MOST golfers can only dream of hitting a hole in one during their life. But amateur Bill Swindley has shot two within a fortnight to complete a remarkable career hat-trick!

The pipe fitter from Haydock landed a 'hole in one' at a course in Upton by Chester and then backed it up with another during the Thwaites open competition in Widnes a fortnight later. The sudden brace follows on from a hole-in-one he shot about 18 months ago.

As tradition demands, the latest glory cost the 53-year-old a few bob. For after his success at Chester he had to get a round in for a packed clubhouse.

He said: "The first one cost me a fortune and the second was free. Up in Chester all the club lads were there. I bought a drink for about 64 of them and it cost me £100! But the club paid in Widnes."

Bill, who plays off a 12 handicap, has been playing golf for more than 20 years. At Upton he holed the 172-yard par three using a six iron. While at a Widnes golf club, where he is a member, Bill used an eight iron to repeat his efforts on the 15th hole, a 136-yard, par three.

The father-of-three added: "I couldn't see the ball go in at Widnes because I was blinded by a bunker.

"The one at Chester was brilliant. It was a beautiful, sunny day and a lot of people up on the green saw it. When the ball went in there was a great cheer."