LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, Texas –
Staring downhill at a 6-foot putt on the 18th green, Brandon Ellis finally feels the pressure.
The putt was preceded by a streak of birdies to set the Gateway Hills Golf Course tournament director in place for one of the best rounds of his life.
A clink in the cup here and a goal years in the making is met - setting a new one-round course record at 62 strokes.
A miss and the ball probably rolls past the hole sitting at the green's edge, potentially placing Ellis out of reach to beat the long-standing record of 64.
Even before this moment though, Ellis was enjoying a pretty good day.
Celebrating his 24th birthday Dec. 18, the opportunity to play came when a few regular golfers needed an extra man.
Ellis volunteered, as an after thought, having planned to spend the day off the fairways.
"If he would've shown up I wouldn't have been able to play," Ellis said about the golfer who cancelled. "So, thank you."
Ellis remained calm through a rough start hitting from the white tee box- scoring bogeys on Nos. 1 and 3.
At 2 over par heading to No. 5, Ellis "kind of didn't care anymore" how he played, he said.
He switched to a new ball and jokingly told the other golfers to watch out: "this ball is going to make a lot of birdies."
The golfers had a laugh.
Then they watched a birthday wish come true.
Ellis birdied the fifth hole. And then the sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, 10th. Carrying over to the back nine, he nailed an eagle on the 11th to cap a run of 8 under in seven holes.
He holed four more birdies on his way to the No. 18 tee box, standing at 10 under par and in position to leave his mark on Gateway Hills.
But Ellis has been in similar situations before.
The self-taught golfer, who has roamed the hills for the last 16 years, grew up on Lackland's golf course.
His previous low score was a 65. That round, he stepped onto No. 18 at 8 under par and, three putts later, he had missed the mark.
Setting the course's best stroke total is one of his two goals - the other being a Gateway Hills championship.
After three years playing collegiate golf at Wayland Baptist University, Ellis was ready to take on the first challenge.
"All I was thinking was two-putt to make the par, and get off the green with a 62," Ellis said.
Stepping back onto the familiar slope, Ellis approached his first putt with caution, leaving another tough putt.
"Now I'm thinking don't miss the next one and run it by the hole - 62 could go to 64 easily."
He didn't miss.
"When the next one went in the hole, it was like a huge weight lifted off my shoulders," Ellis said about setting the course record. "It feels good."
Ellis plans on moving up to the Adams Golf Pro Tour Series - a developmental tour for potential PGA players - this year.
In the meantime, he still sees the potential for a 59 or 60 round out on Gateway Hills.
"It's possible to improve on it," he said, welcoming challengers to beat the benchmark.
"It's a lot more work than you think. If you can beat it, then more power to you."