The other day I had an email from my
friend, Judy. She had some exciting news. At a recent golf tournament, Judy had
shot a hole in one. A hole in one is a worthy accomplishment for any golfer,
but let me tell you why this news is doubly exciting.
Judy is legally blind. She has always had
low vision but she hasn’t allowed this to hold her back. It was Judy’s
involvement in the sporting world of blind golf that first brought her to my
attention. Lyle and I drove to
Saskatchewan to meet Judy and her husband Ray and to talk more about her
favourite game. You can read more about
Judy in Chapter 3 of my book, Out of Sight.
After I read Judy’s email, I asked her if I
could paraphrase it so that I could post it on this blog for you to read. I
found her words both encouraging and inspiring.
Judy wrote, “The ultimate goal in golf is
getting a hole in one, but it was something I thought that I would never
accomplish. Yesterday, May 30 2013, I played in the Dr. Paul Bookhalter Memorial
Golf Tournament presented by the Regina Lions Clubs to raise funds for CNIB. I have been the Beat the Blind Gal at
this golf tournament for a number of years. I stay on the one fairway and as
each group of golfers comes through they try to beat my shot. Some even buy
extra tickets to try to do so.
Yesterday at the Tor Hill Golf Course I was
on #7 East Nine. When the fifth group of
golfers came through, Ray lined up my shot for me. My club hit the ball, I could tell by the
sound that it was a good shot. Ray watched
the ball fly up the fairway and told me that the ball had gone in the hole. At first
I thought he was teasing until the other four golfers came running over to congratulate
me. Now half of the award goes to Ray
for lining up my shot and the other half goes to me for hitting the ball
perfectly. Ray told me that the ball just hit the flagpole and dropped down
into the hole. I was exhilarated. There was no other feeling like it. I had
made my first hole in one.”
Judy
is still riding on a high and I am still feeling excited for her. As she wrote,
a hole in one is the ultimate goal for any golfer, but when that golfer is
unable to see the ball once it has left the tee, well...that is truly amazing!
Well done, Judy, and congratulations to Ray
as well.
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