tidewater
bide-a-wee
GOLF COURSE northern virginia
burke lake
GOLF CENTER central
independence GOLF CLUB
“ Q u a l i t y programming for people with special needs is incredibly hard to find … By giving these participants the chance to play golf for a few hours a week, we were giving their parents and caretakers the chance to engage in a fun, relaxing activity. You sit with them at the range helping them conquer a difficult swing issue and watch the player and their family rejoice together. Made my heart grow five sizes bigger every week.”
making a difference
The VSGA is well known for running events, but Walder said the organization isn’ t equipped to provide instruction. So with the clinic and play day programs,“ Our goal was to partner closely with each club and its lead instructor, allowing their expertise to guide the curriculum that best served our clinic participants. They all did a tremendous job.”
Kelly Hall, PGA ran the show at Independence Golf Course,
Tim Carnahan at Burke Lake, and Adam Relan, PGA at
Bide-A-Wee.
“ The aspect that touched me the most was the pure joy and camaraderie of the group,” Hall said.“ We all know how physically draining and mentally difficult golf can be. Despite that, these players brought a positive attitude and willingness to learn to each session.”
He continued:“ They didn’ t let the difficulty of the sport dampen their spirits. They met each challenge with enthusiasm for themselves and every other player in attendance. That attitude and level of dedication is something every golfer could learn from.”
The Burke Lake site averaged 18 participants each week, Independence averaged eight, and Bide-A-Wee four.
“ For this year, we’ re going to expand on the clinics and play days," Walder said. " We had such a great response from not only the players, but the instructors. We’ re excited to get that going again. We have good momentum, and we want to keep moving forward and expanding our reach.”
“ Seeing how much fun some of these players have had at the clinics has been awesome. [ Adaptive golf ] is touching the lives of people from many different backgrounds, each with their own story.”
VSGA( 4) vsga. org M ARCH / A PRIL 2026 | V IRGINIA G OLFER 21