'I absolutely love it,' says Brendan Lawlor, 1st disabled golfer on the European Tour

When Brendan Lawlor first stepped up to the tee at the European Tour this summer, he made history before he even swung his club.

The 23-year-old Irishman is the first professional golfer with a disability to compete at a European Tour event, playing at the U.K. Championship at The Belfry, in Sutton Coldfield, England, where he posted an opening round of 84.

Lawlor has Ellis-van Creveld syndrome, a genetic condition characterized by short-limb dwarfism. In his case, it also means he has no knuckles on the top of his fingers.

Lawlor has been golfing since he was a teenager. He went pro last year after winning the the inaugural European Disability Golf Association Scottish Open in July 2019. Here is part of his conversation with As It Happens host Carol Off. 

Brendan, have you had a chance yet to reflect on the fact that you have made golf history?

It's been pretty crazy. It's probably three weeks now, and the last three weeks has been absolutely amazing with interviews and people coming up to me and stuff. But I absolutely love it. It's really been incredible.

What effect do you think it's had on other golfers, and especially disabled golfers, when they saw how well you did?

I think it gives them a lot of hope that just sort of a silver lining out there for them to know that I compete on tour. I think that's very important for people to realize that nothing can really hold them back.

Just go back to the end of August when you were playing in the Handa U.K. Championship. What was going through your mind as you played in that tournament?

I'll say, I was very, very nervous and stuff. And it was a pretty big occasion for myself.

The fact that there was no crowds, to be honest, kind of helped because there wasn't that added pressure.

There was a lot of media hype around the event, a lot of added pressure that way, but it was a really good buzz to play in such a great event.

How did the other golfers respond to you being there?

Going over as a disability golfer, you're not really knowing many people.

You're wondering to yourself, are these guys going to accept you? Or sort of feeling nervous at the people you're being around because they're playing at the highest level in the world, and you don't know if you should be there or whatever.

But they were very, very, very encouraging, which was lovely.

So it wasn't as clubby as people have made it out to be, then?

Yeah, big time. The European Tour, it feels like one big family when you go in.

You have what's called Ellis van-Creveld syndrome. What effect does that have on your ability to play the game?

I was born with Ellis van-Creveld syndrome, which is shorter limbs and short of stature. So growing up, I would have been a lot smaller than my peer group. And sort of walking long distances would have affected me, and it would have been kind of tough to walk nine holes without being tired or being really sore.

I didn't start golf until I was 15. So I was starting to fill out. I needed to sort through myself to be able to walk 18 holes, because I didn't really want to rely on the buggy, because I feel that golf is an exercise sport.

I wasn't born with any knuckles on my fingers, either. So that's quite tough to grip the club. So I have sort of special grips on my clubs that are extra sticky so they don't fly out of my hands too often. [Laughs]

But with that in your mind as you decided you wanted to play golf, and all these things that would say, "Well, you know, you should take up a different sport," what is it that encouraged you to go with golf?

My granddad was a huge advocate for golf. He played golf when he was young, and no one in the family took up golf. So he put about a 10-inch club in my hand at the age of three and sort of fed me into the game very early.

I used to go up to his house for hours on end to practise in his garden. And he always had that special bond to me because I played the game. And it's really special. He's still alive, and he comes to some of the events and watches, and he absolutely adores it.

How is your family responding to your success this summer?

They're supportive from day one. It didn't matter what I did — if it was to go to school or pass a driving test, they're always sort of proud of what I've done; made me focus on things in life that made me happy.

If I had to go to school, I went to school, but they didn't push grades or anything; they just wanted me to be happy in my own skin. So with everything that went on the last few months, they've been really, really delighted for me. And if it wasn't for them, I wouldn't be here today either.

I understand your mom was reluctant for you to go into disability golf because she didn't want you to see yourself as being different, that you had never done that, that they encouraged you not to. Is that right?

Yeah, exactly. In Ireland, I played lots of sports — I played tennis, I played football, Gaelic football — and I played with peer groups that were my own age, and never thought I was any different. Same with golf. I played amateur golf in Ireland at a very high level.

My auntie actually saw the European Disabled Golf Association online. And my mom, she was reluctant to say it because she might have thought I was getting insulted, because I was never any different. I went to school normally, done all the normal things. She asked me one day would I play it, and I thought it would be fantastic to give it a go. Because it can help so many people's lives, mentally and physically. So it's such a great avenue to go down.

But this next step you made, which was to be successful in the European Disabled Golf Association, but then to go on to actually play at the European Tour and to play with other players who don't have a so-called disability, how much more difficult was it for you?

It's a huge step up. The courses we play on the disabled calendar would be slightly shorter. So it would be about 6,600 yards. And this European Tour was like 7,200 yards.

But, again, I know I can compete at that level. I'm not there to win, but I'm there … and then, I think, that's giving other people an example that they can go out and do it too. So I think that's really important.

There's also money to be won in that league, isn't there?

Big time. Yeah, big money. There's none in the disabled tour yet, but hopefully it won't be too far away. [European Tour CEO] Keith Pelley has great ambitions for a disability tour to run alongside the European tour, and give disabled athletes a chance to make a living out of golf, which be absolutely incredible.

We don't have golf in the Paralympics yet, do we?

No, and that's a huge push for me. I think representing your country, there's no better feeling. And for such a great game not to be in the Paralympics, it's quite annoying for myself.

But I don't think it's too far away. I received lovely messages from Paralympic Olympics on Twitter during the week of the event. So hopefully that might be the foot in the door to give us the chance and go out and promote such a beautiful game. 

Written by Sheena Goodyear. Interview produced by Katie Geleff. Q&A has been edited for length and clarity.