Now golf: How Joe Flavell, a former junior Warriors player who lost his leg in a car crash, found his passion for sport again

A former junior Warriors player who lost his leg in a car crash and then went on to win multiple national titles as a para-athlete is taking on a new challenge as he prepares to tee up in his first golf tournament.

Joe Flavell (Te Arawa) will compete in the All Abilities Championship at Windross Farm Golf Club in Ardmore this weekend.

The 45-year-old told the Herald he is “used to competition”, but it’s “what makes him the most nervous”.

Flavell has always lived an active life, playing rugby, soccer, hockey, basketball and softball at school before discovering league at the age of 15.

Then in 1998, the winger made the Warriors’ development team and went on to play in tournaments in Oceania as part of the Māori league squad.

But Flavell struggled to find his passion for sport again after a devastating car accident in 2008 meant his left leg had to be amputated above the knee.

“I was kind of beaten,” Flavell said.

Knowing he couldn’t do what he loves, “the depression was kind of setting in and I was feeling hopeless.”

Joe Flavell was in the development squad for the Warriors and played internationally for the Māori league team before the car accident. Photo / Alex Burton

Flavell said he and his wife were an “active couple” who went skiing, hiking and diving every year.

“I didn’t want my wife to have an inactive life – the depression was getting deeper and deeper.

“I told my wife, I need to get into a sport or something that will help me focus a little more and sort of move my mind.”

So alongside learning to walk again, Flavell began training in new sports, eventually competing in national para-athlete events, table tennis and wheelchair archery - where he won national titles and broke a number of records.

“Most important was the focus,” said Flavell. “It does help me move my attention to something else.”

When he faced yet another setback in not making the Paralympics team, Flavell decided to shift that focus to being a father.

“I went back to my children – my children growing up.

“I was able to eventually get back in the water so I was going diving with my boys and fishing and hunting.

“All those kinds of things that I used to do that I thought I would never be able to do again.”

In October last year, Flavell’s 25-year-old son Marino Te Moni found an All Abilities Golf Tournament flyer and immediately thought of his dad.

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Some players in the All Abilities Regional Series-Wellington! Well done to all the players! 👏👏 #golfnz #allabilities #royalwellington

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But just months prior, Flavell found out he would need a hip replacement on his right leg due to the pressure and weight it had taken from using the prosthetic on his left.

Flavell once again had to spend significant time in a wheelchair, needing to dig deep to find that desire to compete again.

But he pushed through and took up his son’s offer to hit the course in order to prepare for the event.

Although slightly concerned about the quick turnaround for a national golf tournament, Te Moni and Flavell worked together once a week to improve Flavell’s technique, while studying the course online.

He quickly fell in love with the sport and the tournament he’ll participate in this weekend comes with an opportunity to qualify for a world event.

Flavell, who will play with a handicap of 26, is concerned about the potential pain he might suffer across the two-day tournament since he’s only done strenuous activity once a week.

But while there’s “a little bit of pressure”, he is focusing on being able to attend - and aiming to score in the early 80s or late 70s, with his son by his side as caddy.