July 9 - Blind Golf

It’s summer and the golf courses are hopping - well, perhaps not so much this week in Western Canada with the extreme heat conditions of the past few days. Lyle and I have a number of friends who love to play golf. The vast majority of these people are fully sighted but we also know a few who are either blind or visually challenged.

Players who are blind do need a guide to enjoy the game. That is likely the most difficult aspect - finding someone who is willing to sacrifice their own game in order to assist the blind player. The guide lines up the shot. Often he or she will place a golf club on the ground to indicate the direction of the fairway. The guide will estimate the distance to the next hole and of course help retrieve the ball at the other end. I remember the first time I was at a fundraising tournament with blind players participating. Gerry, totally without sight, challenged a media person to don a blindfold and beat him on the putting green. You might guess who was the better player. Gerry won hands down. It was a good demonstration of the abilities of a blind golfer.

I was reminded of all this when I joined our family at our annual day at mini golf. I don’t play the big game myself and find that mini golf is challenging enough. Someone describes the tee for me and I give the ball a little whack to send it on its way. Surprisingly, I do not too badly when the final scores are tallied.

I always feel good after our day at mini golf. Of course I could always step back and say that I can’t see but then I would miss out on all the fun. It doesn’t matter that I’m not an expert and we always go for ice cream afterwards. I definitely don’t need sight to enjoy that.

Players who are blind can enjoy golf recreationally or competitively. Although golf isn’t my chosen sport I do admire others who have taken it up. The 2024 Canadian Blind Golf Tournament is being played from July 6 - 24 in Cranbrook, British Columbia. You can check this out for yourself on the internet.