Teaching disabled can benefit both students and teachers

By T.J. Auclair, PGA.com Interactive Producer

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- PGA Professionals Dennis Walters, Judy Alvarez and Jim Estes gave an exceptional presentation on "Performance Coaching Challenges" at the 11th PGA Teaching and Coaching Summit on Saturday.

On another perfect day at the PGA Learning Center, Walters, Alvarez and Estes taught their brethren how they could expand their business and -- more importantly -- take away an increased level of satisfaction by working with the disabled.

Walters kicked off the presentation. If the hundreds of PGA Professionals in attendance needed any further motivation or inspiration as to why they should broaden their business to the disabled, they had it right before their eyes.

Walters, recipient of the 2008 PGA Distinguished Service Award, had his dreams of becoming a touring professional take a tragic turn on July 21, 1974, when the three-wheeled golf car he was driving slid out of control on a steep hill, sending him flying. What resulted for the then-24-year-old was a dislocated vertebra at the thoratic level 12, which pinched his spinal cord and left him a paraplegic.

In the six weeks after the accident, Walters was told by his doctor that not only would he never walk again, but he would never play golf again.

"I did not even want to live without golf," Walters said.

And that's why Walters screamed that not only would he be back, but he'd hit golf balls off the doctor's lawn.

Just 6
1/2 months later, Walters returned to the Kessler Institute in New Jersey, where he was told he'd never play golf again, and gathered his doctor and patients into the parking lot, where he drove a golf ball with ease.

During his riveting lecture, Walters explained, "Golf has given me more than I could ever repay. It's far better therapy than any pill I could take."

With a swivel chair built into the side of his golf car and a harness to keep his stability, Walters has performed more than 2,000 golf shows around the world.

He stressed to the attendees that the golf experience isn't just 18 holes.

"Maybe a disabled player can't play 18 holes," Walters said, "but they can chip, they can putt, they can hit balls on the range. Give everyone the experience of hitting the ball square in the center of the clubface."

As he closed his presentation, Walters ended it the way he said he ends all his shows: "If there is something you really want to do -- no matter how impossible it may seem -- with enough hard work and perseverance you can do it."

He's living proof.

Alvarez and Estes have both found a niche in teaching golf to the disabled. The two explained that they actually ask more of the questions than the students do. But that doesn't mean they change how they teach.

"There's no need to reinvent your philosophy," said Alvarez, who works as a PGA of America National Military Golf Trainer on the Wounded Warrior Golf Project. "Keep it simple and learn to hit the shots yourself -- hit balls off of one leg, with your eyes closed, seated -- get a feel for what your student is experiencing. Focus on their abilities instead of their disabilities. Don't make assumptions about what they can and can't do."

Alvarez also explained that Wounded Warriors -- severely wounded soldiers -- want help moving on. They're not looking for sympathy.

"Language is a powerful tool," she said. "Know what to say. They have a 'disability,' they're not, 'crippled.'"

Estes, the PGA Director of Instruction at Olney Golf Park in Olney, Md., achieved nationwide recognition in 2005 for his development of the Salute Military Golf Association and lives just 10 minutes from the Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

"I work with a lot of AK (above the knee) and BK (below the knee) amputations," Estes said. "I try to identify how their body creates power by assessing their posture."

During the presentation, Estes and Alvarez worked with amputee students and explained that by giving positive feedback constantly, the students have confidence when they step in to hit the ball.

Estes talked about how students from Walter Reed are among the best to teach because they're so disciplined, "and they already have a great work ethic, which makes them perfect candidates to learn how to play golf."

Estes and Alvarez agreed that the most significant aspect of teaching students with disabilities was attitude.

"What you feed attention to grows," Estes said. "Be positive and it will translate to the student."