Mars resident Ben Merritt, left, scored a hole-in-one at Conley Resort & Golf Course recently while playing a round with his father, Scott Merritt, center, and grandfather Dave Merritt, right.

PENN TWP — Preparing to tee off on hole No. 18 at Conley Resort & Golf Course, Ben Merritt took out a “crappy” ball.

He took home a memorable one.

Merritt, a Mars graduate and Penn State sophomore finance major, was wrapping up a recent round of golf with his father and grandfather.

The No. 18 hole at Conley is 176 yards, the green sitting just beyond a long pond.

“I always bring two or three crappy balls to play that hole with because I usually lose them in the water,” Merritt said.

Not this time.

Merritt's drive sailed toward the pine trees located just off the green, but missed them. Instead, the ball landed on top of a slope, rolled down onto the green and into the cup for his first-ever hole-in-one.

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