U.S. Adaptive Open to Welcome Global Field to Pinehurst

12 countries and 29 states will be represented in a field with an age range from 15 to 80.

LIBERTY CORNER, N.J. (May 18, 2022) – The full field for the inaugural U.S. Adaptive Open – a new national championship that will showcase the world’s best golfers with disabilities on Pinehurst Resort & Country Club’s Course No. 6 from July 18-20 – has been set by the USGA.  

The USGA received 299 entries for the 2022 U.S. Adaptive Open’s 96-player field, and the field includes competitors from 29 states and 12 countries, including five competitors from North Carolina. The championship’s youngest competitor is 15-year-old Sophia Howard from Hudsonville, Mich. Judith Brush, 80, of Alexandria, Va., is the championship's oldest player.  

“We are thrilled by the level of interest and support that we’ve received from the adaptive community for the inaugural U.S. Adaptive Open,” said John Bodenhamer, chief championships officer for the USGA. “To receive nearly 300 entries from around the world underscores the passion of these athletes who are seeking the opportunity to compete for a national championship.” 

A player’s individual Handicap Index® was the primary factor in determining the field, with the USGA reserving at least five male player spots and two female player spots per impairment category.  

Dennis Walters, 72, of Jupiter, Fla., who received the 2018 Bob Jones Award, the USGA’s highest honor, will join 6 other golfers who qualified in the seated player impairment category. Walters has turned the tragedy of being paralyzed from the waist down at age 24 from a golf-cart accident into a personal mission to teach golf and life lessons to a worldwide audience. 

Amy Bockerstette, 23, of Phoenix, Ariz., who has a close relationship with 2019 U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland, will compete in the intellectual impairment category. Bockerstette, a disabilities advocate, founded the I Got This Foundation to provide golf instruction, playing opportunities and organized events for people with Down syndrome and other intellectual disabilities. 

Chris Biggins, the director of player development at the Country Club of Birmingham (Ala.), who was born with cerebral palsy, will compete in the neurological impairment category. The Country Club of Birmingham is the site of the 2022 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball, with the championship’s 18-hole final round being contested today.  

“Competing in an official USGA championship has been a dream of mine for years and now that dream will be coming to fruition,” said Biggins. “This event will attract the best golfers from around the world to compete on an incredible course, Pinehurst No. 6. It is an honor to compete in this historic event and help pave the way for the growth of disabled golf.” 

The championship is open to both male and female professional and amateur golfers with a World Handicap System™ Handicap Index® of 36.4 or less and an eligible impairment confirmed by a WR4GD Pass. The impairment categories are as follows: 

• Arm Impairment 
• Intellectual Impairment 
• Leg Impairment 
• Multiple Limb Amputee 
• Neurological Impairment 
• Seated Players 
• Short Stature 
• Vision Impairment 

The championship will be contested over 54 holes of stroke play. Multiple sets of tees will be utilized. Carts will be permitted for all players and caddies. The 96-player field is as follows: 

Trevor Arnone, of Lewiston, Idaho, 34, Short Stature 
Kurtis Barkley, of Canada, 34, Short Stature 
Brian Bemis, of Lansing, Mich., 48, Leg Impairment 
Adam Benza, of Hellertown, Pa., 35, Leg Impairment 
Andrew Berglund, of Stillwater, Minn., 22, Intellectual Impairment
Chris Biggins, of Birmingham, Ala., 30, Neurological Impairment 
Jeremy Bittner, of Pittsburgh, Pa., 33, Leg Impairment 
Joakim Bjorkman, of Sweden, 32, Short Stature 
Wayne Blankenship, of Union, Mo., 52, Leg Impairment 
Amy Bockerstette, of Phoenix, Ariz., 23, Intellectual Impairment 
Jack Bonifant, of Kensington, Md., 32, Neurological Impairment 
Kenny Bontz, of Parrish, Fla., 52, Leg Impairment 
Erik Bowen, of Oakland, Calif., 42, Multiple Limb Amputee 
Albert Bowker, of Buellton, Calif., 25, Short Stature 
Grace Anne Braxton, of Fredericksburg, Va., 50, Intellectual Impairment 
Ryan Brenden, of Pierce, Neb., 46, Leg Impairment 
Carlos Brown, of McKinney, Texas, 42, Leg Impairment 
Mike Browne, of England, 44, Leg Impairment 
Judith Brush, of Alexandria, Va., 80, Leg Impairment 
Brandon Canesi, of Doral, Fla., 30, Multiple Limb Amputee 
Luke Carroll, of Old Hickory, Tenn., 17, Neurological Impairment 
Lawrence Celano, of Chandler, Ariz., 53, Seated Players 
Amanda Cunha, of Kaneohe, Hawaii, 18, Vision Impairment 
Ryan Cutter, of Helena, Mont., 31, Multiple Limb Amputee 
Mario Dino, of Denver, Colo., 19, Neurological Impairment 
Zachary Duncan, of Cornelius, N.C., 22, Intellectual Impairment 
Spencer Easthope, of Canada, 40, Neurological Impairment 
Conor Ennis, of Wake Forest, N.C., 31, Short Stature 
Jesse Florkowski, of Canada, 32, Arm Impairment 
Alex Fourie, of Knoxville, Tenn., 29, Arm Impairment 
Billy Fryar, of Bigelow, Ark., 50, Seated Players 
Patrick Garrison, of Folsom, Pa., 38, Neurological Impairment 
Ken Green, of West Palm Beach, Fla., 63, Leg Impairment 
Zachary Grove, of York, Pa., 36, Neurological Impairment 
Mauricio Gutiérrez, of Mexico, 47, Seated Players 
Ann Hayes, Lee, of Mass., 59, Seated Players 
Joseph (Joey) Hill, of Tampa, Fla., 22, Intellectual Impairment 
Greg Hollingsworth, of Peck, Kan., 53, Leg Impairment 
Sophia Howard, of Hudsonville, Mich., 15, Arm Impairment 
Ryanne Jackson, of St. Petersburg, Fla., 24, Neurological Impairment 
Han Jeongwon, of Republic of Korea, 51, Leg Impairment 
Lucas Jones, of Louisville, Ky., 27, Leg Impairment 
Kiefer Jones, of Canada, 32, Vision Impairment 
Shigeru Kobayashi, of Japan, 66, Leg Impairment 
Masato Koyamada, of Japan, 55, Arm Impairment 
Sarah Beth Larson, of Green Bay, Wis., 43, Arm Impairment 
Cynthia Lawrence, of Lehigh Acres, Fla., 59, Multiple Limb Amputee 
Simon Lee, of Republic of Korea, 25, Intellectual Impairment 
Yangwoo Lee, of Republic of Korea, 24, Intellectual Impairment 
Cedric Lescut, of Belgium, 43, Leg Impairment 
Rasmus Lia, of Sweden, 21, Leg Impairment 
Michael Madsen, of Meridian, Idaho, 41, Leg Impairment 
Tommy Marks, of Danville, Pa., 42, Vision Impairment 
Evan Mathias, of Indianapolis, Ind., 26, Multiple Limb Amputee 
Joseph McCarron, of Orange Beach, Ala., 59, Vision Impairment 
Sean Mitchell, of Spokane, Wash., 32, Leg Impairment 
Kim Moore, of Portage, Mich., 41, Leg Impairment 
Austin Morris, of Bend, Ore., 34, Arm Impairment 
Felix Norrman, of Sweden, 25, Intellectual Impairment 
Jake Olson, of Huntington Beach, Calif., 25, Vision Impairment 
Elaine Ostrovsky, of Boca Raton, Fla., 49, Neurological Impairment 
Wooshik Park, of Republic of Korea, 63, Leg Impairment 
William Pease, of St. Augustine, Fla., 58, Vision Impairment 
Steven Pennell, of Jefferson, N.C., 44, Multiple Limb Amputee 
Chad Pfeifer, of Caldwell, Idaho, 40, Leg Impairment 
Jeremy Poincenot, of Carlsbad, Calif., 32, Vision Impairment 
Kipp Popert, of England, 24, Neurological Impairment 
Krystian Pushka, of Canada, 31, Intellectual Impairment 
Tracy Ramin, of Montrose, Mich., 50, Leg Impairment 
Trevor Reich, of South Africa, 58, Leg Impairment 
Stacey Rice, of Suwanee, Ga., 59, Leg Impairment 
Brandon Rowland, of Jackson, Tenn., 41, Multiple Limb Amputee 
Mandi Sedlak, of Kearney, Neb., 42, Leg Impairment 
Randy Shack, of Sulphur Springs, Texas, 38, Seated Players 
Steven Shipuleski, of Plainfield, Conn., 51, Arm Impairment 
Douglas Shirakura, of Somers, N.Y., 20, Leg Impairment 
Rasmus Skov løt, of Denmark, 21, Arm Impairment 
Deborah Smith, of Rockford, Ill., 60, Leg Impairment 
Jonathan Snyder, of Charlotte, N.C., 40, Arm Impairment 
Natasha Stasiuk, of Canada, 24, Intellectual Impairment 
Conor Stone, of Ireland, 27, Arm Impairment 
Joshua Tankersley, of Fort Worth, Texas, 36, Leg Impairment 
Jordan Thomas, of Nashville, Tenn., 33, Multiple Limb Amputee 
Mariano Tubio, of Argentina, 42, Seated Players 
Kellie Valentine, of McKean, Pa., 51, Arm Impairment 
Kevin Valentine, of Winter Garden, Fla., 48, Leg Impairment 
Patti Valero, of Brandon, Fla., 59, Leg Impairment 
Eliseo Villanueva, of Fort Bragg, N.C., 55, Arm Impairment 
Adem Wahbi, of Belgium, 23, Neurological Impairment 
Cathy Walch, of Buford, Ga., 56, Arm Impairment 
Robert Walden, of Queen Creek, Ariz., 50, Arm Impairment 
Dennis Walters, of Jupiter, Fla., 72, Seated Players 
David Watts, of South Africa, 34, Leg Impairment 
Joshua Williams, of Canada, 37, Leg Impairment 
Hayato Yoshida, of Japan, 38, Leg Impairment 
Peyton Zins, of Indianapolis, Ind., 20, Neurological Impairment 

Additional information on the U.S. Adaptive Open can be found here.