A group photo at the Golf Association of Philadelphia (GAP) sponsored adaptive clinic at Honey Brook (Pa.) Golf Club.
USGA/Jason E. Miczek
This content was first published in Golf Journal, a quarterly print publication exclusively for USGA members. To be among the first to receive Golf Journal and learn how you can ensure a strong future for the game, Become a USGA Member today!
Growing up, Anna Kittelson had two main passions: golf and helping people with disabilities. Her first passion began at age 12, when Kittelson’s grandfather invited her to a speedway and she discovered her natural aptitude for the game.
Her second passion began at the same time, when she served as a volunteer for the Special Olympics. Later, as a high school student, Kittelson took a class called Peer Support and Leadership, which enabled her to help fellow students with disabilities, and she also volunteered at a camp for individuals with disabilities. limited.
During her senior year of college, Kittelson served as a babysitter for a child with autism — even spending time hitting balls in the field with him, echoing her introduction to the game with her grandfather. With these two passions firmly rooted, Kittelson looked for a way to combine them into a future career.
After playing golf at Midwestern State University and the University of Delaware and earning a degree in exercise science, Kittelson realized the medical field wasn’t a good fit. She decided to take a job as a pro shop attendant at Bidermann Golf Club in Wilmington, Del., an opportunity that would change her life.
While at Bidermann, Kittelson began looking for opportunities that would fulfill her desire to help others, especially people with disabilities. Discussing her interests with Anthony Malizia, Bidermann’s head golf professional, he mentioned the USGA Adaptive Open Championship.
Bill Pennington
Researching the event, Kittelson knew she had to be involved in some way. Luckily for her, Malizia had recently met with Mario Machi, assistant executive director of the Golf Association of Philadelphia (GAP), who was interested in adding adaptive golf—which enables individuals with cognitive, health, physical, and and sensory participate in the game. through modified equipment and rules – as a new program offering. Shortly after meeting Machi, Kittelson received a PJ Boatwright Jr. internship, enabling her to serve at GAP as an adaptive golf intern.
Halfway through her year-long internship, she was offered a full-time role as manager of adaptive golf at GAP. Since starting work this January, Kittelson has been focused on serving the region’s approximately 350 adaptive gamers.
“Golf is a sport that everyone can play together, whether they have a disability or not,” Kittelson said. “We want to introduce the game to this underrepresented community.”
To do this, the GAP is preparing to host a tournament on October 14-15, which will have a format similar to the US Adaptive Open. Set to be held at Lookaway Golf Club and Doylestown Country Club in Bucks County, Pa., the tournament will further increase opportunities for those in the adaptive golf community.
GAP is also working to introduce handicap golf, another means of increasing the participant base. This year, he hosted more than 14 “No Limit Clinics” – designed to prove that anyone can play, the clinics are 90 minutes and taught by PGA professionals. For 45 minutes, young adaptive players learn on the range, hitting shots with different clubs, followed by another 45 minutes of chipping and putting. Each clinic is tailored to the goals and skill levels of the participants.
“It’s all about building the adaptive golf community and helping people make new friends. Hopefully they will also catch the golf bug and play adaptive tournaments,” Kittelson said. “Above all, we want to eliminate barriers to entry and promote a more inclusive and accessible game.”
With those goals in mind, Kittelson hired Tyler Cashman as a summer intern in 2024. An adaptive golfer with a visual impairment who has played in the last two stages of the US Adaptive Open, Cashman met Kittelson at the Eastern Regional, a amputee and adaptive golf tournament.
“The impact of the US Adaptive Open on adaptive golf has been huge, as the overall number of adaptive golfers has grown significantly since it began,” Cashman said. “By giving adaptive players an opportunity to play at a higher level, it’s illuminated a lot more about what we can do. I hope it will continue to break down any stereotypes about what people with disabilities can achieve on the golf course.”
Breaking stereotypes – for good
The USGA began its involvement with adaptive golf more than 30 years ago. In 1991, it started a grant program to provide financial assistance to non-profit organizations dedicated to helping players with disabilities, and in 1997, it introduced the Modified Rules of Golf for Players with Disabilities.
The USGA continued to increase its involvement in two main ways. In 2019, together with the R&A, the organizations began administering the World Ranking for Players with a Disability (WR4GD) through the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR). Two years ago, in 2017, it vowed to change adaptive golf forever.
That year, during its annual meeting, the USGA pledged to create a new national championship for the adaptive golf community. Although Covid-19 delayed its introduction, the USGA’s pledge was realized when the USA Adaptive Open debuted in July 2022 in course no. 6 of Pinehurst Resort & Country Club.
Since that debut and subsequent installments at Pinehurst in 2023 and Sand Creek Station in Kansas in 2024, adaptive golf’s popularity and profile have grown significantly. According to Stephanie Parel, director of the US Adaptive Open Championship for the USGA, about 700 Americans are currently certified adaptive golfers. By 2018, this number was 2.
What happens when a golf course’s most precious resource becomes scarce?
Jessica Marksbury
During this period, the number of US-based WR4GD Countdown Events has grown from approximately 12 to more than 30. Many of these events are sponsored or conducted by the USGA’s network of Allied Golf Associations (AGAs) across the country.
“When the USGA started the US Adaptive Open, an AGA had an adaptive championship,” Parel said. “By the end of this year, there will be eight – and more are on the way in 2025.”
As she reflects on the past two years, Kittelson believes the impact of the US Adaptive Open at the local level is undeniable, as it makes people like her passionate about the concept and its potential.
“There are so many people with disabilities who hadn’t thought about golf before, but now they’re involved,” she said. “And they’re playing with people who don’t have disabilities, which is great for the whole golf community, because people come from all walks of life and just enjoy playing with each other.”
Parel agrees, adding that not only has the game become “more welcoming, accessible and inclusive,” but so have golf facilities, ensuring that everyone who wants to play can feel comfortable doing so.
“The stories of the adaptable players have been extremely inspiring and motivating,” said Parel. “They have reminded us — the general golf community — of everything we love about the game: camaraderie, integrity, perseverance and playing for the pure joy of it.”
Parel believes that, along with the US Adaptive Open players’ obvious interest in camaraderie and camaraderie, they are also some of the most competitive players she has met.
“Don’t let their distant personalities fool you; they are fierce competitors,” she said.
In fact, Parel has found that their competitiveness has increased, especially as more adaptive players enter the tournament, leading to lower scores with each passing year.
“Once we’re out on the course, we’re a big community,” Cashman said. “But when we’re on the course, it’s a very competitive atmosphere.”
Regarding: At the 2023 US Adaptive Open, England’s Kipp Popert won the men’s title by a single shot with a 54-hole total of 2-under-par 214.
Matt Vanderpool, CEO of the Georgia State Golf Association (GSGA), has observed this strong will to win first hand. Since 2019, the GSGA has hosted the Georgia Adaptive Open, which some adaptive players consider one of the top five adaptive tournaments in the world.
After hosting the event at the nine-hole Bobby Jones Golf Course in Atlanta for four years, this June the GSGA held it at the Retreat Course, an 18-hole layout at Georgia’s Sea Island Resort. Its course size was increased from 36 to 60 and 88 golfers had signed up for it by February, further proving the growing popularity of adaptive golf.
“I believe the profile of adaptive golf will continue to grow exponentially over the next five years,” Vanderpool said. “The US Adaptive Open has brought a lot of attention to adaptive golf, and with more AGAs around the country adding adaptive competitions and programs, there will be more opportunities for adaptive golfers to learn and enjoy the game locally.”
Parel has also noticed that more AGAs are getting involved with core programming, leading to new players. In particular, she feels the AGAs will promote adaptive golf to more young men and women moving forward.
“Adaptive golf is bursting at the seams,” she said. “The interest and support from the traditional golf community, foundations and sponsors is tremendous.”
As more AGAs prepare to launch tournaments, Kittelson is focused on doing what she can to help each one foster competition and community — the kind of community adaptive golf is known for.
“We all need to work together to ensure that we are doing everything for the betterment of every adaptive golfer,” Kittelson concluded. “There are so many talented athletes involved. Every AGA should do everything they can to provide them with the best experiences possible, while we all continue to create an inclusive, fun and competitive environment.”
