CLEARWATER — Tyler Whitehurst looked down through black sunglasses at the golf ball in front of his feet at Countryside Country Club.
Concentrating hard, the tall 18-year-old swung with his driver and nailed the sweet spot, sending the ball soaring into the distance.
That's the kind of first-class performance that helped Whitehurst win the gold medal this month at the Florida State Special Olympics tournament in Clermont.
Whitehurst, who is autistic, shot an 85 the first day and a 91 the second day — in the rain — on the rolling, 18-hole, par-71 course at Sanctuary Ridge Golf Club.
"He came down off the podium and said, 'I'm so proud of myself I could cry,' '' said his stepmother, Amy Whitehurst.
Whitehurst attends East Lake High School and loves world history class. "Right now we're studying Egypt,'' he said.
He also enjoys NASCAR and roots for his favorite driver, Jimmie Johnson.
He's out on the golf course every other Saturday, sometimes trailed by his entourage of his father, Jim Whitehurst, and four siblings.
"He loves an audience,'' Amy Whitehurst said, adding that he likes to give the "Tiger Woods wave'' when he sinks a putt.
She said he first picked up a club when he was 10 years old, and for a long time, he had the mental and physical stamina to complete only four or five holes.
That changed in 2006 when he started training for the regional Special Olympics, a nine-hole competition.
Five months of conditioning paid off with a silver medal.
"He can drive it 225 yards,'' Amy Whitehurst said.
Trained by former coach Justina Hopkins, whom Amy Whitehurst calls "a patient and kind soul,'' Whitehurst has won several tournaments since, always fine-tuning his game.
"It's phenomenal,'' said Jeff Anderson, Countryside Country Club's director of golf. "We're so pleased we get to experience this with him.''
Whitehurst hopes to be invited to the Special Olympics National Games in July in Nebraska.
Other goals include getting a job at Publix Super Markets, where a friend works, and attending Pinellas Technical Education Centers.
"I was thinking about being a paleontologist'' someday, Whitehurst said.
Eileen Schulte can be reached at schulte@sptimes.com or (727) 445-4153.
News
![[Reuse options]](http://license.icopyright.net/images/icopy-w.gif){kind=small}
Click here to post a comment
