the National Hockey League, but it is building up a following in golf. Eric Hawerchuk, whose father Dale played 16 years in the NHL and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2001, is in his fourth year as a professional golfer. The 27-year-old plays on the Great Lakes Circuit Canada Pro Tour, and recently won the Desjardins Insurance Challenge. While he followed his father in hockey, Hawerchuk knew he’d never be good enough to be drafted into major junior, so he focused full-time on golf, playing competitively starting at the age of 12.

Every golfer dreams of scoring a hole-in-one. No matter whether you play professionally or recreationally, it’s exciting to ace a hole. At this year’s KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, 18-year-old Brooke Henderson aced the par-3 13th hole from 152 yards with a 7-iron. It was the fourth of her career. She won the tournament, too, in a playoff against Lydia Ko. It was quite a week for the Canadian phenom, ranked number four in the world at the start of the week. Henderson won a car with hole-in-one – specifically a Kia K900 – which was a prize available for any player who aced that hole. She gave the car to her elder sister, Brittany, who caddies for her.

Golf can be tough, anyone who’s ever picked up a club can tell you that. Heck, even professionals struggle every once in a while. And when things take a turn for the worse on the golf course, sometimes the only medicine for a sickly-struck shot is a “gently” tossed club.

We’ve talked about miracles on the green before – in this blog where we talked about one-in-a-million shots made by our favourite pro golfers. But then we decided – why not look further into those odds? For example, a PGA Tour Pro’s chances for a hole in one is about 1 in 3000, while an average players odds are more to the tune of one in 12,000. Further investigation revealed some pretty amazing golf feats that definitely beat the odds – by both pros and the amateurs.