Indiana Golf Journal August 2022

Men’s Division The Men’s Division Champion, Korean Simon Seungmin Lee is autistic and was in a competitive battle with Felix Norrman, of Sweden. Both were tied for the lead, at threeunder par, after 54 holes of regulation play. Lee had held a two-stroke lead after the second round, but Norrman, who suffers from tuberous sclerosis, a neurological condition, erased the deficit to gain the tie. Lee birdied the first hole of a two-hole aggregate playoff to take a one up lead. Norrman, forced to play aggressively, bogeyed the final hole, while Lee made a comfortable par to seal the win. Lee is a remarkable story. He became the first golfer with a developmental disability to gain conditional status on the Korean PGA Tour in 2017. At the age of 20, he was assessed to having the communication skills of a 10-year-old. watch their joy and the desire to play in a legit national championship. This is as good as it gets. I’m ecstatic that I could be here.” The first U.S. Adaptive Open Championship for both men and women was a total success. The USGA has scored a home run with this new venture and should be commended for getting this done. Kudos also to Pinehurst for hosting this important golf championship. To learn more about the U.S. Adaptive Golf Championship visit USGA.org Lee’s symptoms were first diagnosed early inhis childhood, and he has attributed golf as, “The light of the world to me and a way to communicate with people.” In all, 96 golfers from 29 states and 11 countries competed in the eight impairment categories. Former PGA Tour Professional Ken Green, who lost his leg in an accident in 2009 placed sixth overall and second in the leg impairment category said, “I got to meet so many new people and to

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