VILLAGE OF PINEHURST, N.C. — The defending champions put up a good fight but it wasn’t enough as the United States Golf Association has crowned two new winners.
Ryanne Jackson and Kipp Popert claimed the women’s and men’s overall titles at the 2023 U.S. Adaptive Open, the USGA’s newest championship that puts the world’s best disabled golfers – 96 this year – in the spotlight.
The field is spread across eight categories: Arm Impairment, Intellectual Impairment, Leg Impairment, Multiple Limb Amputee, Neurological Impairment, Seated Players, Short Stature and Vision Impairment. Players must have a WR4GD Pass and a handicap index of 36.4 or less, Players with an Intellectual Impairment must also have Virtus II1 International Eligibility.
Jackson, 25, won the neurological impairment category in 2022 but finished runner-up in the overall to Kim Moore last year in the North Carolina Sandhills but got her revenge Wednesday at Pinehurst No. 6. The St. Petersburg, Florida, native shot a 4-over 76 to finish at 9 over for the championship, five shots clear of Moore (76). Jackson, who was diagnosed with scapuloperoneal muscular dystrophy as a college freshman after a decorated high school athletics career in both basketball and golf, also claimed the neurological category for the second consecutive year.
“I knew coming in that there were some new people entering the tournament that I hadn’t heard of,” said Jackson. “I didn’t know what to expect with their games, but I knew Kim Moore was going to be my biggest returning competitor since she was the reigning champ. So being here at the end is a very nice feeling.”
Currently an EMT, Jackson is starting paramedic school in August.
Playing in the final foursome of the day, Popert was in a tightly contested battle the entire round with defending men’s champion Simon Lee, 18-hole leader Conor Stone and Mike Browne. Just when it seemed like the Englishman was going to cruise to the victory, Popert made bogey on No. 17 and double bogey on the par-4 18th to open the door for Simon, whose putt to force a playoff on the last just slid past the cup.
“I worked really hard for many years,” said Popert. “I didn’t envision winning it with a double, but sometimes you’ve got to win ugly. It was good out there. I played well today. I’m extremely chuffed to win.”
Popert started playing golf when he was 3 years old. The 25-year-old was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at birth and has undergone several surgeries, but that hasn’t stopped him from becoming one of the world’s best disabled golfers. Last May he won Golf for the Disabled (G4D) Tour Betfred British Masters and finished fourth here at the Adaptive last July.
All four players in the final men’s grouping finished even or under par, and each won their respective impairment categories with ease by four shots or more.
The champions of the 2023 U.S. Adaptive Open at Pinehurst Resort No. 6 in Village of Pinehurst, North Carolina. (Photo: Jeff Haynes/USGA)
Kelsey Koch won’t leave the Sandhills of North Carolina with a trophy or medal, but she will take home a brand new ring.
Following her final round of the 2023 U.S. Adaptive Open at Pinehurst No. 6 on Wednesday afternoon, Koch was proposed to by her boyfriend and caddie, Josh White, on the ninth green, her last hole of the championship. And of course she said yes.
“I did not have any idea but I hoped and prayed. I hoped and prayed because life is so much more than golf and what better of an opportunity,” she said after the round. “This experience as a whole has been so humbling to be here. Like I always say, it’s not what you do on the course it’s what you do off the course, right? To be here and to have this, we’re so blessed to start this way.”
The 31-year-old made her adaptive debut this week in the leg impairment category. Koch was born without a left tibia bone and her leg was amputated at 11 months old.
“I don’t know any different,” said Koch, who owns a yoga studio back home. “I don’t want to know any different.”
The Grand Blanc, Michigan, native finished 20th out of 21 women in the field, and while she may not have had the week she wanted on the course, she’ll leave Pinehurst with countless new memories, a fiancé and wedding to plan.
“Golf has been difficult for me this week,” said Koch as she hugged her husband to be, “but that doesn’t matter.”
VILLAGE OF PINEHURST, N.C. — A field of 96 golfers descended upon Pinehurst No. 6 this week for the 2023 U.S. Adaptive Open, the second playing of the USGA’s newest championship that showcases some of the best disabled golfers from around the world.
Just how good are they? A total of 22 players boast plus handicaps, with 10 coming in at a full shot better than scratch.
There’s a four-way tie at the top for best handicap, with Kipp Popert (Neurological Impairment), Simon Lee (Intellectual Impairment), Hayato Yoshida (Leg Impairment) and Mike Browne (Leg Impairment) all owning handicaps of +3.7.
Get to know the 22 players in the 2023 U.S. Adaptive Open field who play with plus handicaps.
VILLAGE OF PINEHURST, N.C. — “I don’t want to slow anyone down.”
“I don’t have the right equipment.”
“We don’t have anybody to teach us.”
Adam Benza has heard those responses time and time again as reasons why more people from the disabled community haven’t tried to play golf. There are clinics all over the country for adaptive golfers, but a lot are run by instructors who aren’t familiar with the community they’re teaching.
That’s why nearly ten years ago Benza enlisted the help of fellow 2023 U.S. Adaptive Open competitors Kenny Bontz, Chad Pfeifer and Kellie Valentine to create Moving Foreward, a foundation that aims to get more disabled people involved in the game through clinics and by providing equipment for those in need.
‘I was like, ‘Hey, we’re the best of every category. We’re some of the best players in United States,’” said Benza, 41, who lost his leg to Ewing’s sarcoma at 9 years old. “Let’s do this, go and teach golf professionals to make it more available so they have more knowledge on how our prosthetics work, how we swing, Kellie has one arm, they’re both (above knee amputees) and I’m a (below knee amputee).”
“No golf instructors know how to really navigate what anybody out here is dealing with,” added Benza, who studied professional golf management at Penn State. “So that was kind of our main goal, to make it more accessible for all of the communities so they could go to a golf professional and know that they know what they’re talking about and how to deal with this us.”
“Adam does a lot of the day-to-day stuff,” said Pfeifer. “He does a lot of clinics, he’s helping teach other pros how to teach adaptive people, how to adjust to whatever their disability is, all the different adaptive equipment that’s out there.”
None other than 13-time PGA Tour winner Jordan Spieth, whose parents went to the same high school as Benza, was the foundation’s first donor, but Benza didn’t shy away from his disappointment that more people don’t want to donate.
“We would like to do more clinics, more for awareness, golf tournaments raising money for people to go to events like this, but people don’t understand that it’s all coming out of our own pockets,” he explained. “To be able to go to people and say, ‘You’ve never played an adaptive event, we’re gonna pay for you to go out there, we’ll get used clubs,’ stuff like that, that’s our main goal, just to get more and more people out there.”
“That’s what we want to do, it’s just when push comes to shove and you go to ask somebody they’re like, ‘We already have our budget planned out for this year. We’ll talk to you next year.’”
But next year doesn’t always come.
“We’re always looking for money, that drives a lot, but that money goes towards great things like getting these players out on the golf course and golf clubs in their hands,” added Pfeifer. “Any kind of support is always helpful. Even if you know somebody who might have a disability, let them know about us and let them know about adaptive golf. We’d love to see him out here, no matter what their injury is.”
VILLAGE OF PINEHURST, N.C. — The United States Golf Association unveiled its 15th championship last summer here in the Sandhills of North Carolina, and after an overwhelmingly positive reaction, the U.S. Adaptive Open is back with very few tweaks to its inaugural set up.
“The reaction was so positive. It was just so much fun for all of us,” said championship director Stephanie Parel. “We never felt like we were working. It’s really exciting to be here and be a part of this and still is.”
It’s rare for the USGA to hold a championship in the same location two years in a row, but it’s been a luxury for golf’s governing body in the states to host the Adaptive at Pinehurst No. 6 once again. The championship will take the next step as it heads off to Sand Creek Station in Newton, Kansas, July 8-10, 2024, but for two more rounds its proud to call the Cradle of American Golf home.
“The resort staff here and their volunteers are exceptional. They made it very easy for us,” said Parel. “We really like this golf course for this championship, it has special features that align well with this championship.”
With its tee-to-green catch players and easily accessible bunkers, Pinehurst No. 6 is a perfect course to host the championship, and few changes were needed for 2023.
Kellie Valentine plays a shot on the fifth hole during the first round of the 2023 U.S. Adaptive Open at Pinehurst Resort & C.C. (Course No. 6) in Village of Pinehurst, N.C. on Monday, July 10, 2023. (Jeff Haynes/USGA)
“We didn’t change a whole lot about the course setup in terms of like grass heights and things like that. We did add another set of tees so that we have now three for men and three for women,” said Parel. “That allows us to set it up for the same for both genders and all impairment categories.”
For example, players in the arm impairment category who are playing with just one arm will tee it up from the middle tees, while players with two hands or a hand and attachment on the club will play form the back tees. The front tees will only be used by seated players.
Thanks to feedback from players, the USGA is also using yellow flagsticks and caddie bibs for visually impaired players this year.
“We want the players to know we really embrace this demographic of the player and we want to do everything we can for them and give them the national championship they deserve,” explained Parel. “We really feel lucky to be providing that opportunity, and we’re listening to them. We asked for feedback, they gave it and we were really pleased to receive it.”
The three-day, 54-hole event, which started Monday, will crown both men’s and women’s overall champions from the field of 96 players, as well as individual winners from both genders from the eight categories: Arm Impairment, Leg Impairment, Multiple Limb Amputee, Vision Impairment, Intellectual Impairment, Neurological Impairment, Seated Players and Short Stature.
Golf Channel will dedicate the final 30 minutes of Wednesday’s Golf Central (5-6 p.m. ET) to the U.S. Adaptive Open trophy ceremony. Entry to the championship is free, and unlike most golf events, there are no rope lines, which means fans can get close to the action and experience just how great the Adaptive Open is.
“First and foremost, these are phenomenal players who love golf like the rest of us. They have exceptional skill and they’re also just fun to be around, they really are enjoying themselves out here,” said Parel. “They’re great with everybody, they really enjoy the social aspect of the game, which you don’t often see in competitions. It’s really a pleasure to be around them.”
Check out some of the best photos of the week from Pinehurst.
VILLAGE OF PINEHURST, N.C. — The defending champions put up a good fight but it wasn’t enough as the United States Golf Association has crowned two new winners.
The field is spread across eight categories: Arm Impairment, Intellectual Impairment, Leg Impairment, Multiple Limb Amputee, Neurological Impairment, Seated Players, Short Stature and Vision Impairment. Players must have a WR4GD Pass and a handicap index of 36.4 or less, Players with an Intellectual Impairment must also have Virtus II1 International Eligibility.
The USGA is working to ensure everyone has a chance to play and reasonably compete against one another.
On the 18th hole of his final round at the 2022 U.S. Open at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts, Matthew Fitzpatrick’s tee shot went left and landed in a fairway bunker, a few feet from the fescue-covered lip.
Walking to the ball, he talked with his caddie, then looked at the lie. After reaching into his bag and grabbing a club, Fitzpatrick dug his feet into the sand and addressed the ball. His shot got airborne quickly and landed on the green. After walking to the green, he bent down, placed a marker behind the ball, picked it up and then two-putted for a par that won him his first major championship.
The Rules of Golf clearly state several things Fitzpatrick had to do (and could not do) as he played that hole. He had to walk the hole, he could not ground his club or touch the sand in the bunker and he had to mark the ball himself. Fitzpatrick could not anchor his putter as he made a stroke, and his caddie could not stand behind him as he putted.
However, at this week’s U.S. Adaptive Open at Pinehurst No. 6, many golfers were unable to do the things Fitzpatrick did playing that hole.
Some can’t walk, so they got around the course using specially designed vehicles, while others who have lost a leg used traditional golf carts. Some golfers were unable to see the ball because they are visually impaired or blind, and other golfers played with intellectual impairments.
But these players at Pinehurst, North Carolina — from 29 states and 11 countries — played just like their able-bodied counterparts. Thanks to the Modified Rules for Players With Disabilities, developed by the U.S. Golf Association and The R&A with input from adaptive organizations developed in 1996, they were able to compete for a national championship for the first time — inspiring others like them to try the game.
As the organization tasked with developing and updating the Rules of Golf, the USGA wanted the Modified Rules for Players With Disabilities to create an environment where golfers with physical or intellectual challenges can play fairly with players with no disabilities, with the same disability or different types of disabilities.
“Looking back to that time, this wasn’t [the USGA] looking at the Rule of Golf and trying to figure out how to create a new game,” said Craig Winter, the USGA’s senior director for Rules of Golf and amateur status. “This was trying to reach out to those communities and understand what adaptations are needed to be able to allow them to play the game of golf. And play the game of golf under a set of rules.”
That means considering many things able-bodied golfers take for granted, developing appropriate accommodations and then being open-minded and aware in the future to modify those accommodations as needed.
Sophia Howard looks at her options on the 10th hole fairway during the first round at the 2022 U.S. Adaptive Open at Pinehurst in North Carolina. (Photo: Jeff Haynes/USGA)
For example, Fitzpatrick’s eyes and experience allowed him to make judgments about how to play his bunker shot at Brookline on Sunday, but faced with the same shot, a blind golfer could not know how the ball rested in the sand, whether it was on an upslope, downslope or a flat lie and how close the lip of the bunker was to the ball.
“If you’re in a bunker, well, that’s a really challenging thing when you can’t see or you have very limited site,” Winter said. “And so there is an exception in [Modified Rules for Players With Disabilities] for players who are visually impaired, where you’re allowed to touch the sand before you you make a stroke out of a bunker. It’s more of like a practical set of exceptions.”
In that way, the Modified Rules for Players With Disabilities acted as a set of common sense concepts that can help create consistency. They also allowed players to get special assistance from others while they play.
Blind golfers used a coach (or guide), who was allowed to help them with alignment and who they were able to get advice from before playing a shot. They were also able to use a caddie, and a player’s caddie can do many things that non-disabled players often do for themselves, like mark a ball on the green, something that would have been challenging for golfers with only one leg or who played exclusively from a cart. A coach and caddie can be the same person, but someone designated as only a coach was not allowed to touch a player’s clubs, and golfers were only allowed to have one coach.
Intellectually impaired golfers were able to get help from an aide who followed a player and assisted with etiquette and getting around the course.
While the Rules of Golf that non-disabled golfers play by is filled with specific instances and rulings, the Modified Rules for Players With Disabilities were intentionally written more loosely to allow officials to interpret situations on a case-by-case basis if necessary. Each golfer who played under the Modified Rules for Players With Disabilities could have different needs and challenges, so the rules need to accommodate them.
“Ultimately, we’ve decided to go to the simpler side, and there are many individuals that will say, ‘Well, that means they’re actually less fair,'” Winter said. “When you get really complicated, you’re trying to have a whole bunch of nuances. You know, this is for this and this for that, and it becomes just so difficult. Not just for players, but for rules officials too, to make sure that [each ruling is] right. So we went to the simpler side.
“We wanted the rules to be easy to understand and apply. That was the message that we have been sharing for some time that really carries the day. It does lead to what some might see being unfair. However, the rules are applied equally across the entire field. So there is a fairness element to making sure that if everybody’s playing by the same set of rules, everybody is, in fact, being treated equally.”
Cindy Lawrence hits her tee shot on the 12th during the first round of the 2022 U.S. Adaptive Open at Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina. (Photo: Jeff Haynes/USGA)
And that’s all the contestants at this week’s U.S. Adaptive Open were looking for, to be treated equally.
If there was a shortcoming concerning the Modified Rules for Players With Disabilities, it’s that they are not written into the Rules of Golf. Technically, they are only in effect when adopted through local rule by the person or group in charge of a competition. However, the governing bodies are looking for ways to ensure the game can be more inclusive, especially for players with disabilities. So, don’t be surprised if this is addressed in the next revision of the Rules of Golf in January 2023.
The Rules of Golf apply to every golfer, and they are an integral part of the game. As more players come to the sport, the USGA is working to ensure everyone has a chance to play and reasonably compete against one another.
Editor’s note: This is the third article of a four-part series explaining the mission of the United States Golf Association. The USGA, which governs the game of golf in Mexico and the United States, serves several functions. What exactly is the USGA? Why is the organization important? This series delves into these questions and others. This article looks at governance and how the organization that creates the rules of golf shapes them to make the game more inclusive and welcoming to players of not just every ability level but also those with unique challenges.
In all, 16 golfers won medals for winning their impairment categories.
VILLAGE OF PINEHURST, N.C. – Simon Lee walked up to the podium in front a packed Player Hospitality tent and joyfully greeted the room. He then read a speech from his phone that brought the crowd to its feet.
“My special thanks go to my parents,” he said. “They pulled me out of darkness and made me walk through the light of the world.”
At the U.S. Adaptive Open, players competed in eight different categories. Lee, a 25-year-old professional from South Korea, was one of 10 players in the intellectual impairment category, having been diagnosed with autism at age 3. Lee finished the 54-hole event knotted at 3-under 213 with Felix Norman of Sweden, a 25-year-old with tuberous sclerosis who competed in the same category. Just last year, Norman had brain surgery to remove two growing “lime nodules.”
The pair squared off in a two-hole aggregate playoff, which Lee won by two thanks to a 20-foot birdie putt on the 17th that he said felt like a dream. After locking up the men’s division title, supporters doused Lee with water as he shrieked with glee.
“Today I played with my mind of thinking, I can do it, I can do it, I can do it,” Lee told the media after the round. While many of his answers took a good deal of time to formulate, those four words poured out with gusto.
Kim Moore, 41, won the women’s division by a commanding seven strokes thanks to a final-round 76. Born without a right foot and a severely clubbed left foot, Moore played collegiate golf at the University of Indianapolis. Her namesake Kim Moore Spirit Award is given to college golfers in all divisions who exemplify perseverance and high character.
“It’s pretty cool to be part of a little bit of history in golf,” Moore, “and it’s just very exciting for me.”
Kim Moore, Leg Impairment, hits an approach shot on hole 17 during the final round at the 2022 U.S. Adaptive Open at Pinehurst Resort in Village of Pinehurst, North Carolina. (Photo: Jeff Haynes/USGA)
Moore had her father on the bag at Pinehurst No. 6 and said congratulations text messages from her players have poured in. In addition to being a college coach, Moore also became a PGA teaching professional so that she could specialize in teaching the game to those with adaptive needs.
“I just think just what has been seen this week around the world, around the country, is going to elevate the amputee community, the adaptive community, and it’s just pretty cool to see,” said Moore. “I think we’re going to have a lot of rise in participation. I hope that’s what this brings.”
A total of 16 players received copper medals for winning their respective impairment categories: arm, leg, intellectual, neurological, vision, multiple limb amputee, short stature and seated players.
Western Michigan coach Kim Moore wins the inaugural U.S. Adaptive Open by seven shots! What an inspiration she is to all of college golf! pic.twitter.com/wBKq5rnADE
“All these years, everyone says I’m inspiring them,” said Dennis Walters, who won the seated players division.
“But I couldn’t help but be totally amazed and inspired by the sights I’ve seen here. If you were here, I don’t think you would ever forget this.”
Lee, whose father was once a diplomat, spent time as a child going back and forth from the U.S. to South Korea. In elementary school, he started out playing ice hockey but struggled to connect in a team environment.
That’s when the family switched him to golf, which his mother, Ji-ae Pahk, said proved difficult because of the need for constant repetition. He would learn one thing and then promptly forget it. Getting her son to focus and stay centered on the ball proved difficult, too.
But Lee persevered and turned professional in high school. Tournament golf helped him learn how to better communicate. Mom says they’re still working hard on making eye contact.
In the bio information Lee’s mother provided tournament officials, she noted that a psychological test administered last year showed that Lee’s mental and social age remains in the 6-7 range. He had an IQ score of 66. (The average IQ score usually falls between 85 and 115.)
Pahk’s message to parents of children with autism is to find what they love and continue to work on it.
“It’s not just something that your feeding their hobby,” she said with help of an interpreter. “It changes their character and their personality overall.”
On paper, Lee came in this week with the lowest handicap index in the field at 3.6. His ultimate dream is to one day stand on the 18th hole at the Masters on Sunday.
“In the future, I will work harder to show that an adaptive golfer can compete on the PGA Tour,” Lee told the crowd of players and supporters after the round.
“My wish is to be remembered as a golfer who never gave up.”
The first-ever U.S. Adaptive Open is a three-day, 54-hole event with a 96-player field.
VILLAGE OF PINEHURST, N.C. – The first-ever U.S. Adaptive Open is a three-day, 54-hole event with a 96-player field.
There are at least five men and two women in each impairment category: arm impairment, leg impairment, multiple limb amputee, vision impairment, intellectual impairment, neurological impairment, seated players and short stature.
In all, there are 15 players in the field with a Handicap Index better than 0.
Four separate yardages at Pinehurst No. 6 in North Carolina will be used, spanning from 4,700 to 6,500 yards.
Here are some photos from the inaugural event, the 15th championship from the U.S. Golf Association.
Shack is the longest seated player in the game, hitting drives as far as 285 yards.
VILLAGE OF PINEHURST, N.C. – Randy Shack was never in the first truck. The infantryman always went out in the second Humvee in the gunner’s position. But with his lieutenant already away on R&R, Shack moved up to the front gun, and he didn’t feel good about it.
“It was like the movies,” said Shack, of his 2007 tour in Iraq. “I’m going home the next day.”
Shack, an Army infantryman from Sulphur Springs, Texas, was relieved to have made it through the 12-hour shift without incident. It was time to go back to base, he thought. That is, until word came down that they had one fragmentation mission left to do.
“Oh, this is it,” he thought. “This is it.”
The Vehicle Born Improvised Explosive Device the Humvee hit confirmed Shack’s worst fears. It was the fifth time he’d been involved in an IED explosion.
“Seven times you don’t have to go out anymore,” said Shack. “It’s like a punch card.”
Several of Shack’s friends reached seven and were diagnosed with traumatic brain injury. While that didn’t happen to Shack, not long after he returned from Iraq, just before his 26th birthday, he found that he could no longer sit up straight. The deterioration came swiftly, and doctors found the spinal cord damage too great to repair.
Randy Shack hits his tee shot on hole eight during the first round at the 2022 U.S. Adaptive Open at Pinehurst in North Carolina. (Photo: Robert Beck/USGA)
For years, he scarcely left the house, not wanting to go out in public in a wheelchair. Even to the grocery store.
“After I got out, I spent about 10 years in the bottle,” he said. “I didn’t know what else to do.”
The breaking point for Shack came at home in the garage, when 3-year-old son Raiden opened the fridge and handed his father a beer. He knew the routine.
“Our daughter’s wedding was at the same time,” said Shack. “I don’t remember it.”
He choked up at the memories.
It was the PGA HOPE (Helping Our Patriots Everywhere) program that Shack said gave him a second life. Seven years ago, he sat in his truck for 30 minutes trying to decide if he wanted to get out that first day. That first round, he stayed in his wheelchair and used junior clubs.
Now he’s one of 96 competitors at the inaugural U.S. Adaptive Open, where he’s one of seven players competing in the Seated Player category. Other impairment categories include arm, leg, neurological, vision, multiple limb amputee, short stature and intellectual. Shack, a 12-handicap, opened with a 95 at Pinehurst No. 6 and came off the course still smiling under that thick black beard.
“I can’t even put into words what it means,” said Shack of competing in a national open. “It’s life-changing almost.”
U.S. Army veteran Randy Shack shows how his SoloRider works ahead of the U.S. Adaptive Open. pic.twitter.com/8C9m6s2oAj
With his SoloRider cart, Shack can drive on the greens and in bunkers without causing any damage. The electric seat swivels to the side of the cart and raises up so that Shack, while strapped in, can hit a golf ball.
Eric Hatch, director of SoloRider carts and Shack’s close friend and caddie, drove a trailer from Texas to Pinehurst with seven SoloRiders; six are being used in this tournament.
When the pair first met, they celebrated shots that traveled 75 yards. Now, Hatch said Shack is the longest seated player in the game, hitting 230 yards off the tee consistently and as far as 285 back home when he hits the speed slot on a certain par 5.
While Shack has worked on his fitness, a proper fitting, Hatch said, is what took his game to the next level.
This is Randy Shack. He’s competing in the Seated Players category. I’ll have more on Randy later. You’ll want to follow this soldier’s story. pic.twitter.com/DhLXBW9po3
Now a PGA HOPE ambassador for the North Texas section, Shack knows the program can be life-saving for veterans, and he’s eager to share how golf has changed his life. Next year, he’ll travel to the Home of Golf as part of the St. Andrews Legacy program for veterans.
“Adapt and overcome,” said Shack.
It’s the mindset required of everyone in this field.
Shack and his family recently moved out to the country in Texas, where donkeys, miniature potbelly pigs, cinnamon queen chickens, goats and turkeys share their land. Son Raiden isn’t really into golf, but sometimes he’ll hit it around the pasture with dad.
Seven years ago, Shack saw a flier for the PGA HOPE program at his local Veterans Affairs’ Spinal Cord Unit, and that flier changed his life.
“If it wasn’t for golf,” he said, “I’d still be at home drinking.”
No telling how many lives he’ll change now.
How to watch
While there will be no full television coverage of the event, fans can watch near real-time highlights and feature stories during Golf Today (noon-2 p.m. ET) and Golf Central (4-5 p.m. ET) on Golf Channel all three days (July 18-20). The trophy ceremony will be shown July 20 on Golf Central.
