Ping continued in their quest to encourage new golfers with a disability into the game by offering a complimentary custom-fitting experience to all the players taking part in the 2023 Ping Open.
The Ping Open is a G4D event (golf for the disabled) and 16 players took advantage of the expert fitting process at Gainsborough before tackling the Karsten Lakes Course at Thonock Park GC which hosted the practice day and 36 holes of competition.
There were players from five nations in the field and all types of impairment were represented; physical, sensory, intellectual and neurodevelopmental and the Ping technicians were able to help each player make some crucial gains, some of which paid immediate dividends in the competition itself.
Matthew Jones, who is of short stature, and Matt Gamble who plays with his left arm, worked with Paul Rymer while Jacopo Luce, who has a neurodevelopmental impairment and had travelled from Venice, enjoyed a productive session in the Ping Putting Lab with Adam Wainwright.
Ellie Perks, also of short stature, also received some expert putting analysis while Kris Aves, who has been paralysed from the waist down since 2017 and plays from a powered chair, received a full-bag fitting with Nick Boulton, something he described as 'simply brilliant and eye-opening'.
Former semi-professional rugby player, Iain Millar, from Hampshire has a brain and spinal injury and he came away with his game on an upward curve.
“I was hitting the ball longer and straighter, it feels much more controlled. It’s an amazing centre here and makes you feel so optimistic about what you can do with your game.”
In the competition Matthew Jones took the Stableford prize with scores of 40 and 41, Gamble won the Net with scores of 73-64 and Andrew Gardiner won the overall gross prize with an incredible round of 67 backing up his opening 79 to become a very deserving Ping Open champion.
Rob Moss, Tournament Director for the EDGA event, said: “It is the people at Ping that make this such a special company to work with. Our players were delighted with the help from Ping technicians Nick, Paul and Adam, they were tremendous.
"As EDGA works with the game’s leading bodies to create a supportive, inclusive, and accessible golfing landscape, we could not have a better partner than our friends at Ping.”
Ping's three-year commitment to EDGA will also aid recent progress in providing professional coaches and volunteers to help expand the game to more golfers with an impairment internationally.
