2026 Minnesota Adaptive Open Fact Sheet

The Minnesota Adaptive Open returns for its second year September 26–27 at Braemar Golf Club in Edina, bringing together adaptive golfers from 17 states to compete across seven impairment categories over two days of competition. Last year's inaugural event crowned three overall champions: Max Togisala held off a hard-charging Justin VanLanduit by a single shot with a final-round 72 to win the Men's Overall title, Sarah Beth Larson claimed the Women's Overall championship, and Steve Husome took home the Senior Overall crown.

Featured Players

Last Year at Braemar: The 2025 Recap

After a rollercoaster front nine, Max Togisala fired an even-par 72 in the final round to win both the Seated and Men's Overall divisions in the inaugural Minnesota Adaptive Open. It was his first overall win in two and a half years of competitive adaptive golf — and it came a little over three years after he fractured his spine in a skiing accident in Idaho, a moment that redirected his golf game and, in short order, made him one of the best seated golfers in the world.

At the turn, Togisala trailed Justin VanLanduit by two shots on the Men's Overall leaderboard, having carded an eagle, two birdies, two bogeys, and a double bogey across his first nine holes.

Mirroring Togisala, the start of the round was far from smooth for Justin VanLanduit, a Chaska native and competitor in the Coordination Impairment (CI) category. The former superintendent at Briarwood Country Club in Deerfield, Ill., VanLanduit was forced to medically retire after being diagnosed with muscular dystrophy in 2013. He played in the 2025 U.S. Adaptive Open and won the CI category at Braemar — but not before a bogey and a double bogey in his first four holes, which he answered with three birdies in his next five.

While the inaugural Minnesota Adaptive Open featured a diverse field of players from across the country, the comfort of home had its benefits. For VanLanduit, that comfort came from his three daughters, who followed him across the grounds of Braemar from the first tee to the 18th green. “It's cool to have them follow along,” VanLanduit said. “The two oldest are starting to get into golf and the oldest one really likes it, so to have them come see me play competitively, it's a neat experience to have as a dad.”

As the players moved onto the back nine — with Togisala one group ahead of VanLanduit — the overall division converged into a two-horse race. A birdie at the 15th gave Togisala a one-shot lead he never gave back. Asked afterward if he likes to track the leaderboard down the stretch, Togisala laughed: “Not normally, but on 18 I did check, because I saw there were some spectators following me. I knew I had the lead by one and I was like, oh gosh — and then I snap hooked it on 18, so maybe I should stop.”

Togisala made a short par putt on the 18th to secure a one-shot victory in the Overall division — the only player in the field to shoot even par or better. VanLanduit came up short in the overall race but won the CI category by six shots.

2025 Division Champions

Minnesotans in the Field

20 of this year's golfers call Minnesota home:

Impairment Categories

Competitors play across seven impairment categories:

Braemar Golf Course

For 52 years, Braemar Golf Course was a staple of golf in Minnesota, but the city of Edina had a vision for something better. The course shut down in late 2016 and nearly three years later, golfers rolled putts across the ninth green in the same spot where the first tee shot at Braemar was struck back in 1964. The city spent $7.5 million on a Richard Mandell redesign to restore natural wetland areas, oak savanna, reroute many of the holes, and revamp every aspect of the playing experience. The first planning stages of Braemar began with a town proposal in November 1956 for a public golf course in Edina. That vision moved forward through land acquisition, funding, course design, and construction, and Braemar officially opened on July 22, 1964.

Over the next decade, Braemar would host two major national golf championships: the 1969 Minnesota Classic on the PGA Tour and the 1979 U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links. The pro-am at the Minnesota Classic brought world-famous athletes to Braemar, like Mickey Mantle, Stan Mikita, and Bob Allison, while the Public Links remains the only USGA championship ever held at the course.

Braemar reached another important milestone in 1979, when it began a partnership with the Sister Kenny Institute and launched adaptive golf instruction for people with disabilities. At the time, this program represented a revolutionary development, and it would live on to become one of the foundational pillars of Braemar's reputation for inclusivity. The Sister Kenny Institute and the Courage Center merged under Allina Health in 2013 to form the Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute, with which the MGA is in partnership in support of adaptive golf to this day. Forty-six years after the start of adaptive golf at Braemar, the course hosted the inaugural Minnesota Adaptive Open in September 2025.

Course Set Up

Braemar will offer multiple tee options across the two-day event, allowing golfers in every impairment category to compete from a yardage suited to their game.

About the MGA

Founded in 1901, the Minnesota Golf Association is the governing body over amateur golf in the state, responsible for administering the Rules of Golf, and committed to uphold and promote the game of golf and its values for all golfers in Minnesota. The MGA conducts 23 major amateur championships and 16 USGA qualifying events each year. Adaptive golf is a core part of the MGA Foundation's mission to expand access to the game for every golfer. Thanks to the support of its member clubs and associate members, and the efforts of its volunteers and staff, the MGA provides a variety of services such as handicapping, course rating and measuring, an online golf news and information resource, mngolf.org, and an official publication, The Minnesota Golfer magazine, which benefits all golfers throughout Minnesota.