PING is to support the ground-breaking Ranking for Golfers with Disability (R4GD) which is open to all golfers with a European Disabled Golf Association (EDGA) pass or an R4GD pass.
EDGA operates under the banner of ‘Golfers First’ and is an organisation that is made up from 17 of Europe’s national golf federations. Its ‘Tournament Series 2016’ of 11 events across Europe is available for all golfers with disability who meet the definitions of impairment and have gained an EDGA or R4GD pass.
Globally respected golf club manufacturer PING has previously supported a number of the Series’ notable players individually, employing its famous custom-fitting experience to create the perfect clubs for their playing needs.
As the Tournament Series structure has grown and thrived, and to support more golfers with a disability internationally, EDGA has patiently developed a sophisticated ‘Ranking’, which is now open to all players across the world who take part in any event approved by the national governing body in that country.
This will now be called the ‘Ranking for Golfers with Disability supported by PING’, and it is expected to feature the performance progress of several hundred players in the short to medium term.
PING joins a body of support for EDGA which includes The R&A, the European Tour (PING staff player Lee Westwood is also an EDGA Ambassador) and The Algarve Tourist Association, with further key international partners expected to be announced soon.
Key to EDGA’s objectives is to forge closer links with the International Golf Federation (IGF) in order to influence the Olympic and Paralympic bodies so that elite golfers with a disability are able to take their golf to the very highest international level.
The EDGA team is also working hard to extend the definitions of impairment to include impairment groups that currently are not yet recognised, in order to further widen playing opportunities for golfers all over the world.
EDGA President Tony Bennett said: “The fantastic showing of support from PING is sure to play a key role in further advancements. Their support will help us to automate the ranking system which currently is very labour intensive. Our objective is to make the ranking of all golfers with disability as fair and as simple as possible, and with the backing of PING we can upgrade our system to better identify leading players across a number of disability groups.
“The team at PING has been at the sharp end of helping golfers with disability for quite some time. It is not just about the Ranking. PING is a special company which has already inspired many players through its custom-fitting expertise and encouragement, and now the company’s wider support of EDGA and its goals will surely serve as an inspiration to all golfers with disability.”
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