Greenside Therapy
Below : Ogletree and his partner won their four-ball match at the 2022 Simpson Cup at Baltusrol . At left : Ogletree and his service dog Mohawk at Potomac Shores Golf Club .
It brought a whole new joy and helped me relate with others . These are my brothers and sisters , and we give each other positivity to live great lives . They make me appreciate the road I took and , as soldiers , we have each other ’ s backs .” — Steve Ogletree
Military & Stress
Following basic training , Ogletree ’ s first assignment was in Germany . Baptism by fire followed when , 15 months later , the Gulf War erupted . He was deployed to Turkey and his unit drove to and through enemy territory in Iraq .
As an army engineer , Ogletree used his specialty to build interrogation camps , as well as bridges and roads for tanks to cross . Installing C-4 and detonators to blow up enemy buildings was in his wheelhouse , too .
Believe it or not , Turkey was a piece of cake compared to Ogletree ’ s time in Somalia .
“ Our camp was in the middle of Mogadishu and constantly bombarded ,” he says . “ I was shot at daily . We used bunkers as primarily shelter . I was scared and didn ’ t want to die and always had a gun on my back and wore a vest .”
Despite luckily not sustaining bodily injuries , regularly stepping over dead bodies and human remains in ditches were strenuous on the mind . Ensuing deployments to Haiti and Bosnia met with undetonated bombs and mines in ditches everywhere . Versatile engineering assignments , as well as rigors in Nicaragua providing humanitarian aid building roads and bridges post-hurricane , added to Ogletree ’ s self-management issues .
Before discharge in 2007 , major PTSD took root . Ogletree was incessantly agitated , anxious and depressed . It wasn ’ t pretty .
“ Demons were playing in my head , and I incurred many flashbacks ,” he says . “ To counter them , I drank a lot . It got so bad that I was completely out of it , and I regularly saw doctors . There were many times I thought there was no reason to go further .”
One day , the pressures hit an apex and Ogletree got in the car and started driving with no planned destination . His doctor forced him to turn around and immediately drive to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington , D . C ., where he vowed to wait at the emergency room entrance . Ogletree was immediately admitted with other PTSD veterans .
That started a formal recovery path , but it was golf that sparked Ogletree ’ s ultimate turnaround . No longer would the notion of hurting himself be forefront .