SLIPPERY ROCK — Ryan Prokay was just joking about a hole-in-one. His shot was quite serious.

Prokay, 24, is a Grove City High School graduate and was Northeast Conference Player of the Year in golf his senior season at Robert Morris University last year.

He remains a golfer with high aspirations and demonstrated as much by scoring a double eagle on the No. 3, par-4 317-yard hole July 5 at Oak View Golf Club. The shot was his third career hole-in-one.

“I’ve never had a double eagle before ... Those are awfully rare,” he said.

Prokay was playing his weekly round of 36 holes at Oak View with former college teammate and good friemd Garrett Browning, his father Mike Prokay and another buddy, Steve McFadden.

“Garrett and I ride each other pretty good when we play, but it’s all in fun,” Prokay said. “I knew I hit a good shot off the tee and saw it headed toward the green.

“I joked around about that shot ‘going right in the hole.’ I said it was right there, perfect. Of course, there’s no way of knowing or even seriously believing it was going in.”

A huge pine tree used to hang out over the fairway on No. 3, “making it an extremely hard hole to cut,” Prokay said of hitting off the tee.

That tree has since been cut down.

“You still have to cut your shot hard to get it there,” Prokay said.

When they approached the green, Prokay’s ball was nowhere to be found. He estimates they spent three or four minutes looking for it.

“Finally, Garrett said, ‘Did you look in the jar?’ I walked over to the hole and my ball was in there. I thought it was a joke. I asked if he put it in there. But it was legit,” Prokay said.

“The ball appeared to land on the fringe of the green and rolled right in from about 15 feet. Like with any double eagle, there was a lot of luck involved.”

He used a 3-wood for the shot, which may have been the first-ever ace on Oak View’s No. 3 hole. The golf course could not confirm that.

“That hole has been changed a few times over the years,” an Oak View employee said.

Prokay spent last winter — from late October through mid-April — playing on the West Florida Golf Tour. He plans to return to that series later this year, along with participating in the Florida Pro Golf Tour in Orlando.

This summer, Prokay qualified for the upcoming Pennsylvania Open (Aug. 8-10 at Nevillewood) at a recent qualifying tournament at Wildwood Golf Club. He tied for 17th with Slippery Rock graduate Brett Rinker — who also qualified — in the 117-golfer field with a three-over-par 74.

“My game has to get better,” Prokay admitted. “I’m planning to attend ‘Q’ School late in 2017 and try to get on the Web.com Tour. But I have to limit my mental mistakes, make my putting more consistent ... I know I’m not there yet. That’s why I’m waiting another year.

“Hopefully, I’ll have a little more cash in my pocket by then, too.”

Prokay cashed eight times in 19 West Florida tour events last winter, finishing as high as second.

He has his recent double eagle to carry him through this summer.

“That was the first hole-in-one of mine that my father got to witness. That means a lot,” Prokay said.

Prokay has also aced the No. 14 hole at Oak View and No. 8 at Tam O’ Shanter during his career.