A Man With a Mission

“If there is something you really want to do - no matter how impossible it may seem with enough hard work and perseverance you can do it,” says Dennis Walters.

He should know. Dennis is the only person paralyzed below the waist who earns a living as a professional golfer.

Back in the early 1970’s, Dennis was fresh out of North Texas State University, which he attended on a golf scholarship. During his senior year, he led the school to its fourth consecutive Missouri Valley Conference golf championship. That same year, Dennis was runner-up in the prestigious Tucker Intercollegiate Golf Tourney, and finished 11th in the United States Golf Association Amateur Championship. Dennis’ dream was to become a PGA touring professional. From all appearances, he was well on his way.

To sharpen his skills, Dennis spent 1973 competing on the South African tour and in mini-tour events in the U.S. Shortly before the 1974 Tour Qualifying Event, Dennis went home to Neptune, New Jersey, for a visit and to play a few friendly rounds of golf. On July 21, 1974, he was riding a golf cart down a steep hill on a course near his house when the brakes failed. Dennis was thrown from the cart and suffered severe spinal cord damage.

At a hospital in Morristown, New Jersey, he was diagnosed as a T-12 level paraplegic and told that he would never walk again, which also made playing golf highly unlikely, to say the least. However, at age 24, Dennis was determined to prove otherwise.

After five months of rehabilitation, Dennis went home. Immediately, he began searching
for ways to make playing golf practical. He tried hitting the ball from his wheelchair, but found it to be unsatisfactory. He had trouble wheeling the chair around the course and could not venture onto the greens or into bunkers. Then one day he was struck with an idea:

“Why not mount a swivel seat on a golf cart?

”Working with his father and a couple of friends, Dennis fashioned a seat that would swing away 90 degrees from a golf cart and allow him to play the game he loved. Everyone said it would be impossible, but Dennis defied the odds and was back on the course again. “I had to experiment and modify my techniques,” say Dennis. “I basically tried to work on things I could do and not worry about the things I couldn’t.Dennis taught himself to hit sand shots and to putt one-handed while balancing himself on his crutches, and got his game to the point where he could break 80 on an average course.

He continued practicing his game, and people started noticing what Dennis could do. Before long, pros were asking him to conduct clinics at their local clubs. “I liked to put on the clinics because they made me feel like I was preparing for a tournament again.” Those clinics evolved into “The Dennis Walters Golf Show”.

The Dennis Walters Golf Show is a one-hour combination of golf mastery and human inspiration. The show is also about dreams and as Dennis says in every show, "I'm not talking about a dream you have at night. To me a real dream is having a positive thought in your head and in your heart and doing whatever it takes to make that come true. Also, if you have a dream and it doesn't work out, never stop dreaming, get a new dream!" Dennis's dream was always to play successfully on THE PGA TOUR. After his accident it was looking pretty bleak for that dream. Dennis found there were a lot of things he couldn't do, but there was no way he was giving up playing golf and thus with this never say die attitude a new career was born.

Since 1977 Dennis has traveled over 3.5 million miles and to all 50 states, Mexico, across Canada, the United Kingdom, and has given approximately 3,000 performances. He and his dog Bucky usually do about 90-100 shows per year. The show is a program not only of golf lessons, but also life lessons as Dennis tells his story and encourages others to reach for their dreams, strive for excellence and do something they didn't think they could. He uses his own personal experience as an example to challenge each person in the audience to do something in their life that perhaps they thought was impossible, for with hard work, dedication, perseverance, you can achieve success at anything.

The Dennis Walters Golf Show lasts about an hour and is a demonstration of precision golf from start to finish. The show begins with a question and answer session where Dennis gets to know the audience and they get to know him. Background information and golf tips are always included. Next, we have the opening act – Super Dog, Bucky, who was rescued by Canine Castaways. Dennis believes if you are looking for a dog or cat, an animal shelter or a rescue group is a great place to begin your search. Bucky is Dennis' best friend and does a variety of tricks, but is best known for his uncanny ability to correctly answer questions by barking out the answers. He is very good in math, general information, and golf trivia. Dennis asks him a few questions, just to get him warmed up and then Dennis encourages the audience to try and stump him. The crowd also plays a major role in the show, as there is much audience participation. Items such as Jelly Bellies are given out during the show.

The trick shots, or as Dennis likes to call them, shots from unusual lies, come next. They are done with a wide variety of items. Dennis' theory is that if you have a good swing you can hit good shots with almost anything and he proves this by hitting precise shots with clubs made from a fishing rod, a crutch, a radiator hose and a cell phone. He also has a club with 3 universal joints on the shaft and a club with 3 heads (his 3 iron). Dennis hits shots blindfolded, through fire and let's not forget the 200 yard putt. Other highlights you will see in the show are shots hit off 3 foot high tees, off a watch and with an egg balanced on the ball. Dennis also hits a shot with Bucky's favorite club which is shaped like a dog biscuit. Woven throughout the show is Dennis's powerful motivating message that dreams can come true for with hard work and perseverance, anything is possible. The show then concludes with his famous rapid fire machine gun shot where he hits 5 consecutive shots while they roll down a ramp, the last one being a special exploding ball.

In recognition of his remarkable comeback, Dennis was named the winner of the Golf Writers of America’s Ben Hogan Award in 1978, joining previous recipients such as President Eisenhower, Babe Zaharias, Lee Trevino, Ken Venturi, Gene Littler and Fuzzy Zoeller. In addition, Dennis was given the 1994 Graffis Award by the National Golf Foundation for his contributions to the game. The International Network of Golf also honored Dennis by establishing the Dennis Walters Courage Award, which is presented annually. In 2003 the Metropolitan Golf Writers of New York, chose Dennis to be the recipient of the Mary Bea Porter Award. This award is given to an individual in golf who through a heroic or humanitarian act saves or betters the lives of others. The Arete Courage Award was presented to Dennis in 1994. This award pays tribute to those rare individuals who, by their refusal to accept limitations demonstrate the ability of athletics to bring out the best in mankind.

Tiger Woods gave the first clinic conducted by his Foundation in 1998. Dennis was chosen to appear at this event and since then he has continued to be the opening act for Tiger at 30 additional clinics held all over the country. Dennis’ program of golf lessons and life lessons is a perfect fit with the mission of the Tiger Woods Foundation. When asked about Dennis, Tiger replied “Dennis Walters has been nothing short of fantastic in his performance during the Tiger Woods Foundation junior golf clinics. His knowledge,

Dennis is one of only eleven honorary lifetime members of The PGA of America. This unique club includes three former Presidents of The United States, Eisenhower, Ford and George HW Bush. In 2008, The PGA of America presented him with their highest honor, The Distinguished Service Award. Previous winners include, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Byron Nelson and Gene Sarazen. The USGA will bestow its highest honor, the Bob Jones Award, on Dennis Walters at a ceremony on June 13, 2018, one of the highlights of U.S. Open Championship week at the Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, N.Y. Presented annually since 1955, the Bob Jones Award recognizes an individual who demonstrates the spirit, personal character and respect for the game exhibited by Jones, winner of nine USGA championships.

From 2009 to 2018, Dennis was a spokesperson and national ambassador for The First Tee. The First Tee is an international youth development organization whose mission is to impact the lives of young people by providing learning facilities and educational programs that promote character development and life-enhancing values through the game of golf. Dennis has always tried to grow the game of golf and positively influence others. Dennis and Bucky get around the course in a Yamaha golf car equipped with a special swivel seat mounted on the passenger side of the car. Throughout the year, Dennis hits seven thousand Titleist Pro V-1 golf balls with his logo on them and after each show they are donated to the host club’s junior golf program. The Dennis Walters Golf Show is very fortunate and proud to have the following companies as great business partners and great friends. The PGA of America, Titleist, Jersey Mike's Subs, Fairway & Greene, and Creative Covers. Dennis' story is told in his autobiography titled, “In My Dreams I Walk with You”. The forward for the book was written by Jack Nicklaus. The book details Dennis’ remarkable comeback and 33 year career of touring the country displaying golf excellence and encouraging all to reach for their dreams and to strive for excellence.

The show is a great addition to any event. Dennis appears at PGA Tour, PGA Tour Champions, LPGA and Web.com Tour events. His show is a popular addition to local golf tournaments all over America, junior golf events, charity tournaments, club functions and corporate outings. Dennis is also available for motivational speaking.