Defending amputee golf champ swinging easy at MTSU
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But it wouldn’t be for autograph seekers or TV cameras. The 21-year-old from Middle Tennessee State knew his prosthetic left leg was going to set off the metal detectors.
Running late for his flight, Green simply detached his leg, put it through the X-ray machine and hopped through the metal detector. The airport screeners stared, but it didn’t bother Green.
“We had our guys team and our girls team there, and they were just laughing and taking pictures,” he said.
Green, who had his left foot and ankle amputated as an infant because of a prenatal condition, has built that confidence by winning the National Amputee Golf Association championship back-to-back.
He also earned a walk-on spot on Middle Tennessee State’s golf team in the spring of 2002, even though it wasn’t easy winning over coach Johnny Moore.
“His game wasn’t very impressive at first,” Moore said. “Over the summer, he seemed to get better simply because of his work ethic.”
His teammate, Charlie Gibson, said Green was always on the course trying to get better every day.
“In golf, that’s something you have to do,” Gibson said. “It’s not like other sports; you have to be at it all the time.”
Green’s hard work led to a golf scholarship in the fall of 2002, and he continues to inspire his teammates.
“They don’t consider Kenny as having a handicap, and he really doesn’t have one as far as we’re concerned,” Moore said. “What he brings is a positive attitude. If he’s willing to do it, the rest of them don’t have any excuse for not doing it.”
Middle Tennessee’s men will play in the Sun Belt conference championship starting Monday in Niceville, Fla.
Green said he struggles on tournament days where he has to walk eight or nine miles to play 36 holes.
“It’s a little bit tougher for me, and I have to really psyche myself up for that,” Green said. “After the practice round, I like to have a mental game plan — where I’d like to hit my shots, what holes to go for, what holes to hang back. But it’s about the same mental approach as anyone else.”
Green’s persistence helped him to two top 20 finishes in 2004. He’s shaved five strokes off his average.
He won his most recent amputee championship at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn., which hosted the 1991 U.S. Open and the 2002 PGA Championship.
“It’s great getting there and teeing off at the amputee tournaments,” he said. “Everyone is laid back and really friendly. With amputees, not holding anything back is what they like to do.”
Competitors in amputee golf tournaments often tease each other based on their disabilities, Green said, sometimes using language that would offend the politically correct. Since Green has only one amputation, he’s known as a “normie with a limp.”
Green fired a 73, 76 and a 74 to finish 7 over par and in first by a single stroke in last year’s competition. This year’s amputee national championship is in Boulder City, Nev., in October.
Despite the jokes, Green has become more serious about advocating for those with disabilities.
Three years ago, Green wrote a friend of the court brief to the Supreme Court in Casey Martin’s case against the PGA Tour to win use of a cart because of his disability.
Green at the time argued that using carts would compromise the integrity of the game. But since then, he’s changed his mind.
“After being involved in amputee golf, in situations where they really need a cart they should have it. It was all part of the growing up process. Just because I can do it, not everyone else can,” he said.
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On the Net:
National Amputee Golf Association, http://www.nagagolf.org/
Middle Tennessee Athletics, http://www.goblueraiders.com/