15 Year Old Golfer Makes Highschool Team Without Eyesight

As an avid golfer, I have experienced all of the frustration that comes along with the game. One of the more frustrating experiences came two years ago as I played in a night lighted golf scramble. With only a glowing ball to guide the way, the challenge of hitting the ball in the dark only multiplied the difficulty of golf.

For that reason alone, the story I am about to share is all the more amazing.

Meet Jake Olson. At 15 years old, this kid is something special. Now entering his sophomore year of high school, he plays on his schools golf team with plans to one day play on the tour. Before you shrug this off and say it, “sounds like any other kid in love with the game”… you need the back story.

At the age of one, Jake was diagnosed with retinoblastoma or cancer of the eye. At that early age he lost his left eye, for the next eleven years he would undergo surgery after surgery on his right eye, each time beating the cancer. That all changed at the age of twelve, when cancer appeared to win and he lost his other eye.

Rather than be defeated, Jake drew from within a determination so great that he refused to be beaten. Instead he persevered, remaining committed to his faith and his love for the game of golf. How do you play golf when you can’t see the target, let alone the hazards that lay in waiting?

Like most talented golfers, Jake relies on his caddie for advice.

Not unlike any other good father, Bruce Olson wants to see his son succeed. That’s part of the reason why he spends most every summer night at the golf course with his son. Together they keep Jake’s game tuned up, at the tournaments Bruce is there to assist with alignment, distance and obstacles. Trusting completely in his father, Jake plays the shot just as instructed. It would seem the two have a pretty good thing going. According to foxnewswest.com, Jake scored in 13 of 15 matches that he competed in last year. That is no small feat, vision impaired or not.

Check out this video about Jake…

Check out more posts about Jake here…
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