Amy Bockerstette is a hole in one of a kind.
On Monday, Bockerstette became the first person with Down syndrome to take part in a national college championship when she teed up at the National Junior College Athletic Association National Championship at Plantation Bay Golf & Country Club in Ormond Beach, Florida.
Bockerstette, 22, plays for Paradise Valley Community College in Phoenix.
“I love playing, my teammates, my best friends, seeing each other,” she said in a May 6 interview prior to the tournament. “We have a good time.”
Bockerstette made a name for herself in 2019 when she played a hole with pro golfer Gary Woodland before the Waste Management Phoenix Open. A few months later, Woodland won the U.S. Open. A few days after that, he surprised Bockerstette on TODAY and said she was on his mind when he won.
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“We had a special day there in Phoenix and it's blossomed from there, but the world needs a lot more of Amy,” Woodland said. “Her attitude, her energy is contagious. I thought a lot about you on Sunday. I think a lot about you every day, so thank you.”
The bond between the two golfers remains strong, with Woodland sending Bockerstette a good luck text before she teed off this week.
Bockersette’s moment with Woodland also inspired her family to create the I Got This Foundation, which “has a mission to promote golf instruction and playing opportunities for people with Down syndrome and other intellectual disabilities,” according to its website.
Bockerstette's family believes she is an inspiration to others and a reminder of what people can achieve.
“Don't put limits on your child with a disability,” her father said last week. “They are far, far more capable than you can imagine.”