Two Coloradans in field for U.S. Adaptive Open

May 23, 2023

by Jim Bebbington

Two Colorado golfers are among the 96 players in the field for the 2nd U.S. Adaptive Open – a national championship that will be held at Pinehurst Resort & Country Club from July 10 to 12.

Luke Hiser, 28, of Denver, 28, a multiple limb amputee and Mario Dino, 20, of Denver, a player with a neurological impairment, are both in the field, according to the USGA.

Dino suffered a stroke in his mother’s womb and was born with a form of cerebral palsy that restricts movements on the left side of his body. Dino was the No. 1 player all four years he played at Mullen High School in Denver and he finished second in 2020 in the Class 4A state tournament, helping to lead the Mustangs to a runner-up finish as a team. He plays golf for the University of Redlands.

Golf allows him “to just go out and play my own game,” he said in a 2021 article in Colorado AvidGolfer.

Hiser was the co-captain of the golf team at Palmer Ridge High School when he lost portions of his legs in a 2012 incident in which he was struck by a train near Monument, Colo., according to coverage of the accident by CBS News Colorado.

The USGA received 285 entries for the 2023 U.S. Adaptive Open, and the 96-player final field includes competitors from 28 states and 11 countries. The championship’s youngest competitor is 15-year-old Russell Aide from Canada, and Linda Port, of Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., is the championship’s oldest player at 75 years old. Of the 96 players in the field, 66 played last year, and 30 will be making their championship debut.

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