Golf Information

Super Golf Wheel Chair that Enables Disabled Golfers to Play Normally


Last week when I was at the driving range I noticed a number of young disable people working on their games. I was very impressed by a young lady who, despite the fact that she was sitting in a wheel chair, was able to drive the ball straight for around 120 to 150 yards. It was a real joy to watch her play. Every time she hit a good shot her face lit up in a radiant smile of pure pleasure.

Watching these young people having such a good time got me thinking.

A good friend of mine is a disabled golfer. He lost a leg in a land mine incident when he was serving in the army as a young man. Bob has never allowed his disability to stand in the way of making himself into a very competitive golfer. In fact this year he has been elected captain of our golf club.

So last Saturday I cornered Bob and asked him to tell me more about disabled golf. Now Bob is a real enthusiast, so I got myself cornered for a good half an hour, but it was worth it, because he told me about this amazing golf wheel chair for paraplegic disabled golfers. Take a closer look at the photo on my web site.

This golf wheel chair is the brain child of Anthony Netto a South African born golf professional and trainer. Anthony suffered a neck fracture after a no-fault car accident, in 1995. This led to him being wheelchair bound for months. After numerous operations and a lot of time in hospital the 37-year old was able to resume work as a teaching pro in 1997. However, in October 2000, he suffered a further setback when multiple sclerosis struck him down. Since that time he has been confined to a wheelchair.

Netto is a fighter; he told himself, "One does not die from this disease." A course of magnet-field therapy helped him, but he wanted to resume his life as a teaching professional and to that end he started to develop the special golf wheel chair, which has enabled him to play again.

The chair, powered by a tank battery, drives him around the course just like any other buggy. However, when he arrives at his ball, the seat swivels round so that he can face his ball. The seat then stands him up and supports him so that he can address his ball, just like a 'normal' golfer.

The golf wheel chair works well because Anthony Netto is now the trainer of the German national disabled golfers team and he has initiated project KidSwing to teach young disabled golfers. He works successfully with sick and disabled children in Cologne, Germany. His aim is: "to establish golf as a therapy and a rehabilitation scheme."

As far as I can find out the golf wheel chair is currently just starting to go into production on a very small scale. It is therefore expensive, my informant wasn't certain, but he thought the price was currently around ?17,000.00 ($22,000.00 approx.) I would expect this price to decrease dramatically once mass-production starts.

My informant also told me that the company marketing the golf wheel chair is being run in such a way as to limit their own profit percentage in order to make the golf wheel chair more widely available to disabled golfers.

There is more information about Anthony, some pictures of his golf wheel chair and links to other sites which talk about this wonderful machine on the Winning Seniors Golf web site.

About the author: David Ferrers is a respected Performance Coach and the author of countless articles on 'winning' and 'golf'. He invented The Academy of Winning, The Science of Winning at Golf and The 5 Fundamentals of Winning at Golf all of which are available as free downloads from his web site at http://www.Winning-Seniors-Golf.com


MORE RESOURCES:

GolfDigest.com

Storms on the Horizon For the Golf Industry
New York Times, United States - 1 hour ago
Behind the massive hedges that surround the lush tropical setting of Trump International Golf Club here, the top 32 golfers from the 2008 season on the LPGA ...
Sorenstam ready for final LPGA bow, but she's not retiring USA Today
Golf-Sorenstam poised for emotional farewell on LPGA Tour Reuters.uk
Sorenstam's place in golf history, especially at home, stands ... ESPN
GolfDigest.com - WorldGolf.com
all 24 news articles


Holiday Travelers Unwrap 'Christmas on the Coast' Fun at Sandestin ...
MarketWatch - 8 hours ago
Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort's "Christmas on the Coast" is a unique collection of the best in holiday experiences from November through the New Year. ...


Dominican Republic Named 'Golf Destination of the Year'
MarketWatch - 11 hours ago
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, Nov 18, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- The Dominican Republic (DR) was named the "Golf Destination of the Year for the Caribbean and ...


Earthtimes (press release)

CORRECTING and REPLACING Beach, Golf and Ski With the Embassy ...
MarketWatch - 9 hours ago
Winning guests can play a round of golf stateside at the beautiful Embassy Suites Greenville Golf Resort & Conference Center in South Carolina, ...
Dalaman property enjoys the ‘Hilton-Effect’ Easier (press release)
all 12 news articles


Sport-Haley, Inc. Reports First Quarter Unaudited Results
MarketWatch - 9 hours ago
Sport-Haley, Inc. designs, purchases, contracts for the manufacture of and markets women's and men's fashion golf apparel and outerwear under the SPORT ...
Sport-Haley (SPOR) Reports a Q1 Loss StreetInsider.com (subscription)
Sport-Haley, Inc. Reports First Quarter Unaudited Results International Business Times
all 12 news articles


Arkansas women's golf coach picked for Hall
SportingNews.com - 1 hour ago
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) -- Arkansas women's golf coach Shauna Estes-Taylor has been selected for the National Golf Coaches Association Coaches and Players ...


Golf notebook: Pair of local golfers still have shot at card
San Antonio Express, TX - 1 hour ago
Beginning action today at the Lantana Golf Club in North Texas will be Boerne's Jimmy Walker, who gained a partial exemption in the Tour's qualifying ...
Three local golfers seek Texas Senior Open title San Marcos Daily Record
all 2 news articles


Callaway Golf Company Declares Dividend
WELT ONLINE, Germany - 6 hours ago
Callaway Golf Company (NYSE:ELY) announced today that the Board of Directors has declared a dividend of $.07 per share, payable December 17, 2008, ...


Annual golf tournament raises money for charity
Houma Courier, Louisiana - 5 hours ago
Curtis Blanchard uses his club to point to where Wayne Blanchard should putt the ball during the 9th Annual Grant a Wish Foundation Golf Tournament at ...


Hauter Signs with Illinois Golf
Central Illinois Proud, IL - 25 minutes ago
Hauter, the 2007 class 1A state golf champion, signed his National Letter of Intent to play at the University of Illinois Tuesday. ...

Golf - Google News

home | site map
© 2006