South Ogden native Togisala finishes high at USDGA Championship
Photo supplied, USDGA
South Ogden native Max Togisala watches his drive during the first round of the USDGA Championship on April 26, 2026, at PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla.South Ogden native Max Togisala added Florida to his list of travels in adaptive golf when he took first place in his category at the championship tournament for the United States Disabled Golf Association in the final week of April.
Togisala finished 11th overall in the 55-player men’s field, shooting a 1-over 72 in the first round. With his father on his bag, Togisala began the tournament three under after five holes.
“I chipped in on the first hole, so I got a little lucky,” Togisala told PGA of America. “Then I got into a groove.”
Togisala ultimately went 8-over in the three-round event. That was good for first place in the seated golfers category. He’s also a three-time reigning seated-player champion at the U.S. Adaptive Open.
The USDGA Championship was held April 26-29 at the PGA Golf Club’s Ryder Course in Port St. Lucie, Florida.
Adaptive golf is contested by players with intellectual, vision or physical impairments. Togisala, a graduate of Bonneville High School, is paralyzed from the waist down after a ski accident in February 2022.
“Golf means everything to me,” Togisala told PGA of America. “There’s a lot of life lessons in golf and that’s what I love about it. Whenever something bad happens, moving on to the next one and moving forward is tough, but that’s what you got to do.”
Carson Lane of Georgia, a player with one-arm impairment, defeated Chad Pfeifer of Idaho, who lost one leg while serving in the Army in Iraq, in a four-hole playoff after each shot even par for the three rounds. Pfeifer was the reigning USDGA champion of three consecutive years.
