Well, you might have to take everyone’s word, or shrieks, for it that the ball went in. But the shot, which came on the 19th hole after a round at the Cigar Aficionado-Wine Spectator Pro-Am, triggered a huge donation for the Els for Autism foundation, one that had the charity’s founder hoisting Fowler in delight.

The $1 million Hole-In-One Challenge was sponsored by SAP and Ketel One Vodka, and the payout will come from an insurance policy. Fowler was the 17th pro golfer to try his hand at it Saturday; others included Jack Nicklaus, Adam Scott, Charl Schwartzel, Keegan Bradley, Louis Oosthuizen, Luke Donald, Nick Price, Retief Goosen and, of course, Els himself.

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“This man is my hero,” Els told a crowd at the course. Els and his wife, Liezl, established the foundation in 2009 after discovering that their son Ben, now 12, was autistic.

Making the shot more remarkable was that Fowler had put away his golf gear after finishing his round. According to Golf Channel reporter Tim Rosaforte, Fowler borrowed a pitching wedge from Donald and hit the 113-yard shot, which he drained on one hop, in his sneakers (update: a Puma representative says they were actually a version of spikeless golf shoes that will be released in the summer).