After losing three limbs in Iraq, veteran relearns golf swing

By VICKY ECKENRODE, Wilmington Star-NewsWILMINGTON, N.C. -

The first time Joey Bozik picked up a golf club after his accident, the ball bounced a mere 20 yards.

"I was just demoralized," Bozik said. "I thought, 'How am I ever going to play golf again?'"

Bozik, a 29-year-old veteran, lost both his legs and his right arm after his Humvee rolled over an anti-tank mine in Iraq three years ago.

The Wilmington native pushed through the long road of physical therapy and learned to walk again at Walter Reed Medical Center, but it was the possibility of not being able to spend time on the greens like he used to that fueled his determination.

At the University of North Carolina Wilmington, Bozik recently showed a group of students how he got his swing back.

With a specialized prosthetic arm that slid onto a club's grip and prosthetic legs that locked his knees into a natural bend, Bozik balanced himself on an adapted golf cart and slammed practice balls into the air with his driver.

He averages scores in the low 90s when playing now, an impressive feat for any golfer.

"I think if you have enough determination, you'll find your way back to anything," Bozik told the students in the school's accessible golf and recreation therapy interventions courses.

The Hoggard High School graduate who attended the University of North Carolina at Wilmington now speaks about twice a month to groups about his experience and has appeared on documentaries such as MTV's "True Life: I'm Home from Iraq."

Bozik, who now lives in California, was visiting his two brothers and mother, and agreed to meet with the students of Dan Johnson, an assistant professor of recreation therapy. Recreation therapy is related to physical therapy in that it helps injured people retrain their bodies but focuses on building confidence and reducing depression as well as motor skills through recreational activities.

Bozik encouraged the college students to not only push for new prosthetic pieces that can help their future patients take on more activities but also to be aware of the disability issues that frustrate disabled people wanting to play sports.

For example, he pointed out how his brother had to call around to numerous golf courses to see if they had an adapted golf cart that features a swivel, tilting seat and no roof so that the two could play against each other.

The U.S. Department of Justice has fielded requests to require each public golf course to have at least one of the specialized, single-rider carts available under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act.

Johnson said that requirement would apply to any public course that charges fees to play, not just those that are run by government entities.

Johnson said if more course operators would invest in the carts, they would qualify for tax credits.

Johnson said he and other people interested in the issue plan to form a nonprofit group, Accessible Golf of Wilmington, to apply for grant money that will expand the available facilities for disabled players and to educate area courses on the requirements and benefits of addressing ADA rules for players.

Bozik said the golf world is becoming more accommodating to players like himself.

"It's an old sport," he said. "They're coming around. It's just going to take time."

Information from: The Star-News, http://starnewsonline.com