The Minnesota Golf Association (MGA) hosted Minnesota’s first Adaptive Open in September at Braemar Golf Course in Edina. The three-day event included a clinic followed by two days of tournament play.
On the course was Ben Hulin and Max Togisala, both competing with their VertaCats. Max was the overall champion, while Ben finished strong in seventh place, just two strokes behind Max after the first day.
But the tournament itself wasn't the story. The story was what it took to get there.
Ben Hulin's journey to competitive adaptive golf started with a borrowed cart and a terrible day.
After sustaining a spinal cord injury in 2006, Ben tried adaptive golf for the first time a year later. His father drove over five hours to borrow a seated adaptive cart from a rehab facility so Ben could participate in a church golf outing.
"I was unable to stand upright and my legs were just in the way of everything," Ben recalls. "It was terrible. I swore off golf that day."
Five years ago, Ben discovered stand-up golf carts. When he tried one, everything changed.
"That week, you could not get me out of that thing," he says. "The discussion shifted from 'will I ever play golf again' to 'when can I start crowdfunding to get one of these for myself.'"
Back home in Utah, the closest adaptive cart was in Arizona. His county had no equipment for golfers with mobility limitations. So Ben bought his own cart and began advocating for change.
His persistence, combined with Max Togisala's competitive success at the 2023 U.S. Adaptive Open, led Utah County to purchase three adaptive carts.
Max's path back to golf came through a different kind of loss.
At 18, a skiing accident severed his spinal cord, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down. "I didn't think golf was going to be possible after my accident," Max shares. He remembers searching "wheelchair golf" from his hospital bed and finding stand-up machines.
Six months after his accident, Max met Ben at a Utah golf course. Ben showed him what playing from a standing position looked like.
"I remember thinking, I don't know if I can do this anymore," Max shares. "But I just knew that golf was something that made me happy. It's been such an impact on my life that I was like, I still need to do it. I still need to play golf."
Max got his own cart and returned to competition. He's won the U.S. Adaptive Open seated division for the past three years and holds the lowest recorded score for seated golf, 67, five under par.
"I will always be grateful to be able to play." Max says.
Ben now partners with local organizations to provide access to adaptive equipment.
"The best reaction I've seen was at an early clinic we did at TopGolf," Ben shares. "This man had recently had a stroke and hadn't thought much about golf because he couldn't stand. When he stood up in the machine and hit a few balls, he got very emotional. I don't think he believed he'd ever golf again."
That golfer now regularly uses the county's adaptive carts and participates in Ben’s clinics.
Max sees it too.
"These clinics are a way for me to give back to everyone that may have lost hope," he says. "Put a smile on your face, and when people see that smile, they're gonna feel that impact."
That's what clinics and adaptive community events are for. They show people what they can still do.
The Minnesota Adaptive Open started with a clinic hosted by the Minnesota Golf Association and Allina Health’s Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute. "It was cool seeing how they've taught adaptive golf," Ben notes. "Organizations like that push adaptive sports and participation forward."
Shannon Geiger, Sports and Recreation Specialist at Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute, provides her perspective.
"The Adaptive Open Community Clinic highlighted what golf is all about. Community, support, and resilience," she says. "It was impactful to see the connections and development golfers made on the course."
Courage Kenny's mission centers on helping individuals with disabilities reengage in recreational activities by providing the support they need. Their year-round programming across Minnesota pairs every golfer with a trained volunteer.
The clinics work because of the volunteers who show up. "Many times, our volunteers report that they feel like they benefited from the clinics as much as the participants," Shannon notes.
Through their partnership with the MGA, Courage Kenny continues to grow access.
"These events offer people with disabilities encouragement to explore a new sport or reconnect with one they enjoyed prior to injury," Shannon says. "The impact extended beyond the golfers to the volunteers and general public through showcasing the full scope of golf as an inclusive sport."
Clinics spark interest and build community, but lasting access requires structure, support, and leadership from the golf world itself. The MGA recognizes this and is striving to turn momentum into a model others can follow.
"What stood out most was how the MGA and Braemar communities came together with the adaptive golf community to showcase the championship in the best possible way," says Joel Comstock, the MGA's Strategic Partnerships & Community Relations Director. "So many people and organizations went the extra mile and asked how they could help more."
The MGA believes golf is for everyone. "Golf is a mechanism to enrich lives," Joel explains. "The MGA wants to create an opportunity for impact on everyone through accessibility."
Watching competitors like Ben and Max shows why this work matters. "It was very inspirational to see all competitors compete at a high level," Joel says. "Both gentlemen are great athletes, and more importantly, better human beings."
The MGA is also working alongside organizations, like Courage Kenny, to provide access to clinics, championships, and everyday golf. "We want to help create a culture that truly means golf is for everyone," Joel says.
But culture shifts need infrastructure, and that's where courses and communities step in.
"Courses are not set up to give a player with mobility challenges the chance to even play," Ben explains. "If I wanted to play golf at any course in the world as an able-bodied individual and use a cart, I can. I cannot, however, call any course or city and see if they have a stand-up machine. They are few and far between."
Change happens when people show up at clinics or call their local recreation departments and golf courses to ask, "Do you have adaptive equipment available?"
"The equipment is out there and there are ways to adapt the cart or club for you to be able to play again,” Ben says. “If you've golfed before or never have golfed and want to give it a shot, now is the time."
The Minnesota Adaptive Open proved what's possible. More communities can follow.
Contact your local recreation centers and golf courses. Ask about adaptive sports programs. Ask if a VertaCat or similar equipment is available. If it’s not, ask why.
Every golfer deserves the chance to stand up and play.