Blind Golfers Swing With Mind's Eye

Korea Blind Golf Association Chairman Yoo Jeong-il, second from left in the back row, poses with other members after playing a game at a screen golf center in southern Seoul on Jan. 16. / Courtesy of KBGA

By Cho Jae-hyon

Staff Reporter

Lifting the head during the downswing is the most common and critical mistake of recreational golfers. However, it’s not as big a concern for Cho In-chan.

“One thing good about sightlessness when it comes to golf is that you don’t have to lift your head as you swing to see the ball’s flight,” Cho said in an interview with The Korea Times. “After I became virtually blind, I was able to develop a more solid ball contact when striking the ball. Without having to lift up my head, I became able to keep my head still and maintain a straight spine angle during the swing.”

The 57-year-old board member of the Korea Blind Golfers’ Association (KBGA) is one of the top players of the association, which has about 50 registered members.

He has a handicap of 16 that has been acknowledged by the International Blind Golf Association (IBGA). The handicap _ which entails shooting an 88 on average per round _ is lower than most Korean amateur golfers.

He also said that because he cannot see the ball, he is good at visualizing shots, an element that pro golfers say is essential to becoming a better golfer.

“I have a mind’s eye. Even though I’ve lost my physical sight, I can use my mind’s eye and other senses. After training myself to visualize shots, my ball striking skills improved a lot,” he said.

Cho started learning golf in 1987 but began to lose his sight from 1988 when he was diagnosed with macular degeneration, a disease that usually affects older adults and results in a loss of vision in the center of one’s visual field.

After he became virtually blind in 2000, he gave up on playing golf for about eight years.

He did not play golf again until late 2007 when he heard that Daishin Securities would hold the first domestic blind golf championship. “I grabbed my golf clubs again after I heard the news.”

Cho won an international blind golf championship in Australia in 2008 and has earned runner-up and top finishes at domestic and international games over the last couple of years.

This year he has a new tournament to prepare for; he has been invited to the biannual World Championship and British Open for blind golfers in London from Aug. 14 to 20.

“When I first heard that I had been invited to the game, I didn’t realize how great it was. But I realized later the significance,” he said. “I know it’s every golfer’s dream to play in the United Kingdom, where golf originated.”

He said about 60 golfers from 14 nations will compete in the World Championship.

“There are a lot of great international blind golfers. I think one needs to finish at 81 or 82 to win the title.”

He said he practices at least three times a week at a city-run indoor golf center in Songpa-gu, Seoul.

“I usually hit about 92 per round. But according to the IBGA’s method, my handicap is the average of the three best scores I recorded in international games over the last year. That’s how I get the handicap of 16,” Cho said.

His best three scores were the 85, 87 and 92 he scored during tournaments in Australia and Japan.

Cho and other KBGA members received a big boost in morale at the news that golf would become an Olympic sport from 2016. This means there will be golf at the Paralympics as well, including exhibitions in 2012.

KBGA Chairman Yoo Jeong-il, 43, said, “I believe the adding of golf to the Olympic games is really big news for us. I hope our members will win medals in 2016.”

In Korea, there are only a handful of companies that provide sponsorship to blind golfers.

“We are playing golf under extremely difficult conditions,” Yoo said. “It’s very hard to find pros to work with us as they are reluctant to teach blind golfers.”

Most members of the association work as masseurs and can ill-afford to play regular rounds at golf courses that are notorious for high green fees.

Moreover, they are not welcome at most Korean golf courses. But the Bear Creek Golf Club in Gyeonggi Province provides them with the opportunity to play nine holes at its course every Monday for free.

Also, they need volunteer supporters to help them set up, arrange the club in front of the ball and gauge distance.

“We cannot golf without the help of supporters. But it can be difficult to find helpers,” Yoo said. “We need greater attention from the society.”

Yoo, who lost his sight at the age of 18 due to disease, said he likes playing all kinds of sports. He is also a member of a team of blind footballers.

“As is the case with many ordinary golfers, I think I was attracted to golf because it is a very difficult sport that is very hard to do well,” he said. “You know, the feeling of hitting the ball solidly is really thrilling. That’s why I like it.”

Asked about his plans as the chairman of the association, Yoo said he would make efforts to help blind or visually-impaired students foster an interest in learning and playing golf.

“Compared to other sports, there are not many blind golfers around the world. If these young students will play golf at earlier ages, they will able to produce good results at the Olympics,” he said.