Sarah Larson is a one-armed adaptive golfer competing in the Phoenix Cup this year.
For those who aren’t aware, the Phoenix Cup is a golf competition for disabled golfers, pitting Team USA against Team Europe.
This will be Sarah’s second year playing in the Phoenix Cup and first year co-captaining the team.
She will be coaching the disabled side of the team, while Mark Arnold helps the blind side of the team.
She explained, “So, the team is unique this year, where half of it is sight impaired and then the other half is physically impaired.”
The Phoenix Cup is in a Ryder Cup-style, which means that they pair up together with 12 players in different formats.
For Sarah’s team, the first day is a practice round, the second day is alternate shot, which means she and her partner take turns hitting.
Day 3 is a foursome, where both players tee off and then they decide which ball to use. The last day is singles; the players are paired up against someone else, and the first team to 12.5 points wins.
Being co-captain comes with its challenges, but Sarah is not going to let that get the best of her, and she will do everything to push her team to victory.
Confidently, she told us, “This year we have to take it. I’m bound and determined.”
Hitting from the first tee can be intimidating, but they have to do their best no matter what, with Sarah noting, “Making sure your confidence is there and just swinging and not regretting what happens next.”
Sarah says that one of the main things you have to do in golf is not to overthink it.
If a player has a bad hole, they have to move on from it and make sure the rest of the round doesn’t follow the same mistakes.
She added, “But you have to take that moment and don’t think about it because the moment you think is the moment you forget what you’re doing and you get out of your rhythm, and then it’s between the ears, and then your game goes the wrong direction.”
Along with co-captaining the Phoenix Cup team this year, one of Sarah’s main goals is to make golf accessible to anyone who wants to play, and she is working to help get them on the green.
“I want to grow the game,” She said. “The ladies, the juniors, everyone. So my focus this year is hitting those events that can help grow the game.”
The Phoenix Cup is going to be played at Pine Valley Golf Club in Wadsworth, Ohio, from June 16th through the 19th.
