New Hartford’s Lazzaro finds solace in golf, becomes youngest to ace at Cedar Lake

Has 11-year-old JP Lazzaro ever drained a hole-in-one before his historic feat last weekend?

“Well, in mini golf, but not real golf,” the sixth grader from New Hartford’s Hughes Elementary School said.

Lazzaro spent this summer working on his short game. His long game, though, played a part in his historic shot Sept. 11 at The Cedar Lake Club in Clayville.

That’s when Lazzaro became the youngest golfer to ace a hole at the club. The feat was confirmed by Cedar Lake management.

Lazzaro’s hole-in-one happened on the par 3 16th hole. Jacob Hart, Gio DeJoseph and Luca DeJoseph all witnessed the 158-yard ace bounce on the fairway, hit the green and roll into the hole.

“We were all in shock! We ditched the golf cart and ran down to the hole. It was crazy!” said Lazzaro, who turns 12 in October.

The hole-in-one was hit with Lazzaro’s 4-hybrid. Some people thought the club would make Lazzaro’s shot go too far beyond the hole, but it turned out to be perfect.

“I really like it,” Lazzaro said. “When I’m 150 yards away from the hole, that’s a club I need to get it there.”

Lazzaro’s hole-in-one was a culmination of the practice he’s put in. He typically spends summer months in the infield for his travel baseball team, New Hartford’s Spartan Express, but COVID-19 limitations gave Lazzaro more time to spend on the golf course.

JP’s grandfather, John, and Greater Utica Sports Hall of Fame member Moira Dunn, are his two main instructors.

“Prior to this year, I would say he’s been more of a baseball kid,” said Dunn, who golfed on the LPGA Tour and won the 2004 Giant Eagle Classic. “He’s just a good little athlete. He plays with his grandpa every week. He’s a good golfer, but I think he became a much better golfer since he’s spent a lot more time golfing this year.”

“He wasn’t getting enough swings,” said Paul Lazzaro, JP’s father, who has been a Cedar Lake member for six years. “He’s had more time to work on his golf swing.”

JP Lazzaro’s new dedication to golf has come with more results than just this month’s hole-in-one. Lazzaro won Cedar Lake’s 12-and-up Junior Club Championship Aug. 23. He beat his friend Owen Jones by one stroke, edging him 94-95 for the crown.

“He’s always been competitive in that tournament, but this year his game was at a different level,” Paul Lazzaro said.

Ironically, the 16th hole JP Lazzaro aced last week was also the turning point of Cedar Lake’s Junior Club Championship. He trailed by three strokes with three holes remaining before engineering the comeback.

Lazzaro shot a 49 on the front nine and a 45 on the back nine.

“That was the hole that turned everything around for him,” said Dunn, whose family has been Cedar Lake members for 50 years. “It’s a difficult golf course.”

Lazzaro and Jones are actually good friends. They’ve built a “friendly” rivalry over the last few years of knowing each other.

“He’s pretty good, I’m not going to lie,” JP Lazzaro said. “He’s really athletic too. He plays baseball like me. He’ll beat me on some days, and I’ll beat him on some days. We’re really good friends and we like hanging out with each other on golf days.”

Paul Lazzaro has been mostly proud of his son’s commitment to golf.

“He was born with a lot of natural ability for the game, but he also is not afraid to work very hard to get better,” Paul Lazzaro said. “When kids are on their electronic devices, he’d rather go outside and play nine holes. It makes me proud that he’s willing to put the time in to get better at the game.”

Contact reporter Marquel Slaughter at 315-792-4963 or follow him on Twitter @OD_Slaughter.