Posted on 05/29/2003 5:04:07 PM PDT by summer
Golf Links Bush, Boy
By: Andy Staples
The Tampa Tribune
May 18, 2003
ZEPHYRHILLS - The golfing buddy clearly was exasperated. ``now i CAN'T call direct since it is past 9 p.m.,'' he wrote, skipping the capital letters until he needed them to make a point.
The golfing buddy wanted to call 11-year-old Matthew Ross' hospital room last month, but after 30 minutes of trying and three e-mails seeking the number, he had no luck. Apparently, no one at the hospital recognized his voice.
Had hospital employees seen the golfing buddy's name at the bottom of the above e-mail, they might have connected his call faster. Unless they were Democrats.
The e-mail came from jeb@jeb.org, the personal address of Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. It is one of several dozen e- mails he has sent to Matthew, a Stuart Middle School student who played 18 holes with Bush at Tallahassee's Capital City Country Club on April 16.
Less than two weeks later, Matthew was in a Tampa hospital with a severe migraine headache. Bush finally did get the phone number and called to wish him well. Doctors discovered one of Matthew's prescription medications may have caused the headache. Matthew and his mother, Susan, have grown accustomed to complications from medications.
Matthew is autistic. In his case, the mysterious genetic condition has rendered numbers nearly meaningless and has slowed fine motor-skill development to the point Matthew cannot tie his shoes.
It does not prevent him from reading, writing or hitting a hole-in-one. He has done the latter twice on different par-3 holes at Silver Oaks Golf Club in Zephyrhills.
For a time, the condition did prevent Matthew from competing in Greater Tampa Junior Golf Association events. In 2001, Susan Ross battled the association, which claimed it could not allow a player who could not keep his score. The ensuing media coverage caused several GTJGA board members to resign and turned Matthew into a celebrity of sorts in the golfing community.
Professional golfers such as Greg Norman noticed, sending autographed photos, hats and golf shirts. Government officials also noticed.
Matthew met Bush last year at a campaign rally. After the meeting, Matthew e-mailed Bush to say thanks. The pair hit it off, and in March a member of Bush's staff wrote Susan Ross to ask if Matthew could play nine holes with the governor in Tallahassee during spring break.
As the date neared, Matthew and Bush exchanged e-mails. Sometimes Matthew wrote about golf. Sometimes he wrote about the war in Iraq. Sometimes he wrote about the governor's waistline.
March 15, 9:15 p.m.
Matthew Ross: bring your visa, they don't take american express at golf courses. you got to go to bed early if you are going to play at 7 in the morning. tell your pretty wife hi for me. is she going golfing too? are you walking or riding in a cart? mom drives the cart for me. i am not old enough to drive yet. i want to but they won't let me. your friend, matthew
March 15, 9:25 p.m.
Jeb Bush: it will be carts with my three friends. then I work out in the gym. After that a movie with my lovely wife and I hope we get home to watch the last part of the Honda Classic. that is a good day for me!!!!!!!!!!!!
Jeb Bush
March 21, 6:10 p.m.
Matthew Ross: why do people protest and burn things down? i want to be free and i don't want to be bombed on a plane or in a store. what is wrong with these people? your friend, matthew
March 21, 8:54 p.m.
Jeb Bush: People protest because they live in a free country. There aren't many doing so but they have the right to so and that right is partially why we are attacking Saddam Hussein.
I appreciate your support of the troops. I believe the war will be over soon.
Jeb
April 11, 9:38 p.m.
Matthew Ross: hi mrs. gov jeb, this is matthew. i got your note today and it was very nice of you to send it to me. i am glad you take such good care of gov jeb. i told him he lost some weight lately. did you put him on a diet? i really enjoy talking to him too. i can not wait to play golf on wednesday april 16, 2003 at 4:00 pm. he will have a hole in one. i hope i can meet you then. i will write again. gov jeb's friend, matthew
April 11, 9:57 p.m.
Columba Bush: thank you Matthew. I am with Governor Jeb in our small condo in Miami. We are watching the Masters and he is thinking about playing with you. Have a great weekend.
LOVE,
Columba Bush
The e-mails provide a window into Matthew's disability. Susan Ross said the autism forces Matthew to compartmentalize each new piece of information. As a result, he gives everyone a title. Jeb Bush is Gov. Jeb. Columba Bush is Mrs. Gov. Jeb. He named his cats Ashley Marie and Rebecca Lynn because he reasoned that all Southern ladies go by two names.
Anything Matthew cannot categorize, he ignores. For most of his life, he could not grasp abstract concepts such as friendship. His mother nearly did a cartwheel when he began closing his e-mails to Bush with ``your friend'' or ``Gov. Jeb's friend.''
In other ways, Matthew acts like any 11-year-old boy. He watches WWE Smackdown! every Thursday, pulling for Kurt Angle to force an opponent into submission with his patented ankle lock.
Though his condition has improved, Matthew fights the disease's symptoms every day with a battery of medications. Among other conditions, Autism causes Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. About a year ago, Ross had to swallow nine different prescription pills. One drug made him balloon to more than 200 pounds.
Since dropping five of the medications, Matthew has shed 100 pounds. But the pills still have side effects. Last month, doctors thought Adderol - designed to treat ADHD - was causing Matthew's migraine headaches. They replaced the drug, but the headaches have returned.
So far, golf has been the best treatment. Matthew grinned as he drew pictures of two of the holes he played with Bush. Matthew, a 27-handicap, shot a 107. Bush, an 8-handicap, shot an 88.
Matthew couldn't stop laughing about his tee shots on the par-5 No. 4 and the par-3 No. 7. On each hole, his ball ricocheted off trees and landed in the middle of the fairway. This astounded Bush.
``He was cracking up,'' Matthew said.
Matthew and Bush have shared plenty of laughs in their e-mails.
When Matthew professed his disdain for green and asked Bush if he thought the Augusta National Golf Club would allow him to wear another color jacket if he won the Masters, Bush gently advised Matthew that he would have to wear green. When Matthew worried about buying Bush a Pepsi if the governor aced a hole during their round together, Bush wrote back to explain that he would buy all the Pepsis.
According to Bush's schedule for April 16, he was slotted to play nine holes with Matthew from 4-5 p.m. At about 5, Bush's staff members received a call saying the two would play all 18.
In an e-mail response to The Tampa Tribune, Bush said he makes time each day to correspond with young people such as Matthew.
April 1, 5:33 p.m.
Matthew Ross: i practiced on the driving range after school. i am hitting my driver much better now. you can use my clubs. ok? your friend, matthew
April 1, 9:56 p.m.
Jeb Bush: i look forward to playing with you but I think you will whip me.
Jeb Bush
This is a fact, isn't it, ladies?
What a sweet story, thanks, Summmer don't-know-your-second-name.
Some have been saying that Jeb could be the Republican for '08. What do you think?
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