The American Blind Golf Association Golfer Volume 3

The American Blind Golf Association National Championship will be played concurrently with the Seventh Annual California Blind Golf Classic October 7-9, 2006. The tournaments will be hosted by the Santa Maria Noontimers Lions Club, and will be played at the Vandenberg Village Country Club, near Lompoc, CA.

The first 26 Blind Golfers who submit their entry fee of $100 (USD) will be considered.

The Noontimers will furnish three nights lodging, golf fees for coach and player in the Sponsor Scramble and for the Blind gofer on tournament day, and two awards dinners for player and coach.

For more information and application forms, contact Howard Shaw at 805-735-1807. Applications will be available at www.americanblindgolf.org within the next few weeks.

2006 Fort Wayne, Indiana Blind golf Tournament

The Fort Wayne, Indiana blind golf tournament will be played May 23-25, 2006 at the Autumn Ridge Golf Club in Fort Wayne, IN. Practice day will be May 23, followed on 5-24 by the ABGA Fort Wayne Regional blind golf tournament, and the Bill Smith Memorial Scramble tournament on May 25.

The tournament will again be hosted by the Fort Wayne Central Lions Club, with assistance from other Lions Clubs in the area.

Tournament applications will be posted on the americanblindgolf.org website soon.

I wish to express my appreciation to the Board of Directors for electing me as the President of the American Blind Golf Assocation. I accept the role of helping the Board and members develop and implement a golf program to attract blind, visually impaired and physically impaired persons to the game of golf. We must provide members the opportunity to play the game of golf in fun and competition with their peers. Our policy is one of inclusiveness rather than exclusiveness. We reach out to all visually and physically challenged persons who have an interest in the game of golf. To achieve our goals and objectives a number of regions will be identified and offer golf clinics and tournaments to develop the skills needed to play golf. These are lofty goals and with your help, they will be accomplished.

I have started working with our fund raising committee on our 2005 4th annual fund raiser golf tournament which will be held again at the beautiful Eagle Ridge Golf Course in Gilroy, California. The tournament is scheduled for Friday, September 16, 2005. Proceeds from the event go toward promoting the great game of golf to those who are visually impaired or have other disabilities. Tournament coordinator, Mitch Juricich, of Hooked on Golf, will host this years tournament again.

The American Blind Golf Association is also working on grant opportunities to help support our cause. If you know anyone who would like to help us in our cause, please have them contact me.

Grant From BAVF Helps Expand American Blind Golf Association Membership
By Dennis Smith, National Secretary

The Blinded American Veterans Foundation (www.bavf.org) provided a grant to the American Blind Golf Association to offer veterans a free life membership at the annual TEE tournament in Iowa City in September 2004.

American Blind Golf Association President, Dennis Wyant, along with Secretary Dennis Smith and Linda Smith, attended the TEE Tournament and signed up over 60 blind veterans for the American Blind Golf Association. We wish to welcome all new members and cordially invite you to participate in American Blind Golf Association activities. With a total of 109 active members, perhaps this makes the American Blind Golf Association the largest blind golf organization in the U.S.

The American Blind Golf Association also wishes to thank John Fales, President of the BAVF for that organization’s generous contribution.

The American Blind Golf Association representatives had a great time at the TEE Tournament and enjoyed meeting fellow blind veterans from around the country. In addition, Dennis Wyant captured the championship for the second flight in the competitive St. Andrews Division.

American Blind Golf Association Sponsors Two Tournaments in 2005
by Dennis Smith, National Secretary

The American Blind Golf Association Board of Directors has approved the sponsorship of two golf tournaments during 2005.

The first one is the North American Match Play Championship in Ohio, to be played during the period July 8-11 at the Ridge Top Golf Course, Medina, OH. This event is an invitational tournament with a limited field consisting of the top blind and visually-impaired golfers from the U. S. and Canada. Mark Arnold is tournament host and the Rittman Lions Club will run the tournament.

The second tournament will be the American Blind Golf Association National Championship to be held in conjunction with the California Blind Golf Classic October 22-24, 2005, at the Rancho Maria Golf Club in Santa Maria, CA. Howard Shaw is the tournament host and the Santa Maria Noontimers Lions Club will run the tournament. This tournament features a Recreational Division and a Competitive Division as well as a golf clinic for blind golfers. For more information, contact: Howard Shaw hemkshaw@comcast.net or by phone at (805) 735-1807.

American Blind Golf Association Board of Directors Approve Changes in 2004
by Dennis Smith, Secretary

At its annual meeting in California in October 2004, the American Blind Golf Association Board approved the following changes in the Board structure: Dennis Wyant resigned as President and assumed the position of Board Member-at-large. Vice President Howard Shaw was elevated to the position of President. Marty Turcios was elected Vice President to fill the position vacated by President Shaw. The remaining officers stayed the same: Roy Holt, Executive Director, Dennis Smith, Secretary, and Brad Eaton, Treasurer. Any of these officers may be reached via e-mail at American Blind Golf Association@charter.net.

National Championship for the American Blind Golf Association Held in California
by Dennis Smith

The American Blind Golf Association National Championship for 2004 was held in California in October at the Rancho Maria Golf Course. For the second year in a row, Brad Eaton took first prize in the B-1 (totally blind) Division. Roy Holt, Executive Director, won the first place trophy in the B-2 Division. Bill Davis successfully defended his title as the B-3 Division Winner. Roy Holt took the trophy for his low net score of 72 in the handicap division. Marty Turcios, American Blind Golf Association’s first disabled (non blind) participant was second in the low net (handicap) race with a 79. The winner of the Senior Division trophy was George Pentland of San Diego California.

The American Blind Golf Association agreed that the 2005 National Championship will be held again in conjunction with the California Blind Golf Classic in October 2005.

American Blind Golf Association Founders Fare Well in USBGA National Championship
by Dennis Smith

During the 2004 USBGA National Championship held at the Bonaventure Resort in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, American Blind Golf Association founders Angela O’Rourke , Brad Eaton, and Dennis Wyant took some of the top honors in their respective classifications: Angela O’Rourke won first place in the B-1 (totally blind) division while Brad Eaton took third place honors in the same division.

Dennis Wyant finished second in the B-2 (visually impaired) division. American Blind Golf Association member Buddy Frazier won the B-2 division title. Congratulations to these members for their accomplishments.

Inaugural Nations Cup Match Won By U.S.A. Blind Golfers
by Dennis Smith, Team USA Co-Captain

The first annual Nations Cup Match, which pitted a team of blind and visually-impaired golfers from all over the USA against a similar team of Canadian blind and visually-impaired golfers was held in Brantford, Ontario, Canada in August 2004. Playing a Ryder Cup style match play over three days, the American Team of ten blind and VI golfers prevailed over a tough Canadian Team by the score of 9.5 to 6.5. The three formats for the tournament were: 1st Day - Two person scramble, 2nd day - Two person modified alternate shot, and 3rd day - Individual competition. All events were match play.

The 2005 Nations Cup, which like the 2004 event, is sponsored by Angel’s Blind Golf Foundation and the Disabled Angel’s International Foundation, will again be played in Brantford, Ontario, Canada during the period August 7-11, 2005.