ON THE RANGE
By Mark Fuerst
When Paul Farrell started playing golf as a young teen at Bethpage’s courses, he never imagined he would be associated with the legendary golfer Bobby Jones. Farrell developed the neurological disorder, syringomyelia, that Jones did and now heads a nonprofit that bears the Grand Slam winner’s name: the Bobby Jones Chiari & Syringomyelia Foundation, which raises awareness and funds to sponsor research.
Syringomyelia is a neurological disorder in which a fluid-filled cyst forms within the spinal cord. The cyst can become big enough to damage the spinal cord and compress and injure the nerve fibers that carry information to and from the brain to the body.
Bobby Jones IV, the grandson of the champion golfer, is among those on the board of directors and will play at Bethpage Red at the foundation’s annual fund-raising outing on October 20. “Having Bobby Jones’ name on the foundation has opened more doors in the golf world to help us raise money and garner more sponsors,” Farrell says.
With the aid of a specially rigged golf cart, Farrell has played courses across the country promoting the foundation. He recently joined Amagansett Golf Club on the East End of Long Island. “Going into a wheelchair 25 years ago seemed like the end of sports activities for me,” he says. “Finding the SoloRider golf cart gave me an opportunity to play golf again, and to enjoy the sport I love with my family and friends.”.
When he was diagnosed in his 20s, few in the medical field knew much if anything about syringomyelia. “The problem is you can go from one doctor to another and get a completely different diagnosis and how to treat it,” Farrell says. “Now we have a database to accumulate data to inform patients and doctors and to share information. We want to bring people together from around the world – patients, doctors, and researchers – who can check each other’s work.
“I don’t think I’ll ever be cured,” he adds. “I do this for those who will be diagnosed today and tomorrow. Eventually, there will be a cure. The more money we raise, the more research we can fund.”
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On the Range