Teeing it up in Iraq

Courtesy Photo | 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team Operations Sgt. Maj., Sgt. Maj. Edward Carlson and operation officer, Capt. Sara Leaky, hit golf balls at the Caddy Shack driving range.  

TALLIL, IRAQ

10.12.2009

Courtesy Story

41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team

CAMP ADDER, Iraq — Members of the 41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team teed off at the Caddy Shack Driving Range on Camp Adder, Iraq, Oct. 12, using equipment they received from a program called Bunkers in Baghdad.

Bunkers in Baghdad, is a non-profit organization that provides golf equipment for deployed service members.

The founder of Bunkers to Baghdad, Joe Hanna, said his mission is to provide Soldiers stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan, and wounded service members at home, with golf clubs and golf balls.

The driving range is a great way to get away from the stress while on a deployment said Operations Sgt. Maj., Edward Carlson.

Capt. Sara Leaky, the operations officer for 41 IBCT, who arranged for the brigade to receive the balls and clubs, said some people would look at her like she was crazy when she first started getting all the equipment, but now people love it and are requesting to use the equipment all the time, said Leaky.

Leaky said that from day one when the shipment arrived, people at the more remote locations were asking for the golf equipment. The brigade is currently looking to set up a net for Soldiers stationed at a small outpost called Scania, she said.

These days, on a deployment, it is pretty common to see service members relieving stress by hitting golf balls at designated locations throughout Iraq and Afghanistan, but Leaky said golfing can be quite different on a deployment.

"The driving range actually had to be closed down for a while because a golf ball hit and set off an unexploded ordinance," said Leaky.

Leaky said being able to come out and practice golfing is a great thing because it is something that service members of all ranks and types have a chance to enjoy.

"I love this, it is a good stress release and it takes your mind off things for a while by breaking up the monotony," said Carlson.

Hanna said when he started Bunkers in Baghdad after watching a television show and reading a news article about Soldiers hitting golf balls in Baghdad, that the least he could do was collect some golf balls. A short time later, Hanna said that vision has turned into over 500,000 golf balls and 15,000 clubs being shipped, with more arriving daily.

• Date Taken: 10.12.2009
• Date Posted: 11.05.2009 04:09
• Story ID: 41125
• Location: TALLIL, IQ