More Videos under The JB Show

1. A Day Closer to USDGC Championship
2. Weather Doesn’t Deter USDGC Competition
3. The Opening Rounds of USDGC
4. Viable VPAD @ CES 2008

WRITTEN BY JOHN CRITSER, DEAFNATION STAFF

It has been quite a week, the deaf golf players are a competitive bunch, and U.S. Deaf Golf is growing with players stepping up into a higher level of play, not only restricted to the United States only but internationally also.

If the players are not in the elite level yet, they play very smart and keep their game simple in order to finish in the top three in each division. The U.S. Deaf Golf Championship doesn’t only determine the top three players in each division, but the players that finish in the top eight will get an invitation to the World Deaf Golf Championships in St. Andrews, Scotland, where the game of golf originated.

After all legendary Hall of Famer golfer Jack Nicklaus said, “If a golfer is going to be remembered, he must win at St. Andrews.”

Today brought closure to the USDGC championships with Brandon Babineaux of Minnesota winning the Men’s Open ending up with a score of 299 over four days of tournament play. He is a tall and burly golf player with wide shoulders and long arms, he had the kind of physicality so that when he swings, it is a beautiful arc, he can go long or short. Almost nothing distracts him, not even the media paparazzi stuff, he is totally composed even when people are snapping photos when he plays.

Babineaux is potential PGA material because of a certain sports personality that pros usually exhibit, and if he keeps winning proving right his potential, he will soon be answering questions from media all over the world one day.

After his victory, DeafNation media caught him for an interview. What made him do so well in this event despite the hot sun, the obnoxious 18th hole, and the social life this event brought?

“I played one shot at a time staying focused on each swing I have to make,” Babineaux said, “Each shot is played as if it were my last.”

He also keeps his game a leisurely sporting event, avoiding getting too stressed out if mother nature forces him to make too much out of a particular angle the golf course gives him. He prepared his game by using the Google Earth, Internet resources, plus he studied the golf course guide for a few months before the USDGC in addition to daily rounds of golf.

“The first shot I ever made in my life was swinging with a 3-wood that went 200 yards,” a grinning Babineaux said, “that caused me to realize my potential as a ten-year old kid.”

His goal is to touch each level on his way to joining the nationwide tour; once he makes it, he will have one last climb to make it to the PGA level.

“Whatever the outcome is, my dream is to bring the next generation of deaf kids into Junior Golf,” says Babineaux.

In the Women’s division, the meticulously studious golfer New Yorker Patty Sue Ploysa won first place, and I could see the sparkle in her eyes adding yet another championship accumulated in her lifetime. Whoever watched her play, their instincts played out exactly as she followed through with each stroke.

She felt full pressure to do well and she hit straight from fairway to fairway with her short game. Even if she play golf as her sport, she balances determination and enjoyment and her approach allows her to play her own game.

Ploysa also said, “I didn’t use a 5-iron because the golf course is too long, chipping a lot helped my game tremendously.”

“I’d like to mention Lauri Ponikiewski and Susan Zupnik, they are excellent players and fun to golf with, we feed off each other.”

Men’s Senior division winner Tim Dapp is a practical guy just like any other player who keeps a steady game saying, “I maintained my game and never changed it.”

That is in contrast to Tiger Woods, as Men’s Open player Jed Barish puts it, “Tiger Woods changed his swing often tinkering with what makes him better

Interesting. Change your swing, adjust it, or find a PGA teaching pro to correct it, just do whatever helps your game. For Dapp, he just developed his game and stayed with it over the years.

Dapp also plays frequently which keeps his game sharp. He started at 16 years old and played at Gallaudet University under Golf coach Neil Johnson, he mentored Dapp with his golf game deeply, and he just got better over the years because of experience and thousands of repetitions with his swing.

What Dapp had to say about the USDGC was, “It was fun, winning was a plus but I love the golf atmosphere with other deaf players, it was a boost having my family here with me. The committee did a good job, the weather suited me and the Pelican Lakes Golf Course was excellent, in my opinion.”

Glenn Wolfangle, the former President of the Colorado Deaf Golf Association (CDGA), who jointly ran the event with Chairperson of USDGC and current President of CDGA Joe Rourke, taking over when Rourke donned his Knickers to play.

Said Wolfangle, “Two years ago in St. Louis, Missouri Rourke won the bid for CDGA to host the USDGC championships, it was very interesting to see how USDGC runs.”

“I enjoyed the 19th hole the best!”

He was talking about the deaf golf players all gathered in one place at the Pelican Lakes Golf Course swapping stories, building a deaf golf camaraderie with something everyone had in common with:

Deaf Golf competition and how everyone rises to the occasion in building a strong affiliation with one another.

Deaf golfing will be stronger than ever. Elite, perhaps.

CLICK HERE FOR 2009 USDGC LEADERBOARD

Leave a Reply