12 / 42
I recently saw Tommy
Morrissey wearing a shirt with
the words, “
Zero Handicap
”®
written on the back. That
is a perfect description of
Tommy’s mindset. He has
learned to adapt, improvise,
and overcome the challenge
of being born with a limb
deficiency.
His
positive
attitude and mindset is
inspiring the golf industry and
millions of people worldwide.
Immediately after seeing the
shirt, I thought of my own
long road to recovery after
catastrophic injuries. I had
to learn to walk, as well as,
talk again. On the one-year
anniversary of my accident,
my body had sufficiently
healed to allow me to play
nine holes of golf. For several
years after that, I had to
swing at about 75% to avoid
going into traction. I was also
battling chronic pain and an
addiction to prescription pain
killers. Four long years later
and twelve thousand hours
of rehabilitation, I broke free
from the chronic pain and
addiction with the help of
acupuncture.
Shortly after overcoming my
addiction to prescription
painkillers, a friend from
my church, Fred Gutierrez,
wanted to learn to play golf
despite being paralyzed on
his left side. I quickly found
that the lessons I had learned
in my own recovery, were
lessons I could teach Fred, in
addition, they improved the
quality of his life.
Golf Therapy was born.
Watching Fred’s remarkable
progress over the past four
years has been very fulfilling.
Together, we have championed
the PGA HOPE Charleston
program and have had the
opportunity to mentor dozens
of veterans in the Low Country
in South Carolina. The PGA of
America has even begun other
PGA HOPE chapters around
the country. With each new
program, we are inviting more
and more veterans to enjoy
the therapeutic benefits of the
game of golf.
Last year, I had achieved a
personal milestone when I
regained a scratch handicap.
Gianna Rojas, “The One
Handed Lady Golfer”, gave
me the nickname, “The
Former Disabled Golfer.” I
then realized, that I no longer
had any handicaps, on or off
the golf course.
That single thought was
very liberating, much like
Tommy Morrissey’s “
Zero
Handicap”®
Mindset.
In late 2015, I began to lose
yardage off the tee and a
tightness was developing in my
The +1 Mindset
By
Rich O’Brien
The
“+1 Mindset”
®
can help bring new
golfers to the game, as well as, apply
to every aspect of your life and can be
the ultimate mindset for living
your life to the fullest.
NWO Golf Links