Episode #62: Interview with Pro-golfer, Billy Mayfair

Episode #62: Interview with Pro-golfer, Billy Mayfair


Listen in to my interview with one of the top golfers in the United States discussing his diagnosis of autism as an adult.  He shares his story and is vision to support those surrounding people with autism, as well. It was my pleasure to have Billy Mayfair on the Synergy Autism Podcast. Please enjoy!

_________

Billy Mayfair is one of the top professional golfers in theUnited States and has been a regular on the PGA Tour since1989.He boasts five PGA Tour victories and is the only player to ever beat Tigers Woods in a PGA Tour playoff. He is currently playing on the PGA Tour Champions. Mayfair’s five PGA Tour victories include the Nissan Open(1998), Buick Open (1998), Motorola Western Open (1995),TourChampionship (1995) and Greater Milwaukee Open (1993).
His two amateur victories include theU.S. Amateur(1987) and U.S. Public Links (1986). In the PGA Tour Champions, Mayfair ranks 49 in the Charles Schwab CupPoints, five in the PGA Tour Points List and 34 in the All-Time Money List with more than $22 million in career earnings.Mayfair has been in the Official World Golf Rankings top 50 list, reaching as high as 26. He was the medalist at the2010 PGATour’s Qualifying School and at the age of 15was on the cover of Boys’Life magazine as "golf’s junior hotshot."After dealing with Asperger-related symptoms for most of his life Mayfair was diagnosed in2019 with autism spectrum disorder, a developmental condition that causes challenges with a person’s communication, social interactions, sleep habits, moods and attention span, among other things. 

Previously, during the 2006 season Mayfair was diagnosed with testicular cancer and underwent surgery, returning to the tour two weeks later.Along with his family, Mayfair began a nonprofit foundation tasked with providing support to both amateur and professional athletes and their families who struggle from spectrum-related disorders. Mayfair was born in Phoenix, AZ. He graduated from Arizona State University and was the college’s first four-year All-America golfer, eventually being inducted into their sports hall of fame in 1998.Mayfair was also inducted into the State of Arizona Sports Hall of Fame in 2010. He currently lives in Scottsdale, AZ with his wife Tami.




https://www.si.com/golf-archives/2021/04/21/billy-mayfair-autism-spectrum-disorder-diagnosis-pga-champions-tour



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Episode #65: Let's Talk Inclusion For ALL

Image
Listen in to this amazing Inclusion Interview with Dr. Pretti-Fronczak & Dr. Julie Causton. I feel blessed to have these two on my podcast to talk about the importance and criticalness of inclusion for all students now rather than later. Research is telling us it is the right way to be ensuring education for our children. Let's get our schools, classrooms, and students feeling successful together! Synergy Autism Podcast · Episode #65: Let's Talk Inclusion For ALL We talked about a video to play at IEPs by Dr. Julie Causton. Here it is! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_8EwDZDfV0  Sample book chapters of their new book, The Way To Inclusion by Dr. Kristie Pretti-Frontczak and Dr. Julie Causton:  https://files.ascd.org/pdfs/publications/books/The-Way-to-Inclusion-sample-chapters.pdf  To learn more, go to: https://www.inclusiveschooling.com And to learn more specifically about the upcoming professional development opportunity for school personnel: https://www.inclusivesc
Read more

Episode #19: Regulation is Required for Curiosity to Thrive

Here, Synergy Autism Center's owner, Barbara Avila shares the essential nature of regulation for curiosity and learning to thrive. A child who is curious is learning, growing, and thriving. They are active and engaged in exploring the world and trying to figure out how things and people around them work. They imitate. They follow. They experiment. They fail and recover. They take risks and experience accidents. They gaze to their caregivers to determine safety or confirm their curiosity. They engage with the world. They are intrigued by the unexpected and the unpredictable within their developmental schema.  Co-Regulation Leads to Regulation  In order for a child to be curious, their internal state must be ready for new learning. A newborn is not ready for a whole lot of stimulation without getting overwhelmed and dysregulated, for example. However, as a child gets older, their system learns to be slightly stressed and to re-regulate to accommodate the new info
Read more

Episode #68: Autism and Empathy (Against Empathy)

Image
Episode #68: Autism and Empathy  Against Empathy (book) by Paul Bloom Blake Baxter and I dive into the book titled Against Empathy by Paul Bloom. As Blake puts it, "empathy has been weaponized against autism." Listen in to hear more about both autism and the concept of empathy. MUSIC BY  GRAHAM LAMPE MUSIC Synergy Autism Podcast · Episode #68: Autism & Empathy (Against Empathy)
Read more