Allan Justin has a hell of a short game and plays golf twice a week, which is not bad for a guy with no legs.
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The avid golfer didn’t pick up a club for three years following a workplace accident, in 2006, until he started attending a golf day for people with lost limbs, in a wheelchair.
Relocating from Ballarat to Thurgoona after the death of his wife, Ruby, Mr Justin has become a regular at the Jindera Golf Club where he won the latest men’s monthly medal.
These days Mr Justin doesn’t let his disability get him down, since he is more focused on dropping his golf handicap.
Prior to losing his legs, he had dropped to a 14 handicap.
“I wasn't down there very long,” he said.
“Sixteen to 17 was the average I could play to but I had a really good round once and they cut me down to 14.”
Now sitting on a 52 for weekend games and a 42 for the veterans’ league, Mr Justin is determined to get down to 36 with the help of his unique golf cart.
The cart, purchased in 2014, gives the term adjustable seat a whole new meaning. It allows Mr Justin to stay on board for a whole game with the help of a chair that rotates 90 degrees to give room for his swing.
Mr Justin said the cart meant he was able to drive up to Jindera any time.
“It's great to get out by yourself ... they (the club) get the cart out and I do everything else myself, I can tee up the ball and I can go out and have a hit by myself if I want to,” he said.
Even though he’s only been a member at Jindera for a year, the club already holds a special place in Mr Justin’s heart.
He said one day his buggy broke down but club member Graham Day took it home, fixed it and brought it back the next day.
Mr Justin repays the favour by doing his bit for the club such as at a recent working bee where he did the weeding.
He said the best thing about the club was its greens.
Mr Justin said it was crucial clubs like Jindera got funding since handicap people were allowed to drive on its synthetic greens.
Did you know?
- Golf began in Scotland in the Middle Ages, but the game was banned by King James II for interfering with archery practice.
- In 1744, the rules of the game were established and 10 years later the Society of St Andrews Golfers, home to one of the most famous courses in the world, was formed.
- Golf was first played at the Olympic Games in Paris in 1900, only to be removed after 1904 – it returns in 2016 after more than a century's absence.
