Josh Bartley is looking for a career in professional golf.

His 8-iron is helping him find it.

The 23-year-old Mars graduate used that club to knock home two holes-in-one in the span of a month while competing on the Swing Thought Tour recently.

“That's my lucky club now. That's for sure,” Bartley said of his 8-iron after securing the second ace Tuesday at the Ballantyne Golf Course near Charlotte, N.C.

Bartley shot the hole-in-one on the No. 13, 165-yard hole. A month earlier, he used his 8-iron to ace the No. 17, 156-yard hole at Gibson Bay Golf Course in Kentucky.

“I didn't have anything going for me that day,” Bartley recalled. “I didn't have my swing ... nothing. I was just trying to get into the clubhouse.

“I teed it up (on 17), didn't think about it and just hit. The shot was over water, landed two feet beyond the hole and spun right in.”

The ace was the first of Bartley's golf career. He was the first Mars High School golfer to ever advance to the PIAA Tournament and won the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference individual championship while at Indiana (Pa.) University.

He was surprised his second ace came so quickly after the first.

“I've always felt that when you do something once, it makes it a lot easier to do it again,” Bartley said. “Bowling a 200 game, hitting a home run, shooting under par ... I just never considered a hole-in-one to be in that category.”

His father, Tim Bartley, was his caddy at the time of the second hole-in-one.

“I never saw the shot go in,” Bartley's father said. “When I'm caddying, I always watch Josh's follow-through, study his motion after the ball leaves the club.

“Just by seeing his form and hearing the sound off the club, I knew it was a good shot.”

The ball landed on the green, bounced once and trickled into the hole.

Tim Bartley has been playing golf since 1976 — when he tried out for and made the Mars High School team — and has never had a hole-in-one.

“That tryout was the first time I ever played golf,” he recalled. “I'm thrilled for Josh. He's trying to make a run at pro golf and I'm pulling for him. He absolutely loves the game.

“He probably has a future teaching it, too. He loves working with kids.”

Josh Bartley has spent time teaching golf to kids at the Mars-Bethel par-3 course, which is owned by family members. He recently received a letter of thanks for his golf instruction from two youths after they made the Mars High School girls team.

“When he won the PSAC Tournament, he birdied the final five holes to win by a stroke. Then he apologized to the other kid for beating him,” Tim Bartley said of his son. “He cares about other people more than he cares about golf.”

And he cares about golf a lot.

Josh Bartley worked at a golf course in Florida last summer and was employed in sales in the Pittsburgh area last winter.

Now he's chasing a dream. The Swing Thought Tour has events in North Carolina, Kentucky, Illinois and other states. Bartley is spending this summer traveling that tour.

“I haven't won any (tour) events yet, but I've played well at times,” Bartley said. “This is tough competition, but it's fun. I'm going through the learning curve right now. So much of this game is between the ears.

“My goal right now is to play professionally. If I can do this for a career, I'll never work another day in my life.”

Two holes-in-one within a month can only help his confidence.

“That was crazy,” Bartley admitted. “But if I can do it once ...”