Finding the light side of being blind

With incredible humor, blinded former undercover security agent Zohar Sharon enjoys life to the fullest.

By YOAV SCHWARTZ, ASAF FINKELSTEIN
Sea Fish Carpaccio (photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
Sea Fish Carpaccio
(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
Zohar Sharon is proof of two important truths in life: One, never underestimate the power of humor; and two, with willpower you can conquer any obstacle – without exception.
Zohar, 62, is a former undercover agent who was blinded following a chemical injury to his eyes while working for the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency). His personal résumé is vast and admirable, but today the most captivating fact about Zohar is that he is a golfer who has won the World Blind Golf Championship five times in a row.
Unbelievably, he has also won prestigious golf tournaments while competing against sighted golfers. How does he do it? Zohar has employed the services of Shimshon Levy, who serves as his eyes – his caddy, in professional terms. Over time, the two have developed a unique method; together, they are conquering the world with the help of the IDF Disabled Veterans Organization and the Defense Ministry’s rehabilitative department.
To understand Zohar’s world, we chose to meet him at BlackOut in the Nalaga’at Center at the Jaffa Port. The restaurant operates in total darkness and its goal is to give us, the seeing population, a sense of what it feels like to be blind. The experience is a combination of fear of the unknown at first, followed by a great thrill.
The objective: To get to know Zohar Sharon and the way he “sees” the world.
The means: A gourmet meal at BlackOut restaurant at the Jaffa Port’s Nalaga’at Center, with wine from the Golan Heights Winery.
We can’t see anything. How do you take in your surroundings?
When I speak, my voice leaves me and comes back to me, and this provides a sense of the space – just like bats give off sound waves and use them to move around. For example, here, I can sense that I am in a hangar.
You really are in a hangar now. Tell us about the injury – how did it happen?
Forget about it, let’s talk about happy things.
Okay. How did you start golfing?
It happened during the period I was about to get divorced from my first wife. I lived in Caesarea, as did my wife’s lawyer. One day, he came over to hand me my wife’s requests, and I agreed to everything. He didn’t believe his good luck and asked me, “You don’t have even one reservation?” I said, “Correct.”
Immediately, he was calmer and told me this was the easiest case he had ever had.
While chatting, we became friends, and then he took a shoebox, turned it over and cut out an inverted U-shape. He pulled out a golf club and asked me to try to hit the ball into the box. We played golf like that on the carpet, and it got me hooked.
I started playing golf with all kinds of people who came to visit me. One of them was [socialite] Mirit Ofer; when I played with her, I would win all the time. But now that we’re talking about it, I think she lost to me on purpose.
How did you do it?
There was a transistor next to the box, and the noise would direct me to the exact spot.
Amazing. How did it progress from there?
Mirit told the golf director in Caesarea about me, and he asked her to bring me over so he could check me out. After he checked my capabilities, he told me I was very talented but needed a lot of practice. It was then I found out about the World Blind Golf Championship; it turns out there are tens of thousands of blind people who compete in this sport around the world.
How is it to be a blind golfer?
Golf is the cruelest game there is. If you make a mistake, you are punished immediately, on the spot. When the blind play golf, it’s even harder.
There are times when everything is excellent for the first and second holes, and when you reach the fifth hole, you’re sure that everything is set. You hit the ball and suddenly, the ball flies into the grass and your competitors have to search for it.
We’ve heard of cases of the ball flying into the water, resulting in crocodile bites.
We also played in those types of places. I once sent Shimshon to look for the ball, and they warned him not to because there were crocodiles there. Although Shimshon is a stubborn guy, he didn’t want to be the crocodile’s breakfast.
Another time in the US, he went to look for the ball and came back yelling and hysterical after a face-to-face encounter with an anaconda. He needs to get a risk premium.
Every experience can be frightening or funny. It all depends on you, whether you enjoy it or not.
What motivates you to be the world champion?
The truth is that my desire not to lose is stronger than my desire to be a champion. When I win, I feel good for about five minutes, but when I lose, it really hurts. You have no idea how much it hurts.
How many world championships have you lost?
None.
Despite the severe injury to your eyes and a serious head injury, you seem like a person who enjoys life.
When I was injured, I felt like I was dead. Since then, everything is extra – one big gain. But I decided that if I was destined to stay on this earth, I would live to the fullest and not deprive myself of one minute of happiness. Life is too short to waste on nonsense.
What are some interesting experiences you and Shimshon had around the world?
 I was once invited to the Ontario Championship in Canada, and my daughter “Yasmine” (not her real name), who is very pretty, came with me. Opposite us, a professor was playing golf with his son, and during the game, I could tell he had a bias against Israel. He thought Israel was just a country with a desert and camels, and that our mentality was like that of the Arab countries.
Suddenly, he told me he wanted my daughter for his son. I answered, “With pleasure,” and added, “I ask in exchange that you give me 1,000 cows, 2,000 camels and 10,000 sheep.” At first he was in shock, but then I explained to him that Israel isn’t really that type of place. Even though I’m blind, I could imagine his face changing several shades in embarrassment.
The truth is that most of the time, people think I’m an Arab, and that makes being overseas easier.
Give us an example.
A few years ago, we traveled to a tournament in Scotland. One day, we sat in a café in a shopping center and the waitress came up to me and told me excitedly that she volunteers in Gaza as an English teacher. I looked enthusiastic and everything was wonderful until Shimshon decided to ruin the moment and argue with her about politics. I quickly told him to keep quiet. What do I care about her opinions? Let her think we’re Arabs, we’ll get better service.
Do you feel that you represent Israel to the world?
In the blind golf competitions, the representation is only by country and not by individual. The moment that my name is announced and they add that I represent Israel, it gives me incredible motivation to win.
I experience strong anti-Semitism around the world and feel this is my contribution to the war against that mental illness. They think that Jews love money; this is mainly in Europe.
At least in the rest of the world, is the situation better?
The truth is that in certain areas in the US, it’s also complicated because I have dark skin. They usually don’t admit me to the golf courses immediately; they question me first.
Disgraceful.
When it happens, I face a very big dilemma. If I tell the guard that I came to play golf, he won’t believe me and I’ll be delayed. So I always tell the guards that I came to fix something, and they immediately let me in. It makes total sense to them with my dark skin, and they don’t think for a moment, “How is it the repairman is also blind?” I think it’s amusing.
What does it mean to be the World Blind Golf Champion?
In every place I go to play, the professional golfers come to take a picture with me and the manager of the golf course always comes with them.
I receive invitations from all over the world to play, and many famous people arrive, too. It makes me laugh that I receive a lot of letters from India and China from couples asking me to bless them in honor of their weddings.
Which competition win are you proudest of?
A few years ago, I participated in a US competition with sighted people, and I won. I admit that it’s amazing, but also really funny.
What was the craziest situation you ever experienced while golfing?
Just over 10 years ago, I was invited to participate in a charity tournament in the US, and they paired me with former president Gerald Ford.
Sounds incredible.
Right. Only that he tricked me and moved the ball nonstop; he thought I didn’t know.
What did you do?
I respected him and continued to play as if nothing happened. He was already very old.
Tell us about an experience as a blind person you would have liked to forgo.
A short time after I became blind, I joined a group of climbers from Israel who went out to conquer the summit of Mont Blanc. It could have been wonderful, had I not faced two serious problems. The first was I discovered that the cold and I aren’t such good friends. The second issue turned out to be more serious – I reached the summit and couldn’t see anything; I’m blind. I have no idea what I did it for, but I enjoyed myself and laughed all the while.
Humor is very important to you.
Right, as much as possible. I was once invited to play in Palm Springs; we went for a walk and suddenly, my daughter Yasmine disappeared.
While we were looking for her, we heard a parade was starting. Just 10 seconds later, I was standing at the front of the parade with my dog and everyone was marching behind me trying to match my pace, including all of the bands and the acrobat they had brought especially for the occasion.
No one knew that I wasn’t really connected to any of it.
Yasmine, who saw the parade, was shocked and couldn’t understand why I was suddenly marching at the front. She laughed so hard she cried.