Holes-in-one old hat for Duluth boy

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Duluth’s Jonah Wehr knocked in his second hole-in-one in as many years Tuesday at the Northland Country Club.

Impressive feat. Most golfers can play a lifetime and never notch one ace, let alone two.

But Wehr still has a lifetime of golf ahead of him. He’s a 13-year-old eighth-grader at Holy Rosary School and he’s been an old hand at local courses for years.

The right-handed youngster strolled up to Northland’s No. 8 hole (the course’s longest par 3), grabbed a driver and 176 yards later the ball landed in the hole.

“It bounced a few times and rolled toward the hole, but didn’t look like it was going to make it,” Wehr said. “But then it went in.

“It felt really awesome.”

Wehr had a similar reaction a year ago when he conquered Northland’s 120-yard No. 17. His weapon of choice? An 8-iron.

A 13-year-old walking around the Twin Ports with two hole-in-ones highlighting his early golf resume may seem unbelievable, but as Wehr’s mother, Kelly Johnson, describes it, “we’re a big golfing family.”

It’s still early, but that might be the understatement of 2012.

Wehr’s grandpa, Harley Johnson, 74, has golfed his entire life without firing a hole-in-one, but he has achieved an even rarer feat. He has three double eagles. Harley’s brother, Kyle, has a pair of aces, too, but those were accumulated over the course of about 40 years. An even younger member of the Wehr family, Jonah’s 9-year-old cousin, Zeb, notched his first hole-in-one last summer at the Cloquet Country Club.

Wehr’s 12-year-old brother, Sam, plays a lot of golf, too, but he is still searching for his first ace. Judging from his lineage, though, he won’t be waiting too long to get his.

Wehr’s love of golf was kick-started by Harley more than eight years ago.

“He gave Sam and I our first set of clubs,” Wehr said.

And what has grandpa said about Wehr’s collection of hole-in-ones?

“He said I’ve gotten a lot luckier than him,” Wehr joked.

Still, Wehr isn’t focused solely on one sport. When he isn’t competing in the Lester Park Golf Course junior league or humbling the holes at Northland Country Club, he enjoys playing football and tennis as well as hunting and fishing.

“He’d fish from 5 a.m. to midnight if he could,” mother Kelly said. “That’s his passion.”

If Wehr’s as good with a fishing pole as he is with a golf club, then the fish are in trouble when he shows up at a watering hole.

Contact News Tribune sports editor Rick Lubbers at rlubbers@duluthnews.com or (218) 723-5317. He is now taking private golf lessons from Jonah Wehr.

Tags: sports, golf, columns, columnists, family