Darren Grey

Back in October 2019, Golfing Herald met up with Darren Grey for our series ‘Meet the Professional’.

(At that time Darren was the PGA Assistant Professional at the Ingleby Barwick Golf Academy … today he is the Teaching Professional at Alnwick Castle Golf Club)

Darren Grey was born without the lower half of his left arm but as instilled into him from a young age by his parents, he has always lived by the maxim:

‘Focus on what you can do rather than worry about what you can’t do’

Aged about 8 or 9, Darren was introduced to the great game of golf by his Dad. Starting with a cut-down club, Darren simply enjoyed swinging this club and hitting the ball.

In his youth, Darren was a very talented and dedicated swimmer who had the potential to represent GB at the 2000 Sydney Paralympics. However, as you will read, golf and not swimming became his singular passion after hitting his first ‘sweet’ golf shot.

In 1999, Darren joined Darlington Golf Club and within 3 months made his first hole-in-one!! Over the next few years, Darren’s golf gradually improved and in 2008 he was selected to represent Europe against the USA in the biennial Fightmaster Cup, the one-armed golfers equivalent of the Ryder Cup. Hitherto, Darren has played 4 times in this event with a phenomenal playing record of Played 20, Won 17, Halved 1, Lost 2.

In 2010, Darren became the World One-Armed Golf Champion coming through 36 holes of strokeplay qualifying and 4 rounds of match play, most of which he played with an injured hand!! This global success elevated Darren to #1 in the World Rankings. In 2013, Darren won both the gross and nett sections of the English and Welsh One-Armed Golf Championship.

A couple of years ago, Darren first applied to the PGA to become a Professional golfer, even though his handicap at the time (7) was outside the PGA criteria of a 4 handicap or better. Not deterred, a couple of months ago, Darren finally relinquished his amateur status and became the first one-armed PGA Assistant Professional Golfer in the UK.

Ingleby Barwick Golf Academy

Ingleby Barwick Golf Academy nestles close to the banks of the River Tees, a few miles to the south of the post-industrial town of Middlesbrough in the North East of England.

Established about 15 years ago, this unique golfing complex is comprised of:

• A picturesque and imaginative 9-hole golf course, with a number of different tee boxes for the second nine for those playing 18 holes. Available to play as a member and on a ‘pay and play’ basis.
• A Two-Tier driving range with floodlit heated bays and fully automated tees.
• An outdoor short game area and a putting practice area.
• A golf superstore that stocks an impressive array of golf equipment and merchandise.

The PGA Professional is Craig Donaldson. With 20+ years of playing and coaching experience, Craig offers tuition to golfers of all abilities.

The First Tee

Golfing Herald (GH): There is something surreal as you travel North by car from York to Middlesbrough. Mile after mile of rolling countryside and then out of nowhere the horizon changes with a sort of perverse majestic beauty with an incredible industrial skyline. Even without the aid of Satellite Navigation (as some Golfing Herald readers already know I am a Luddite), I knew the next exit from the A19 was for me. Despite a sudden storm of biblical proportions I easily found the Golf Academy due to excellent signposting. Once we found a table in the very welcoming Ingleby Bistro (another element of the overall complex) I ‘teed off’ by asking Darren when and where his golfing journey started.

Darren Grey (DG): I first started golf with my Dad. My Dad got me a cut-down golf club and took me onto a field to hit a few balls.

(GH): How old were you?

(DG): I would have been about 8 or 9. Basically just swinging the club and just trying to hit the ball. If I didn’t quite hit it right I would get a (friendly) clip around the ears!!

(GH): Good encouragement?

(DG): Yeah!!

(GH): Was your Dad a member of a Golf Club at that time?

(DG): He was…though my Dad started playing golf a little bit later in life. If he had started much younger I think he would have done extremely well. He really encouraged me. He was initially at a public course and then decided to join a private members course a few years later. I then asked to go with him ‘caddying’ so I could walk around the course.

Golf Bug

(GH): At which course was your Dad a member when you first picked up a club?

(DG): Originally he was a member at Stressholme Golf Club (now called Blackwell Grange). I then went to do some lessons with Ralph Givens when he was there. It was not like what you see now where you say walk onto a driving range for a lesson. At the time it was just a big field where a group of us would hit a load of balls, go run and collect the balls, run back, hit more balls, and try to do as much as that as we could in an hour!! The good thing though was about meeting new people as the social side of golf to me is massive.

(GH): You are spot on about the social side. Today, golf is so much more of a broad church and much more inclusive than it was when I first started ** years ago!! After those initial lessons, when did you decide that you wanted to join a Golf Club?

(DG): To be honest with you I wanted to join straight away at any club but my Dad was kind of ‘I don’t want you to do it just yet…just continue practising and hit balls’. As an eager kid, it was one of those things that I wanted now.

(GH): Instant gratification?

(DG): Yeah. I guess it doesn’t matter how old you are but once you hit a golf ball ‘nice’ you just get the golf bug straight away.

Swimmings Loss is Golfs Gain

(GH): Were you into any other sports at the same time as catching the golfing bug?

(DG): Yeah, swimming. I used to be very good at swimming. I did a lot of regional and national swimming events. I got a lot of medals and broke quite a few records. As much as I liked swimming it wasn’t my passion as such.

(GH): All due to hitting that first good golf shot?

(DG): Yeah, golf was what I was driving towards. At the time I was told that if I continue progressing with the swimming then by the time I was 16 I would be good enough to make the 2000 Sydney Paralympics. I enjoyed doing it but I just didn’t have the drive. Like any sport, it is a lot of work. I was doing 2 hours training in the morning and 2 hours training in the evening and when I could I was also in the pool during school time. It was good but it just wasn’t what I wanted to do.

(GH): So very much prepared to put in the effort and do whatever was required as long as the ladder was up against the correct wall?

(DG): That’s it. But I enjoyed golf so much that I set out to put in as much effort as I could. I remember the first time standing on a tee and ‘duffing the shot’ and some people murmuring “why are you here?”. I also remember about a year later when somebody turned around to me and said something like “why are you still doing this?” which does put you down. But then all of a sudden you walk onto the tee and smack the ball and it goes 210 yards and then wow, where has that come from!!

Hole in One

(GH): After your Dad’s steer not to join a Golf Club immediately, how old were you when you eventually became a member of a Golf Club?

(DG): I was 13 or 14 when I joined Darlington Golf Club and in the same year, I had my first hole in one!!

(GH): Love the emphasis on the word first!! As I do for all of the ‘Meet the Professional’ articles, I attempt to uncover snippets of information to assist with shaping the interview…for you Darren, I came across a brilliant ITV News article on your hole on one. What can you remember about your first hole in one?

(DG): It was the 9th hole at Darlington. There was a tree to the right-hand side, a bunker on the right-hand side and a ditch in front (of the green). I had just been given a full set of clubs by my Dad…Donnay Pro One. I remember hitting the shot, playing with friends, and we didn’t see it going into the hole. We didn’t know whether it had rolled off the back or lost in the verges of the green. I walked up to the green and found the ball in the hole and it was kind of like ‘Get In’ and started to jump around. It wasn’t until I got back to the clubhouse that the Captain at the time said: “what a great achievement” and my golf just progressed from there.

(If you wish to watch and listen to a very young Darren in this ‘from the archives’ ITV News bulletin then please click Hole-In-One)

Forehand vs. Backhand

(GH): Did you have an official handicap when you found your ball in the hole at the Par 3 9th?

(DG): My handicap was 36. I had only been a club member 3 months when I got that hole in one!!

(GH): How many holes in one so far?

(DG): 3 so far all on different golf courses.

(GH): OK…3-0 to you Darren…so far!! After the euphoria died down, how did your golf progress from that initial handicap of 36?

(DG): About a year later I was getting stronger. I had a bit of a ‘switch around’ from playing forehand to backhand and had a go playing that way. I was fine and actually hitting the ball further playing backhand but really struggled for control. I then decided to return to forehand and in a couple of months I was hitting through the ball more and then I remember being in a competition, a Fourball Better Ball, and on the 1st tee, playing from the whites, hit one out of the middle of the club, straight down the middle of the fairway…and I remember there were 5 or 6 people at the side of the club pavilion standing up and going ‘WOW’. On that day my partner and I both played under our handicaps and then I think the following week I won 2 or 3 competitions in a row!!

Short Game Imagination

(GH): Based on that improvement and that encouragement from the side-lines, I take it that Darlington Golf Club was a great place for you to learn, develop and progress with your golf?

(DG): Yeah. Even now, it is one of those clubs that I look back on and think ‘It’s a lovely club, it’s a friendly club’. The course is not particularly long but it is so challenging because of the greens. The course was designed by Dr Alister Mackenzie so a lot of the greens are very large and rolling. To be honest, I would not be as strong a golfer today if it wasn’t for my short game and if I hadn’t played somewhere like Darlington. Allowed me to build up my images with shots…what you can play, what you can’t play. A way of being creative around the greens.

(GH): Against that backdrop of building up your strength combined with improving your short game visualisation and technique, did your handicap start to come down quickly?

(DG): The first couple of years it came down quite quickly. I hit a spell where everything was going right and I came down from 36 to 24. I then went onto the Junior Team and played for the juniors and my handicap slowly went down over the next year and a half and I got down to (I think) 15. I then stayed at a level of about 15. When I got a little bit older I then pushed myself a little bit more, worked a little bit more on my short game, spent some time at the practice fields, playing shots out of bunkers, etc. Like I said before I tried to ‘create shots’ such as lob wedges onto the greens, started using 7 and 8 irons around the green, and just see what shots I could create really.

(GH): Having that ability to manufacture shots is like having a 15th club in your armoury?

(DG): Yes it is. One of the guys I play disabled golf with has only got one leg and he learnt off Seve’s son and his touch around the greens is phenomenal. His hands are so supple. You see him in some places on the course and you think ‘You can’t do anything from there’ and then all of a sudden you see him hit the ball to 3 feet and you are just left standing there shaking your head!!

Confidence Returns

(GH): How long were you a member at Darlington Golf Club?

(DG): I was there for about 14 years. Whilst I was at Darlington I knew that I wanted a job in golf but I was on the brink of not being quite good enough to be a Professional Golfer. I was finding at times that I was feeling a bit more nervous playing in a competition from the whites rather than when playing off the yellows. When I was playing off the yellows a lot of my scores were reflecting how I felt I should have been playing in competitions. I was shooting in the low 70s off the yellows but off the whites maybe I was trying to be too aggressive.

(GH): Did that then come down to changing and improving your Course Management and Mental Approach to your game?

(DG): It did. I think the main factor for me came when I played in the inaugural Fightmaster Cup. That brought me a lot more confidence because I just got a new set of clubs which allowed me to get more loft on the ball. Even though I was striking the ball quite well I was struggling to hold greens with my approach shots. I started to do what I wanted to do with those shots. It seemed that whenever I played in a disabled competition and then I played in a normal club event my handicap would come down!! Whether that is because I push myself more in disabled events and then feel more relaxed afterwards, I don’t know.

Balancing Work with Golf

(GH): Obviously I will return to talk at length about the Fightmaster Cup and other major disabled golf championships, but for now, picking up the thread from a few minutes ago, where did you move to when you left Darlington Golf Club in 2013?

(DG): I moved to Hunley Hotel, which is at Saltburn-by-the-Sea. I went there to work in the golf shop at the Hotel complex. I had kept in touch with the guys who I worked with at the ‘Golf North Show’ a few years ago when it was held at Middlesbrough Football Club. For example, they helped me with various fundraising activities so that I could play in disabled golf events and championships. One of them had moved to work at Hunley Hotel as a Sales Manager and he contacted me saying “I know it’s maybe a bit far away Darren, but there is a position here to work in the golf shop…get your application posted”. Even though I was playing a lot I wanted to build up my knowledge and experience on how sales work, front of house ‘meet & greet’, building up working relationships, networking, etc.

(GH): In addition to gaining valuable experience working in golf retail, how was your golf at Hunley Hotel?

(DG): I played there for about a year and a half. But with having children it was quite tough with all of the travelling to and from work and I also had a second job at the time. To be fair to Hunley they tried to be really flexible during the summer months but over winter it was really hard. Even though I was playing there I wasn’t playing as much. I found myself a little bit low at times when I have always been really up and positive. There were times when I didn’t really want to play. At times, I just wanted to get in the car and go home.

(GH): As you say, Darren, absolutely nobody’s fault, but you just knew that through a set of circumstances it was just not working out…so what happened next?

(DG): I moved to Middlesbrough Municipal Golf Course. The guy who I mentioned earlier who was the Sales Manager at Hunley had moved there about 3 months before to be the General Manager. He wanted to bring me on board as he knew what I was capable of. The good thing for me was that there was much more flexibility, not as far to travel to work and I started to play more. At the time I met three great professionals, one of whom was Craig Donaldson who I am now working under here at Ingleby Barwick Golf Academy. I learnt a lot from Craig there and he really helped me by providing guidance on things to do with my golf. When I went out playing golf I was feeling much more confident and pushing myself more and was then playing between a 6 and 8 handicap. And I stayed at Middlesbrough Municipal until a couple of months ago when I turned Professional.

Fightmaster Cup

The Fightmaster Cup is a biennial event for one-armed golfers played between Europe and USA, modelled on the Ryder Cup format, namely a 3-day match play event with 4 Fourballs and 4 Foursomes on Days 1 and 2 and 12 singles on Day 3. The event is named after Don Fightmaster who was once described by Time Magazine as the Arnold Palmer of one-armed golf!!

(GH): Before we talk about relinquishing your amateur status and joining the Professional ranks I would like to turn the clock back (as I called out earlier) to 2008 and the inaugural Fightmaster Cup. Can I start by asking how did you come to the attention of the selectors to represent the European one-armed golf team to play against the United States?

(DG): Selection for the Fightmaster Cup is based upon your world ranking. Every year your ranking is checked and also your scores are checked and playing in the larger events such as the World Championship are factored into the ranking. All done off scratch. Though selection has now changed so that the top 8 players off scratch will be picked, plus 2 selections plus 2 handicap players. This means more variety and opens up the selection to more players. In 2008 we played at ‘The Cardinal Club, Kentucky’ which was actually the fallback course if the Ryder Cup had not been played at Valhalla which was literally just down the road from where we played.

(GH): Before being selected, did you think you were in with a chance to be on the plane to America?

(DG): I knew I had a chance based on my ranking. And when I have played in the event I have been very lucky in that I have played in all 5 matches, probably because I am not the longest hitting player but I am an accurate player.

(GH): How many times have you represented Europe in this event?

(DG): I have represented Europe 4 times. Played in Kentucky and Chicago in America, St. Pierre in Wales and Stirling in Scotland. I think I only lost twice. The intention from the outset was to ensure that this event was played at roughly the same time as the Ryder Cup and at an excellent course close to where the Ryder Cup was being played so it could be visualised a lot more.

(GH): So as you said earlier, in 2008 the event was played very close to the Ryder Cup Venue.

(DG): Yes. And in 2014, we played at the stunning Stirling Golf Club in Scotland a couple of weeks before the Ryder Cup was played at Gleneagles.

For completeness, I have summarised Darren’s phenomenal playing record in the Fightmaster Cup:

• 2008: The Cardinal Club, Kentucky – Won 5, Halved 0, Lost 0
• 2010: St. Pierre Hotel & Country Club, Wales – Won 4, Halved 0, Lost 1
• 2012: The Indian Lakes Resort, Chicago – Won 4, Halved 1, Lost 0
• 2014: Stirling Golf Club, Scotland – Won 4, Halved 0, Lost 1

At this point, I just want to say a personal thank you to Stirling Golf Club who hosted the 2014 Fightmaster Cup. Not only for kindly granting permission to use the stunning and panoramic photo of their closing hole but for also providing the following feedback on the event which so beautifully encapsulates one of the cornerstones of golf:

“It was a fantastic event and the members integrated with the players and officials superbly”

2010 World One-Armed Golf Champion

(GH): Moving forward to 2010 and the World One-Armed Golf Championship which was played at Nairn Dunbar Golf Club in Scotland…what are your recollections of the event that effectively elevated you to the top of the World Rankings?

(DG): The first 2 rounds were (gross) strokeplay and the top 16 players then qualified for the knockout Match Play.

(GH): Did that mean that Qualifier #1 played Qualifier #16, Qualifier #2 played Qualifier #15 and so on in the Round of 16?

(DG): The way it is done is that the Top 4 players are seeded so they can’t play each other until the semi-finals.

(GH): Can you remember where you finished after 36 holes of strokeplay?

(DG): I think I finished about 3rd or 4th. I remember in the second round I didn’t play very well as I got into some really long rough and hurt my hand so I was struggling a little bit. Near the end of my second round, I had to put some ice onto my hand. I still remember it as I was in pain during the match play. But I just pushed myself and played through the pain.

(GH): What do you remember about any of the Match Play rounds up to the final?

(DG): I played a guy called Hugo Du Toit from South Africa, either in the quarter-final or semi-final. I always remember him saying to me “you can be a great player…just keep your mind in the right place”. He has been really supportive over the years.

(GH): Even though he wants to win the match, just fantastic encouragement and camaraderie.

(DG): That is one aspect I find great about one-armed golfers. The encouragement of each other is just brilliant. Even when you are playing match play and you are in a rhythm and are focused but you still want to be sociable with the guy you are playing. You are friends at the end of the day.

(GH): Who did you play in the Final?

(DG): I played Cian Arthurs (who is the current world champion) from Ireland. Cian is a very strong player. He is a backhanded player. A very good golfer. He was kind of young at the time and was playing off 5 or 6. He is a great player and great to watch. I do remember walking onto the Tee at the 17th and I had lost 3 holes on the trot having been at one stage 5up!! I remember my Dad (who was caddying) saying you have got to win the final at this hole. I remember saying to him that my hand was in such pain. I had started to snap hook my tee shots due to the pain in my hand. I wanted to use my Rescue Club and my Dad thought I should use my Driver, don’t think about the pain and just make sure you drive through the ball. I then remember hitting the ball (with my Driver) off the 17th tee and thinking…there is a ditch over there and I am watching it bounce, watching it bounce and in my head thinking ‘I know where this is going!!’. But the ball somehow stopped about 2 feet from the ditch!!

(GH): It was meant to be Darren.

(DG): Yeah. It was a long Par 4 the 17th as for the next shot I hit something like my 3 iron rescue club and I remember hitting the shot and as soon as I hit it I thought ‘That’s good…That’s good’. We walked up towards the green and then Cian played his 3rd shot and missed and then I sunk about a 12 feet putt for a birdie and just went up to my Dad in tears just jumping around saying ‘I’ve done it…’.

(GH): Brilliant…after becoming world champion, how long did you stay top of the world rankings?

(DG): I was top for a year. I remember playing the following year and I was playing really well, to be honest. It was held in Ireland and in the first round of qualifying, I lost 2 balls but still shot one over par!! I played the second round and my driving was all over the place but I still qualified for the match play. I know the conditions were not great but my Dad thought my mind was not as focused as it should be…but, in the end, I lost to the guy who became champion.

2013 English & Welsh Champion

(GH): In 2013 you became the English & Welsh Champion when the event was played at Tynemouth Golf Club…a club I know very well from my junior golf days. What is the format for this Championship?

(DG): This championship has both gross and nett sections. Obviously it opens the competition up to many more golfers…whether you can hit the ball 270 yards or 70 yards you can still compete based on your handicap. I do remember being 1 under at the turn!! That year I actually won the gross and the nett but you can only win 1 trophy. And because the nett competition is prioritised at this Championship I received the best nett Trophy.

Amateur to Professional

(GH): Returning to your decision to become a Professional, at what point in your golfing journey did you think ‘I want to become a Professional Golfer’?

(DG): To be honest, it was when I first started playing at Darlington Golf Club. It was always my goal. Just watching golf on the TV or watching some of the Professionals playing in Pro-Ams and thinking ‘Yeah, I can do that!!’ I had the sort of raw skills to do it and it was a case of just getting my mindset around how to do it!!

(GH): Why now? What was the last piece of the jigsaw to make the move from amateur to professional a couple of months ago and finally realise a 20-year dream/ambition?

(DG): A few years ago one of my friends Andrew Gardiner had become the first professional golfer in the UK with a disability…he had lost a leg. At the time I was probably in the prime with my (disabled) golf, thought about turning professional but then but sort of hummed and hawed. Then I met Craig Donaldson at Middlesbrough Municipal GC and he really helped to get me focused, really pushed and supported me to the point where you really can do this.

(GH): In other articles in this series, Professionals have touched upon and discussed at times that one of the PGA requirements is that your handicap needs to be 4 or better. What was your handicap when you applied to the PGA?

(DG): Initially, my handicap was 7.

(GH): OK…did you then have to seek exemption/dispensation from this requirement?

(DG): I initially contacted the PGA back in 2017/18 and then they said if I could maintain or improve my handicap then they would certainly take a look at what I am capable of. I then went back to the PGA with my playing record. I then got in touch with Chris Foster who has only got one leg but he was a Professional golfer and he helped me with what I needed to do to possibly get some dispensation from the PGA. And yes, a few months ago my application was successfully accepted!! To be honest it still feels surreal.

(GH): Have you played in any events since becoming a PGA Assistant Professional?

(DG): Yeah. In my first PGA event that I played a few weeks ago, an Assistants Championship at Ramside Hall, I was thinking ‘I am doing this as a job now and that sort of kicks into your mind a little bit’. My mindset is certainly in a different place since I turned Professional. I am going to work hard on certain aspects of my game with Craig over the Winter. To be honest, if I don’t come last in these PGA events then I will be happy. If I pick up a cheque every now and again then I will be extremely happy.

Eligibility

(GH): Now that you have turned Professional, are you still eligible to enter disabled golf events such as the World Championship?

(DG): Yeah. I am allowed to play as a Professional. Some England Golf Union Events I am not allowed to enter but I can play in say European Disabled events in the gross section.

Coaching

(GH): Before I started recording our chat, you mentioned about starting to learn how to coach in your role as a Professional.

(DG): Craig and I have had a few discussions about what we are trying to do so my first year will include a lot of junior golfer development. Initially, I will be coaching juniors, with Craig there to ‘jump in’ if I need any help.

(GH): Will you be shadowing him before you take the lead?

(DG): I sort of did that when he was the Professional at Middlesbrough, in particular watching and listening to how he talked to people. Even when I was a disabled golf ambassador for County Durham I tried to do a bit of coaching. I went and did my ASQ Level 1 in golf coaching.

(GH): Will that coaching qualification equate to ‘credits’ during your formal PGA Training and Qualification period?

(DG): Yeah. As part of my training, I will have to do ASQ Level 1 and Level 2 to cover the basics of coaching…group sessions, individual sessions, etc.

(GH): On which PGA course have you enrolled?

(DG): The Professional Golf Studies FdSc 3 year course.

Playing Targets

(GH): In parallel to working here at Ingleby Barwick Golf Academy and studying for your Golf Studies Foundation Degree, have you set any targets or objectives on the playing side over the next 3 years?

(DG): I know the first year is going to be really hard. I don’t expect great things this first year. In my second year, I expect to be able to push on so I can do more on the European Disabled Tour and see if I can improve my world rankings. Also, I have to do a minimum of 7 PGA Tournaments a year anyway. The level of competition in the PGA, especially in the North East is so high it’s quite scary at times!! If I can play on a level playing field to where I think my boundaries are that will be brilliant and if I shoot anything under that then who knows.

Ambition

(GH): What is your ambition when you become a qualified PGA Professional in 2022?

(DG): My ambition is to initially try and develop something for disabled golf in the North East. Even though disabled golf has picked up a lot over the past few years I don’t feel there is a lot in the North East or in fact in the North of England.

(GH): Maybe the PGA North Region will provide assistance and support?

(DG): I hope they do. With the James Cook (the University Hospital in Middlesbrough) just being around the corner from Ingleby Barwick, they have a lot of people visiting for rehabilitation, for false limbs and with disabilities and hopefully I can develop something around golf for them. Talking about golf and trying golf with people who have say lost a limb can be really helpful. I have met people who have said golf has actually saved them and that they might not be here due to being depressed and really down with life. If I can just help one person then I would feel like I have made a difference.

Biggest Change

(GH): During the 20 years or so that you have been playing golf, what would you say is the biggest change you have observed in the game of golf?

(DG): To be honest, in the last few years the handicapping system. I am glad they are bringing in the World Handicap System because I think at times golf handicaps can be abused in say Open Competitions. If someone is a member at a club but they don’t play that often at their home course and go and play at other courses off a handicap of 24 but in reality, they are much better than that and walk home with a large first prize!!

(GH): Darren, as you are intimating, the world handicap system will take into consideration golf course ratings/difficulty and your handicap will be based on a selection of your best scores over a large sample of returned scores.

(DG): To me, that brings much more of a level playing field. It works brilliantly in the States. When I am playing over there you just sign in and your playing handicap for that day/course is confirmed. It works so well. Of course, there will still be golfers out there who will try and manipulate the system, but that’s life.

The best facet of your game

(GH): Earlier you talked passionately about how playing at Darlington helped you visualise and improve shots around the green…would you say that is the best facet of your game?

(DG): To be honest, the best facet of my game is my accuracy.

(GH): Would that be accuracy on all shots from tee to green?

(DG): No. My driving is really good. I probably miss only 2 fairways if I use my driver. Really, my strongest point should be playing Par 3s because of my accuracy but for some reason they are not!! That is one of the places I tend to lose shots which plays with my head a little bit that one!!

Outside of golf

(GH): Outside of golf what are your interests or hobbies?

(DG): I like playing computer games with my son. Meet up with my friends when I can but I must admit with a (young) family that is much harder to socialise with them. I am a fan of boxing and would have loved to have had a go myself. I like to go and watch football now and then and have a couple of beers with my Dad.

(GH): Would that be down at the Riverside watching Middlesbrough in the Championship?

(DG): No…I am a Man Utd fan!!

(GH): I won’t gloat too much, but as my team (Newcastle Utd) beat Man Utd 1-0 at the weekend I am back in love with football!!

(DG): Yeah!! All teams go through a slump. I know the Manager is getting all the blame but to be honest the players need to take responsibility.

Favourite Sporting Event

(GH): What is your favourite sporting event?

(DG): Favourite Sporting Event? I would have to say the Ryder Cup. Just love the enjoyment, the thrill…watching players such as Poulter and the passion you see in him. That’s one aspect of every sport that really gets me…Passion. That’s why I love football so much…just don’t like VAR!! I also love the Football World Cup but the Ryder Cup is my favourite.

Fantasy Fourball

(GH): In addition to yourself, who would you pick for your Fantasy Fourball?

(DG): Seve Ballesteros if he was still with us. His short game and his creativity. I could learn so much by just observing his creativity and what he could do with the ball. He could walk around with a 3-iron or a 7-iron and he would just create shots and I would be thinking ‘How on earth is that even possible’. Just playing with Seve would be just amazing to watch.

(GH): OK. You and Seve. Who do you select next?

(DG): I would pick Rory as well. Just because I would love to see how he generates so much speed and how he gets through the ball so much. Just the sheer power. Playing with Rory would definitely be something different.

(GH): And your last pick to complete your fantasy fourball?

(DG): Does it have to be a golfer?

(GH): Not at all…any walk of life…dead or alive.

(DG): I would like to pick someone like Alex Ferguson. I think it would be really good to talk to him. As a Man Utd fan I would constantly be asking him what do you think of this, what about the mistakes in this match…just having a good crack about football as we walked around the course. I would also be interested in how he got on with other people. He is obviously high profile in his own field but how would he be around golfers such as Seve and Rory, who have high profiles in their field.

If not a Professional Golfer

(GH): Darren, this is probably a very unfair question, as you have only just turned Professional, but if you had not made the move a couple of months ago then what?

(DG): If I could do it, then probably something like catering, maybe owning a restaurant. It would be hard work but if I had the right people working with me then it doesn’t matter where you are or what you do but having a great team spirit you can’t really go wrong.

(GH): The working relationship you have with Craig is a great example of that team ethos and spirit.

(DG): Absolutely.

Favourite Golf Course

(GH): Which is your favourite golf course in the UK?

(DG): Old Thorns.

(GH): Not a course I have heard of before. Where in the UK is it?

(DG): North of Portsmouth. It is a Peter Allis designed championship golf course. I played there in the first British Disabled Open. Very scenic and very challenging. For me, if you go on a golf course it’s the whole package…course, views, etc. It’s one of the nicest designed golf courses I have seen. The layout is perfect. Every hole is different. Some holes are flat, some have hills, some have double-tiered greens. There is one hole, I think it might be the 5th or 6th hole. You are stood on the tee, looking above the trees across the valley. Just a spectacular view and then you look down at the hole and think ‘I have got to be straight!!’. It is only a short Par 4 but it is all the way down a steep hill, there is a ditch on the left-hand side and the green goes around the ditch and then dips away. I stood looking at this hole and thinking ‘visually, what a great golf hole’. Old Thorns for me really stands out from the courses I have played.

(GH): And your favourite golf course outside of the UK?

(DG): The Cardinal Club in Kentucky where we played the first Fightmaster Cup. Everything was designed and configured correctly. Where the becks were, the position of the ponds, lots of nice touches all around the course. Lots of wildlife as well!! And with Valhalla just down the road, I was like a ‘kid in a sweet shop!!’.

Marooned

(GH): If you were marooned on a remote desert island, what three items would you not be without?

(DG): I won’t say golf club and golf balls as the balls would be lost in about two minutes!! Swiss Army knife as that would be so helpful. Sun cream, as I am pale as anything!! I would probably have a football as it would help pass the time and I could improve some of my skills myself.

The Nineteenth

(GH): And finally. You are now in charge of the R&A. What ideas would you like to implement for this great game of golf over the next few years?

(DG): Firstly, ISPS Handa as an organisation is really good in that they really promote disabled golf and have got involved with the Seniors Tour and the Ladies European Tour. Through disabled golf, I received an invite to the British Masters but I could not go. I also received an invite to play in a Seniors Tour Pro-Am at Slaley Hall. I played with a guy called Peter Fowler. He was great to walk around with. We had a good laugh at the end as I had more birdies and more bogeys than him!! I also played in a Pro-Am at Close House with the Australian Professional golfer Whitney Hillier, her boyfriend and the Spanish Professional Pedro Linhart. I have been lucky to receive invites and play with these really good professional golfers. Definitely from the R&A, I would like to see disabled golf be pushed more so it is viewed a lot more. One thing we always say in the Society of One-Armed Golfers is ‘as bad as it sounds, it is one of the greatest societies in the world but it also one of the quietest’. People just don’t know it is there. Don’t get me wrong, disabled golf has become much more visible over the last year or two. I remember going to a local golf club not so long ago, smacking my first tee shot about 250 yards and getting lots of ‘well done, well done’.

(GH): Yeah. It’s a very fine line between being patronised and genuine congratulations…but at the end of the day, you are Darren Grey golfer…correction, my bad, PGA Assistant Professional Golfer. Do you think the R&A could get involved in helping promote disabled golf to be a fixture in the Paralympics?

(DG): Definitely. A few years ago I went to South Africa for the Disabled World Cup. One of the reasons for this World Cup was to get the various continents on board and meet to drive forward the idea of getting disabled golf into the Paralympics. Golf is now back in the Olympics so why not the Paralympics?

(GH): In summary, you would be looking for disabled golf to be more visible nationally in golf clubs and internationally at the Paralympics.

(DG): Yeah. Although it is getting better I think England is very far behind compared to some countries with the development of disabled golf. If you look at a country such as Sweden they have structures in place for about 7 or 8 years and it is only now we are starting to catch up. The talent that is out there but is unseen is just unbelievable. If I can go to play at a golf club within say 10 miles of where I live and people have not seen disabled golf like this then how are they going to get visibility of disabled golfers who can play in level par. The scale of disabled golf should be so big. Just not pushed enough.

(GH): Great way to finish our chat here at the Nineteenth…Darren, a huge thanks for your time today and for sharing your unique and inspirational golfing journey to date. And thanks to Ingleby Barwick Golf Academy for the very warm welcome and hospitality.