Kim Moore, the head women’s golf coach at Western Michigan University, isn’t the type to draw attention to herself. So when she was driving around Kalamazoo, Michigan, last summer and saw her face on two billboards celebrating her victory in the inaugural U.S. Adaptive Open Championship, she wasn’t quite sure how to react.
“I didn’t know they were going to do that, but our school kind of coordinated that. Kind of cool to see,” Moore said last week at the second U.S. Adaptive Open where she finished runner-up to Ryanne Jackson in the women’s overall competition.
More than kind of cool. More like inspirational and aspirational.
Moore, 42, was born without a right foot and her left foot was severely clubbed. Additionally, she was born with a slight case of spina bifida, which can cause movement issues.
She was also born with something else — a strong competitive gene.
“I came from a very sports-oriented family. Anything I do, honestly; I’m pretty competitive at games, board games, at cards. Just that mindset has always kind of been with me,” Moore said.
“Ever since I started playing competitively, I’ve always wanted to do well.”
Growing up in Michigan, Moore loved playing basketball but the reality of her condition made it a challenge. Enter golf.
“My dad played for fun. But really it was more of just me wanting to be competitive in something, and I grew up being a sports-oriented person and playing all sorts of different sports, and my parents not really holding me back with anything and letting me try anything I want,” Moore said.
“Basketball was a love of mine, and I always played that, but as I grew up and wanted to play in high school, I’m not the fastest runner in the world, so I wanted to do something I was a little more competitive in. That’s when I decided to try golf right before my high school season. I had some friends that were going to play on the team, so I decided to go ahead and try, and it kind of went from there.”
Moore is now a teaching professional, not to mention an outstanding player.
She played four years of college golf at the University of Indianapolis, earned all-conference honors all four years and finished among the top 10 in the NCAA Division II individual championship on one occasion.
In 2003, the national Women’s Golf Coaches Association created the Kim Moore Spirit Award, given annually to players or coaches at the three levels of college golf who exemplify her spirit, mental toughness and positive attitude toward the game.
“She is fantastic. We are so fortunate to have her guiding our young women,” said Elaine Russell, senior associate athletic director at Western Michigan.
“She has an excellent story to tell but she is selfless and very generous.”
Moore, who wears a prosthetic below her right knee, finished T28 in the inaugural G4D Open, an adaptive golf event conducted by the R&A in England last month and she pushed Jackson in the final round at Pinehurst before settling for second place in her quest to repeat.
She has become one of the increasingly familiar faces in the adaptive golf world.
“I think (the U.S. Adaptive Open) has raised awareness all over the country with different tournaments that have popped up, different states and just word of mouth,” Moore said.
“Some people have definitely seen me on TV, and they were excited to say hello, but I think it’s just the awareness of the event overall, I think, and just how it has been seen on a global stage. I think that’s what’s bringing more people out and having them try. There’s a lot of great golfers out there, and it’s just exciting to see the growth.”
As a coach, Moore is an example of perseverance and self-belief. At Western Michigan, Russell said, Moore has talked with other coaches there about the lessons she has learned and how she applies them.
“For the young people out there with disabilities or even the older ones with disabilities that might see some highlight clips on TV, I hope it brings a lot of inspiration to them, too.” — Kim Moore
Moore, however, is reluctant to use herself as an example — but her success in the Adaptive Open raised her profile.
“I try not to make it about me in my recruiting. I want it to be about the recruit. A lot of the recruits actually have seen me and have heard about me and kind of know some of the things that I’ve done, so that’s always great. A lot of them do a little research, too, so they’ll bring it up,” Moore said.
“They’re like, ‘Oh, congratulations, it’s awesome. We’re so excited to be here, so excited to meet you.’ It’s something I don’t necessarily just say at the forefront, but they usually bring it up to me.”
After Moore’s victory in the first U.S. Adaptive Open, Western Michigan wanted to honor her in a public setting. The school decided to do it during a home football game against the University of Pittsburgh. Moore agreed, but with a caveat — it couldn’t be just about her.
“She made sure we made it about her team as well. She’s very humble and team-oriented. She’s a great role model for our coaches,” Russell said.
“We celebrate championships here and hers was no different.”
Moore’s success and her story is about more than golf. It comes with a simple but powerful message.
“I think it just takes a lot of effort, sticking to it. I know it can be challenging. If you just continue to work hard and give it 100 percent every single day and stay positive out there, I think it can definitely show some success,” Moore said.
“For the young people out there with disabilities or even the older ones with disabilities that might see some highlight clips on TV, I hope it brings a lot of inspiration to them, too.”