GLENEAGLES, Scotland - When U.S. Ryder Cup Team captain Tom Watson wanted to put things into perspective for his newest team members, he looked to two Army Soldiers who were wounded while serving in Iraq only to persevere in athletics.
"This is one of the most prestigious golf events [in the world] ... and to be asked to be there with these guys is a big honor. It's very humbling," said Sgt. 1st Class Josh Olson, a Paralympic Section member with the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU).
Olson, along with retired Sgt. Noah Galloway, was asked to be honorary team co-captains and spoke with the team Sept. 23.
"It was a special night for people. The players, I think to a T, enjoyed the sobriety of the conversation; that, indeed, we are just playing a game, and that there are people out there doing work that very few other people will do in the world. That was the message," U.S. Team Captain Tom Watson told reporters Sept. 24.
Both Soldiers were wounded in Iraq, Olson during a rocket-propelled grenade attack while on patrol, and Galloway when his Humvee was rocked by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blast.
Olson lost his right leg to the attack. During his recovery at Walter Reed Medical Center he picked up marksmanship, becoming proficient enough to be selected to serve on active-duty with the USAMU. When he participated in the 2012 Paralympic Games in London, he became the first combat-injured active duty service member to take part in the games.
Galloway shares a similar story. After his injury, he threw himself into extreme training. Since his recovery, his accomplishments have included running the Marine Corps Marathon, the Spartan Death Race and the Bataan Death March.
Olson said his experience in competitive shooting parallels some of the stresses found on the golf course, because both sports are 90 percent mental and 10 percent physical.
"It's all about fundamentals and being mentally tough," he explained. "Hitting a ball the same every time and shooting a pistol or rifle the same every time is hours and hours of practice."
Olson isn't a golfer yet, but it is something he wants to pursue after finishing his shooting career.
"Shooting and golf are really close, and I can only do one really stressful thing at a time," he joked.
Watson said the Ryder Cup is an intense competition, but he hoped that meeting the Soldiers would lift some of the pressure from his new players.
"The players asked them questions, they thanked them, but it was a very sobering experience. In this cauldron of pressure, it's great to have that kind of, 'okay, it's not that big a deal,'" Watson said. "We make it a big deal, but it's not that big a deal. It is the Ryder Cup.
Yeah, there's pressure there. But you look in perspective of what those men did, what other people do. We're playing a game for a living."
USAMU is part of the U.S. Army Accessions Brigade, Army Marketing and Research Group and is tasked with enhancing the Army's recruiting effort, raising the standard of Army marksmanship and furthering small arms research and development to enhance the Army's overall combat readiness.
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