Golf links ex-Marine, autistic Maine East student

One may think that for the The PGA Tour Superstore in Schaumburg to open an hour early to accommodate a customer, it would have to be for a big shot like Jack Nicklaus or Tiger Woods, not a high school student from Maine East.

But 17-year-old Robert Kanczuga has the type of personality that brings out the best in others.

For the past year, Robert has been working with PGA professional John Mueller, who is a coach at the store, and the two have developed a relationship that has been a lot more than that of a paid tutor and student.

On the surface, it may seem like an odd pairing.

Mueller, a 66-year-old ex-Marine with no children, has been a golf pro for three decades. Robert, an honor roll student on the Maine East golf team, is autistic and has issues with speech and language, but the connection between the two is obvious.

On a recent Saturday morning at the PGA Tour Superstore, Mueller watched as Kanczuga hit ball after ball into a video simulator of a golf course.

"No dancing!" Mueller chimed at one point when Robert's feet moved as he was hitting his shot.

"See how he's smiling, he loves it," Mueller said, noting Robert's reaction.

Robert, who lives in Morton Grove with his parents, Walter and Magdalena, and 20-year-old brother Michael, has been playing golf for seven years, and has improved every year.

He said his favorite golfer is Tiger Woods, and when asked what Woods needs to do to get back to his former self, Robert said, "Get his back better."

Robert and Mueller met at the store last year when Robert's father signed him up for private instruction. It wasn't long before Mueller took a liking to Robert, often meeting him at the store before it opened to accommodate his schedule of school, playing golf and caddying at the Park Ridge Country Club.

Robert has been recognized with awards for outstanding academic achievement while participating in IHSA Interscholastic Activities; won a gold medal at the Special Olympics Illinois (Unified Team Play) in 2016; and will soon be given a new set of clubs from Taylor Made because of his skill and personality.

Perhaps the award that best captures Robert's essence, though, was his 2016 "For The Love of The Game" citation from Maine East.

Mueller said Robert is a great kid and special on the course because he takes instruction well and has great vision.

"He can see things on the course that others don't notice. He gets the club face square on the ball from a homemade swing every time," Mueller said.

"His club is 50 degrees open going back, but he still makes contact with the ball. Nobody can do that," Mueller said.

He added that he has no intention of tweaking Robert's swing, saying, "There are players on the (PGA) Tour with homemade swings. Bubba Watson has a homemade swing."

If Robert has a weakness to his game it's putting, something Mueller has begun to address by introducing him to Juan Espejo from the Maryville Golf Academy at Maryville Academy in Des Plaines a few weeks ago.

Robert's drives average between 225 and 240 yards, and he hits the ball about 195 yards from the fairway with a 3 hybrid club, Mueller said. While he has respectable scores for any golfer, Mueller said Robert likely won't make the PGA Tour.

After graduation, Robert will move on to the Maine East transition program for students with special needs and hopes one day he can get a job as a golf ranger. Walter Kanczuga, who works as a union electrician, said he is considering buying a summer home in a warmer climate so Robert can play more golf.

Robert continues to improve and Espejo has developed a system for upping his putting game.

"With his short game, he didn't have a system, and kids with autism need a system," Espejo said. "I've adopted what I've learned from a sports psychologist to teach him how to keep his eyes on the target and take a practice breath. I'll have him breaking 40 soon."

Robert was introduced to the game by his father. He also has worked with golf pro Chris Urgo at the Tam O'Shanter golf course in Niles and has been helped by Kenny Goodwin, caddie master at Park Ridge Country Club, where he is now in his second year of caddying.

"Golf helps him relax and has really helped his life skills," Walter Kanczuga said while watching Robert hit balls under the watch of Mueller at the PGA Superstore.

"I think some of it is being outside with the trees and the grass and the quiet. In the beginning, I asked myself 'Why am I doing this?' but Robert kept making progress."

Walter Kanczuga said on a typical Saturday working with Mueller, Robert will hit dozens, sometimes hundreds, of balls until he develops a blister and has to call it a day. He added that Robert does not understand the way score is kept, something that probably allows him to just enjoy the game.

"He doesn't understand that the lower your score the better it is, but he still lowers his score by 3-4 shots every year," Walter Kanczuga said.

"He's a visual learner, so he watches others and copies what they do. He doesn't take practice swings on the course, he just hits."

Espejo, who has worked with special needs kids at Maryville since 1994 when the Illinois PGA Foundation sent him there, said the love of the game is what really sets Robert apart.

"He's gifted. The language he speaks is with his golf clubs," Espejo said.

Walter Kanczuga said Goodwin, who employs 150 caddies every summer at the Park Ridge Country Club, has opened the door for other kids with special needs and, like Mueller, often makes special accommodations for Robert. Goodwin met Robert after calling Maine East to recruit caddies.

"They said they had a kid with special needs and my eyes lit up," Goodwin said. "Initially I was concerned about how he'd be with the other caddies and how they would be with him, but everyone gets along great. The members love him and its been the best thing that has happened to me.

"When he gets on a golf course he's a different kid. He's very happy."