Southern California's No. 1 Golf Source
STROKE OF THE DAY |
"The players themselves can be classified into two groups- the attractions and the entry fees." |
-Jimmy Demaret |
SITE
SEARCH
GOLF
CALENDAR
People
|
||||
 It's a picture-perfect late April day in Carlsbad, and three friends - Alroy Billiman, Jake Williams and Randall Leoncio - are testing their new, custom-fitted TaylorMade clubs at the company's opulent practice facility, known as "The Kingdom." Billiman is taking a particular shine to his driver, which he's smacking consistently over 200 yards with a draw. "How far is that green flag out there," he wonders aloud with the exuberance of any golfer that would adore the feeling of hitting pure shots with new sticks. But this trio is far from average. Each is missing a limb as a result of injuries sustained during service in Iraq. Billiman, an Army specialist who was recalled into service in 2006, had his right arm amputated above the elbow after a wound from an improvised explosive device in November of that year. With the help of TaylorMade and San Diego's Tony Perez, who founded Wounded Heroes, the three veterans are able to hit golf shots like anybody else. "I thought about this at the Buick Invitational," said Perez, who invited Williams and Leoncio to be among four honorary first-tee starters at the tournament. "It's not golf as usual for these kids. They needed to be professionally fit." Working with TaylorMade and the Navy Medical Center, where the veterans rehabilitated, Perez arranged for the men to receive new clubs that could work properly with their prosthetics. He dubbed it "Operation: Game On!" Instructor Jim Flick was on hand to help the trio get started. "So few people in our country seem to realize what a serious situation is going on [in Iraq], and these kids have put their lives in jeopardy to help take care of us," Flick said. "We need to be doing something to show our thanks." Marine Master Sgt. David Lind of Oceanside, also a starter at the Buick, couldn't attend the first session, but he got his clubs a week later. "There's nothing like having a brand new set of clubs," said Lind, a bilateral amputee whose legs were wounded by an IED blast on June 14, 2007. "I'm looking forward to getting out there and playing." Williams, an Army private born in Corona and now a resident of Sun City, played golf two or three times a month before enlisting in 2006. A wound from an armor-piercing projectile last August took his right arm. "My whole family is golfers, so it's great that I can go out there and play with them," said Williams, who was hitting solid shots after a few minutes with Flick. "Now, I'm just trying to improve." According to Perez, who also founded Pin Pals Junior Links in San Diego, activities such as golf can help the healing process for wounded veterans. "The war may stop, but our troops are still going to be coming home like this," he said. "And golf, with our help, is going to be there for them." SG For more information on Wounded Warriors and Tony Perez's other programs, visit pinpalsjuniorlinks.org. |
||||
RSS Subscribe
Digg This Article
