INDIAN WELLS, Calif. — Two aces were recorded in back-to-back groups on Thursday at the Epson Tour Championship at Indian Wells.

Heather Lin got the hole-in-one party started first, acing the par-3 18th hole from 179 yards with her 6-iron. It’s the second hole-in-one that she has made in a tournament this season, as Lin made an ace during the Foxconn Open on the TLPGA back in February, but it’s the first one she has made since joining the Epson Tour last season.

“I was kind of in between clubs. I hit the shorter one because I felt like the green was getting a little firm,” said Lin. “I actually caught it slightly thin, but the direction was good. I was like, maybe need to go a little bit, and it just kept rolling. We were looking at it, and we could all see it. They were like, ‘Oh, it went in.’ I was like, ‘Wow, unexpected.’”

Lin posted a 4-under 67 to kick off her week in Indian Wells, Calif., a round that saw her card three bogeys and five birdies in addition to her hole-in-one. Entering the week, the 24-year-old was ranked 54th in the Race for the Card and will be working to climb the leaderboard in an effort to finish as high as possible in the season-long points competition to either earn her LPGA Tour card or see her entry fee into the final stage of the LPGA Qualifying Series covered by Seiko Epson Corporation.

“I think I’ve really stepped up where I’m at in the rankings,” said Lin. “Just being able to play more freely, let the results take care of itself instead of forcing it to happen. I think that’s really helped me do well under pressure, like situations like this.”

Playing one group behind Lin, Hawaii native Mariel Galdiano made an ace of her own on the 179-yard 18th hole, also dunking it with her 6-iron. It is the 26-year-old’s first hole-in-one since she joined the Epson Tour in 2022, and it wasn’t a golf shot that Galdiano was expecting to find the bottom of the cup on day one of the Epson Tour Championship at Indian Wells.

“I was so shocked because, honestly, I did not hit a great shot,” said Galdiano. “It was around 177 (yards), and I pulled a 6-iron. I was like, okay, just swing it easy. I kind of have this push fade that I'm struggling with. I happened to hit that one straight, and I was watching it, and it just went in the hole, and then they were cheering at 18. So that was pretty awesome.”

Galdiano didn’t realize that Lin had also made an ace on that same par 3 in the group ahead of her. “I actually didn't hear anything,” said Galdiano. “I had no idea until someone told me, you're the second person who made it. I was like, ‘What do you mean?’

“It was super fun. During a tournament is always pretty special. I think that was maybe my sixth one so far (in my life).”

The hole-in-one helped Galdiano card a 1-under 70 in the first round of the Epson Tour Championship, as she also made four bogeys and three birdies on Thursday in the desert. She came to the Players Course at Indian Wells Golf Resort sitting at 17th in the Race for the Card, needing one last push to climb into the top 15 and earn LPGA Tour status for the 2025 season.

Her opening 70 currently has Galdiano sitting in a tie for 37th, not quite the spot she will need to find herself in at the end of the week if she wants to make her dream of playing on the LPGA Tour come true. But the Epson Tour veteran will be making a few adjustments to her short game in an effort to improve her position over the next 54 holes in Indian Wells, Calif.

“I'm feeling pretty good,” said Galdiano. “I’ve struggled a little bit with putting, but there are still three more days and a lot to improve on. I'm just going to take my rest now and reset for the next few days.”

Galdiano and Lin’s holes-in-one were not the first two aces to be carded on the 18th hole at Indian Wells Golf Resort’s Players Course this week, as Kate Smith-Stroh also made a hole-in-one on the par 3 during the pro-am on Wednesday afternoon. All three athletes will receive an Epson projector, courtesy of Epson America. Epson will also be giving projectors to every other athlete who makes a hole-in-one this week at Indian Wells Golf Resort.

Galdiano, Lin Make Aces in Back-to-Back Groups at Epson Tour Championship

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