ISRAEL : Blindness no obstacle for Israeli golfer Zohar Sharon who aced the 160-metre 15th hole at the Caesarea Golf Club

A former world champion blind golfer realised the dream of every amateur hacker when he shot a hole-in-one. Zohar Sharon, who won the 2003 Blind Golf Championship, aced the 160-metre (176-yard), 15th hole at the Caesarea Golf Club in Israel in November with only the guidance of his caddy and a finely tuned ear. Sharon, blind since his 20s, initially thought he had overhit his tee-shot but was delighted when his caddy, Shimshon Levy, found the ball nestled in the cup. "I heard him shouting. At first I thought something had happened to him, then he shouted 'come here, come here, come here, come here'," Sharon said of Levy, a childhood friend, who accompanies him on his regular rounds of golf, lining up his shots for him and advising him on the distance of the holes. "I approached him, then he said 'bend over into the hole, I do not want to touch it'. I bent over and the ball was inside," Sharon says while he plays golf. "It is like a climax, climax made of a few seconds of wonderful enjoyment," he added. "But immediately we continued to the next course and I had to face some new problems." In September 2003, Sharon, the only professional blind golfer in Israel, beat the other contenders in the World Blind Golf Championship held in Scotland. Besides the assistance he gets from his caddy, Sharon explains his remarkable success by relying on his advanced imagination. "I can really imagine the ball, I imagine the hovering, and imagine its distance. Every time I sink the putt I surprise myself - how it hits (the target). But it works," he says. Amos Meitar, a psychologist and a fellow golfer says he is inspired by Sharon's capabilities. "It's a unique phenomenon and I think that I am excited. I see many people who are trying to overcome their limits and to be more than they can, and I think that Zohar is one of them, and he is doing something which is fascinating and to me it gives me more motivation to help people and to be with other people and to show them how they can see the light through the darkness," said Meitar from Ga'ash golf course. Aged 53, the former paratrooper says he took up golf after he was blinded by chemicals sprayed in his face during a combat operation with the Israeli army in the 1970's, but refuses to elaborate on the matter due to army confidentiality. He survives on an army pension now which meant that, instead of treating everyone in the clubhouse to the traditional round of drinks after a hole-in-one, Sharon bought everyone a can of soft drink from the pro shop. Sharon says golf redeems him from the ugly darkness of blindness, giving him hope and adding beauty to his life. "That sound of the ball - tick tick tick - sinking the putt, is the most pleasant melody in life. You go through life only to hear that tune," he smiles.

ITN Source | December 12, 2005

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