When Joey Fien was born, his parents were told their son would never talk, an quite possibly neither would he walk.
He was born severely premature, and born outside the womb.
Now, at 29, he’s trying something new – golf at Meadowbrook.
Despite peripheral vision, he’s joined Blind Golf Queensland and feels he may have found his calling.
A move to the fairways came after a night out at Top Golf where Fien outdrove some of his mates and was encouraged to take up golf as a sporting pastime.
So he entered the recent Queensland Blind Golf Open, no less.
“I used to play golf as a kid,” Fien says.
“This all happened a bit by accident when one of my mates invited me along to a night out. I hit three of the biggest shots in my life, so I thought it would be time to take up golf again.”
When he was growing up, Fien attended a number of schools, including his favourite Logan Village State School, and later in the special education program at Beenleigh State High School.
He’s only been playing a few weeks, and says he can match it with the best of them with a 210m drive straight down the fairway.
“When I hit that shot, I’m sitting there and thinking, ‘this is a thing’,” he said.
As a blind golfer, the short game – in particular putting – can be a challenge.
Each blind golfer has a caddy who is responsible for “lining them up”. Depending on the severity of blindness, that can mean ensuring the golfer knows where the ball is at any given time, or helping them stand the right way when putting.
As a beginner, Fien says there have been times his group has been abused on the golf course.
But not at Meadowbrook Golf Course where he is a member.
“I really like being around good people,” he says. “There are blokes like these at Meadowbrook. They understand me, and they know I can’t read a golf map. They know that it’s okay to let me drive the cart. They’re friendly and understanding.”
Fien plays off 45 and says it’s fun playing in competitions.
Some big names are getting behind blind golf at Meadowbrook Golf Club, which has a free junior golf program. One of them is Mark Tookey, best known for his days as a rugby league player for the Parramatta Eels, South Queensland Crushers and New Zealand Warriors.
Big Tooks caddies for blind golfers, guiding them around the course.
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