Palmer Golfer gears up for 2020

PALMER — For 29-year-old Palmer Special Olympics athlete Garrett Stortz, 2019 was a big year. Stortz continued to improve his dazzling play on the links as a golfer, winning two tournaments. Headed into 2020, Stortz is preparing for the Alaska Special O State Championships in March, where he will compete in floor hockey. However, despite the recently fallen winter in the Mat-Su Valley, Stortz continues to train for the 2022 Special O games in Orlando where he hopes to reach the podium in golf again.

“I have to kind of just use what I have and go to the dome when I can and that’s a really good time to go there and practice short game stuff and work on hitting,” said Stortz. “I’m still going to want to improve on stuff this offseason.”

Stortz’ success on the golf course is no stroke of luck. After picking up the game over a decade ago, Stortz transferred skills he had learned as a hockey player into becoming a scratch golfer. Stortz has worked at Palmer Golf Course under one of his mentors, George Collum, who has helped to foster Stortz’s love of the game. At the beginning of 2019, Stortz was hoping to achieve his goal of averaging a round of 85 for the state amateur tournament in July at PGC and the Special O State games in Anchorage in September.

“I’m able to compete with all those other guys and be able to shoot really good scores and just build off of what I was able to do this year with winning the state am second flight and shooting my 85 avg at state and just keep on consistent,” said Stortz.

To help achieve his goal this year, Stortz made a bold switch. Changing his putter from a blade style to a wider model has helped Stortz’s short game. Without indoor golf facilities or simulated golf facilities in the Valley, sticking to the short game is what keeps Stortz swinging during the winter months.

“A lot of it has to do with the short game. Whether it’s a putt or a chip, that can really swing a round here or there,” said Stortz. “I think I’ve improved quite a bit. I mean, I’ve been able to do a lot of of practicing at the golf course since I’ve been able to be right there and stuff and obviously I think it’s starting to slowly pay off.”

Stortz’ improvement on the golf course is due in part to his family, friends and coworkers who have supported Stortz’ quest for gold. However, Stortz would not have topped two podiums last year if not for his tireless work ethic. With no problem striking the ball off the tee, Stortz has molded his short game to become more accurate and consistent, helping to sink easier puts and win tournaments. Stortz shot a personal best for 18 holes with 76 strokes at the State am tournament at PGC in July. To top that performance, Stortz was hoping to average a score of 85 for the State Championships for Special Olympics in September. Not only did Stortz achieve his goal, but shot an 82-stroke round, his personal best at the State Championships.

“The 18th green at the state games in September, I came through in the clutch when I needed to,” said Stortz. “When I was standing over the putt to make it for par, that’s when I knew i needed to do something good.”