Fort Carson soldiers team to beat pro on U.S. Women's Open practice day

Just more than a year ago, Jason Mazzella was withering in pain in Afghanistan, clinging to hope that he would survive a rocket attack that pierced his body with loads of shrapnel.

On Monday, he was engaged in a different kind of battle with his Fort Carson comrades, hammering drives and sinking putts in a fight against a budding star on the LPGA Tour.

The hard-nosed Army captain made a putt for a birdie and stuck an approach shot that led to an eagle, as three wounded soldiers from Fort Carson teamed to defeat Stacy Lewis in a four-hole match on the first practice day of the U.S. Women’s Open at The Broadmoor.

After Mazzella, 25, Sgt. Chris Helton, 27, and Staff Sgt. Jason Wilcox, 26, fell behind by a stroke on the second hole on the West Course, Mazzella drilled a birdie putt on No. 3 to even the score with Lewis. Then Lewis and the Fort Carson squad both recorded pars on No. 17, setting up the drama on No. 18, where Mazzella rifled an approach shot from 160 yards out and Wilcox rolled in an 18-foot eagle putt after Lewis missed a birdie chance.

“Everything just fell in line,” said Mazzella, accompanied by his wife, Brianna, and his 4-month-old son, Dillon, three days after he completed a transition back to active duty.

It represented quite a turnaround for Mazzella, who came within 15 feet of the rocket that struck his squadron in February 2010 – a blast that shattered both of his legs, temporarily paralyzed one of his hands, split open his nose and sent shrapnel through his face and his neck. His right leg was saved by an operation in which doctors filled a hole by removing part of his calf, and he spent most of last year hobbling in a brace while on crutches.

“It’s a great feeling,” Mazzella said, “to know I’ve come this far in a year. … It’s not for me. It’s not for any of us. It’s for the guys. It’s for my friends who didn’t make it back.”

The round also held special meaning for Wilcox, a squad leader in the Warrior Transition Battalion who underwent two shoulder surgeries from combat wounds that he suffered in Afghanistan. “There are still thousands of people in harm’s way every day,” Wilcox said. “To be able to come out here and do something like this, you can’t put words to it.”

“You don’t get to go out and meet a pro every day,” he added, “let alone play against her and walk down the fairways and talk with her. Her support for the military is unmatched. She could be off practicing just like every other player here. But she took a few hours out of her day to play with us, and that means more than anything to us.”

Lewis didn’t think twice about the morning match that preceded her afternoon practice.

“With what they’ve done, it’s the least I could do,” said Lewis, the winner of the season’s first major, the Kraft Nabisco Championship in April. Lewis added, “It makes you think about the world outside of the golf. They’re over there fighting every day, so we can live the way we live. … It gives you a better sense of appreciation for what you get to do.”