LIVING TOGETHER

Golf connects people – Inclusion at Bielefeld Golf Club

At the Bielefeld Golf Club (BGC), inclusion has been actively practised for 25 years. People with and without disabilities train, play and celebrate their successes together – both on and off the pitch. This joint initiative was launched in 2001. Hörmann has been involved as a sponsor since 2006.

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since 1995
Golf has been part of the programme for the Special Olympics World Games
2001
was the first European Championship for golfers with disabilities
Fairplay
comes first in golf – disadvantages due to disability are compensated by special rules

Active together

In 2001, Klaus-Hermann Bunte, then deputy headteacher and now headteacher of the Mamre-Patmos Special School, and Bradley Kerr, the pro coach at Bielefeld Golf Club, launched a special partnership.

Their aim: to create a place where people with and without mental disabilities can play sport together as a matter of course.

Since then, the mixed teams have been meeting regularly for training sessions at the BGC. Over the years, those first joint sessions have developed into a vibrant inclusion project that extends far beyond day-to-day training.

Milestones in development

  • 2001 – Launch of the inclusive golf partnership at the BGC
  • Since 2003 – Participation in the World Games
  • 2006 – Hörmann becomes a sponsor
  • 2007 – Co-operation with Special Olympics Germany
  • 2012 – Setup of the NRW Golf Centre at the BGC
  • 2025 – 10th Inclusive Golf Tournament at the BGC
  • 2026 – 25 years of inclusive golf at the Mamre-Patmos School and BGC

Our Golf stages

Inclusive golf tournaments

Inclusive golf tournaments, held at regular intervals, are a fixed component of the project. This is where players with and without disabilities come together to compete, either as part of a team or as individuals.

The focus is on fair play, providing support and the shared experience.

Work place Golf

Commissioned by the Hörmann Group, film-maker Eike Swoboda accompanied Daniel, Lennard, Christoph, Sarah and Thomas, five young people from the Lilienthal Golf Club near Bremen. In each golf club, individuals like them, who live with impairments in thinking and learning, can be usefully and helpfully employed with occupational therapy instructions. This is presented in the documentary about “Five special green keepers”. You will find more information at the following addresses: Lilienthal Golf Club, Headmaster of the Mamre Patmos school K.-H. Bunte

Inclusion Prize 2017

The Jury of the Bayerische Medien-Golfer (Bavarian Media Golfers) has awarded the Bielefeld Golf Club (BGC) the 2017 “Prize for Inclusion and Media”. The Bavarian Media Golfers Club mainly consists of journalists from the state of Bavaria. Their goal is to increase the popularity of the sport. Since 2015, it has been honouring golf clubs that work to integrate handicapped golfers. The prize was awarded in the presence of Claus M. Kobold, the President of the German Golf Association, during the BMW International Open in Munich Eichenried.

“Gutes Handicap” (Good Handicap) – a film

Film maker Eike Swoboda followed the golf team of the Mamre Patmos school from Bielefeld with his camera during the national games of the “Special Olympics” in June 2010 in Bremen, Germany. His seven minute film entitled “Good Handicap” does not require many words to illustrate the powerful strokes of the Bielefeld team. See the film “Good Handicap” here.