Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
BRENDAN’S BELFRY BOW
BRENDAN LAWLOR will break new ground this week when he becomes the first disabled golfer to play on the European Tour.
The Ardee man is teeing it up at the Belfry on Thursday in the first round of the ISPS HANDA UK Championship.
Lawlor, 22, was born with the rare Ellis-van Creveld Syndrome – a bone growth disorder that leads to shorter limbs.
And he is relishing the chance to shine a light on disability golf at one of the most iconic courses in the world.
He said: “I’m going into this week privileged to be there and enjoying what I do. You can let these moments overtake you but you need to go out and enjoy it. Not too many people get the opportunity to play on the European Tour so I’m going to go out with a nice, positive attitude. I’ve a lot of confidence in my game at the minute so I’m just going to go out and have fun and hopefully the scores will come.
“The main goal is to hopefully inspire a lot of the disability golfers watching or encourage others to take up the game.”
Lawlor (inset) has entered what in these Covid-19 times is called ‘the bubble’ at the Warwickshire venue.
But you would be mistaken to think he is only playing in an ambassadorial capacity this week. In the space of a year, he has won on the European Disabled Golf Association Tour, turned pro and played a Challenge Tour event.
Rounds of 78 and 74 were not quite enough to make the cut in the Challenge Tour’s ISPS Handa World Invitational.
But they gave Lawlor, fourth in the disability golf world rankings, the confidence he can hold his own against the best able bodied golfers too.
He said: “Making the cut will be a big stretch in my first European Tour event but I’m playing well and I could put two rounds of my life together that could get me into the weekend.
“That’s a goal of mine, to make a cut on a European Tour event. It would obviously be very tough but it would be a huge moment for me.
“The Challenge Tour event did give me confidence. It was just a great event and so inclusive with equal prize money for men and women – and disability golfers playing too.”