Steve Cunningham Blind golfer. Handicap 36
I first took up golf in 1999 whilst working as a conductor for Scotrail & really enjoyed the game despite scoring 147 strokes at my first 2 outings at firstly Bathgate followed by Charleton GC in Fife. Those scores only made me more determined to improve my game & did up to a point. I managed to get my club handicap down to 22 in 2004 & managed to scrape a win to get my one & only trophy in golf (so far anyway J). This all took a nose dive in June 2005 when I was registered blind with Retinitis Pigmentosa I stopped playing for around a year due to a lack of confidence in myself which set me back to a lower standard of golf.
I tried on more than one occasion (3 to be exact) to get involved with the SBGS with no success & thought my golfing days were numbered. Then on the 6/4/2009 I received an email from my local branch chairman of the BRPS about a golf training day at Wellsgreen on the 16th of May which I decided to attend. There I was made to feel MORE than welcome by one Mr. Jim Gales. I had a very good lesson & played the 6 hole course despite a very heavy mist & the rest is history. I have really enjoyed the outings at some cracking courses & have recently been playing well & have managed to win a couple of prizes which I didn’t think possible this time last year. The SDGP has really helped me from a golfing point of view but moreover from a social point of view & have met a bunch of really good people who have treated me as an equal & have made some good friends.
As a result the above has shown me that disability should not hold you back & to prove it to myself & others I am trekking to the base camp of Mount Everest. I am set to leave on the 21st of October 2009 & this trek will also raise Ł4500 for research into Retinitis Pigmentosa. I will update this profile after my return on the 7th of November 2009 with pictures etc. A huge thanks to everyone at the SDGP. Cheers guys