Freedom to give back

Sarasota Adaptive Golf Academy Classes 

When: 3:30 to 5:30 p.m., Thursdays through April 2016 (3 to 5 p.m. in December and January)

Where: Tatum Ridge Golf Links, 421 N. Tatum Road, Sarasota 

Cost: $20 per two-hour session and includes training aids, equipment, golf car, range balls and play on the course 

Online: adaptivegolfacademy.com 

Contact: Doug Erb at [email protected] or 302-4746

SARASOTA — David Windsor stood 60 yards from the green and held his breath. 

He looked on as World War II veteran Bill Schroedl took a few customary practice swings, tightened his grip and waited for the all clear. 

Windsor offered a few last-minute words of encouragement before taking a step back. 

In one swift motion, the golf ball sailed off of Schroedl’s 7-iron, ricochetted off the flag stick and bounced into the hole. 

The moment was magical not only because it was a hole-in-one. Schroedel suffered from macular degeneration.

“Who would’ve ever expected that a legally blind person would knock it in the hole?” Windsor said. “Everyone just went crazy. Everyone came together at that moment they knew the possibility for anything to happen existed right there.” 

 That was nearly 15 years ago. 

“It was so contagious to see how uplifting it was and how their lives were impacted, that I stayed involved with it,” Windsor said.

Since then, Windsor has used his position as a PGA Professional to raise awareness and develop programs to allow veterans and individuals with mobility and cognitive challenges to enjoy golf and become one with their communities. 

Windsor spends countless hours a week out on the course conducting eight-week instructional golf programs for veterans, educating and training PGA Professionals across the country and, most importantly, sharing stories and laughter with those who have served.

Tara resident Ben Woods met Windsor about two years ago in Tampa. Woods, a U.S. Army veteran with a traumatic brain injury, had a new set of Ping golf clubs that he had been fitted with as part of his rehabilitation process. 

Woods figured it was about time they got some use. He began taking instructional lessons through the Adaptive Golf Academy and has been routinely working with Windsor ever since. 

“He’s just made my game,” Woods said. “I felt better as soon as I started playing and started going outside.” 

In recognition of his show of patriotism through the game of golf, Windsor was awarded the 2015 Patriotism Award by the PGA of America. Windsor accepted his award during a ceremony Nov. 11, in Palm Beach Gardens. 

Windsor won the North Florida PGA Section Patriot Award in 2011 and 2014, but this was Windsor’s first time winning the award at the national level. 

“It was emotional,” Windsor said. “When you just turn your focus to one particular avenue good things happen. I wanted to be the best in my field and to do my part to impact lives. 

“I’ve been able to bring awareness to the forefront and impact lives through the game of golf,” Windsor said. “It’s a celebration of life and overcoming obstacles; and in turn, they’ve shown me a few things and impacted my life.” 

Through the Adaptive Golf Academy, Windsor helped grow PGA HOPE, which stands for Helping Our Patriots Everywhere, the signature military program of PGA REACH, the charitable foundation of the PGA of America. 

The idea for the Adaptive Golf Academy sprouted when Windsor worked alongside a Sarasota area therapist to introduce golf as a means of therapy. Windsor saw the immediate effects the sport and the surrounding environment had on the people with whom he worked, and after researching the process and gaining extensive experience, Windsor created the Adaptive Golf Academy in 2006 as the educational platform to train other PGA Professionals and physical, occupational and recreational therapists in the hopes of bringing consistent and effective adaptive golf programming. 

Today, Windsor serves as director of instruction for the Adaptive Golf Association, a nonprofit organization designed to provide ongoing adaptive golf opportunities through six to eight-week programs.

Through the Sarasota Adaptive Golf Academy, golfers can participate in weekly sessions from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Thursdays, at Tatum Ridge Golf Links, in Sarasota. 

Players work alongside Windsor, other professionals and one another, to learn and perfect their golf games while forming relationships with others with similar challenges. 

“They look out for one another in many ways beyond the golf course,” Windsor says. “It’s a whole new community. They find a whole new way to serve their country back on our soil.” 

Contact Jen Blanco at [email protected].