Golf rescues cancer patient

When does courage officially become part of one's DNA, just another component of the blueprint that identifies our genetic makeup?

After the first brain tumor?

After the third?

When does a sport become more salvation than pleasure?

After the fifth brain tumor?

After the seventh?

Matt Snodgrass loses count. Of the surgeries and treatments and tumors. Of the amount of time between thinking the nightmare has finally passed and wondering if it ever will. Of arguing with anyone who will engage -- his family, his friends, his cancer.

He has done the depression part. The anger part. The self-pity part. He has cried a river longer than the Nile. He has sat in his house for weeks at a time and wanted to give up more than he can recall.

He lives one MRI result at a time.

He is 20.

"I can't not live," Snodgrass said. "I can't always be questioning myself and my survival. Fear is something I try not to have in my life. It's scary. It's tough. I've dealt with it. Whatever happens, I've come to terms with my place and role in the world.

"I'm OK with me."

Seven brain tumors. Six craniotomies. Localized radiation. Two rounds of oral chemotherapy. One round of precautionary intravenous chemotherapy that was scheduled for 12 months but stopped after eight by Snodgrass because, well, how much hell should one person have to tolerate over 12 years?

Is it really true a man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time? Matt Snodgrass is most alive on a golf course, where as a child his grandfather taught him the game that hasn't stopped rescuing him since.

His mother is convinced it has extended Matt's life, that it is the reason he has found the strength to keep moving forward, to keep getting out of bed each day. His coach and longtime friend is certain the determination learned from trying to master such an exasperating game has helped the golfer become a more aggressive patient when fighting his disease.

"Golf has given him a purpose," said Frank Shaw, who has worked with Snodgrass for nearly 10 years.

If you think you know frustrating, you don't. Anaplastic ependymoma is the third-most common brain tumor found in children, a pediatric condition that just won't let Snodgrass the heck alone to grow into adulthood healthy.

The first tumor arrived at age 9, when for 10 to 11 times a day, a little boy struggled to speak and couldn't stop his mouth from twitching. That was 1998. Another followed in 2001. Another in 2003. Another in 2005. Another in 2007. Two more in 2008.

The damn thing just keeps coming back.

The fifth one still brings tears. That was the toughest. Matt had just moved into an apartment with a friend. College life had begun at UNLV for the kid who graduated from Spring Valley. There were parties to attend, friends to make, classes to take, adventures to pursue, a life of endless possibilities to lead.

Then a seizure came and he knew. His body shook and shook until he passed out. When he awoke, he made what he says was the toughest phone call of his life. He called his mom.

On the way to the hospital, he suffered another seizure in the back seat of her car. College would be put on hold. He would move back home with his parents and one of two older sisters.

When is enough really enough?

"We get our strength from him," said Sharman Snodgrass, Matt's mother. "Matt is quite incredible. I don't care what doctor in what part of the world you're talking about, there is no reason for the tumor to keep coming back. There is no answer for this.

"The last few years have been a living hell. ... Matt and I are best friends and in a way worst enemies from the amount of time we have spent together. But I will always be there for him. I want to let go -- to let him make his own mistakes, to experience life as he deserves. I didn't agree with him stopping the chemotherapy early. But it's his life. We have to respect and honor his decision."

The sixth tumor was toughest on his physical state and golf game. He awoke from surgery and couldn't move much of his right side. He struggled talking. Rehabilitation helped his speech return and Shaw his golf game. The coach had his single-digit handicapper who has played competitively since age 11 beat ball after ball while swinging with just his right arm.

Boring never felt so good.

The seventh tumor arrived three months after the sixth. That was July of last year, and his scans have been clear since. But his surgeon said he wouldn't operate again should the tumor return in the same area that caused the temporary paralysis. He won't risk it. Options are growing few.

Do you believe the part about it not being years in your life that count but life in your years?

Matt Snodgrass is trying too crazy to prove that notion true. He turns 21 on May 29, when for the second straight year he will host a golf tournament to benefit his condition and other young people fighting cancer.

Insurance saved his family from the mind-boggling bills that have stacked high over the years. He realizes not everyone is as fortunate.

The four-person scramble format begins with a 2 p.m. shotgun start at DragonRidge Country Club. You can play and attend the post-tournament awards banquet for $200. A team of four costs $600. Those who don't play can attend the banquet for $50.

It will be easy to find Snodgrass. On the day he turns legal drinking age, he'll be the one enjoying a nice cold beverage at the turn.

"I might have a few," he said, smiling through the tears. "You know, in the end, if you live your life with respect and honor and integrity, that can be a good life. I've never felt the need to search for answers beyond that. Be a good person. Respect others. Pretty basic stuff.

"I'm afraid to die without my own family, without growing old and having children and being healthy. But I believe the body is a powerful tool that can do amazing things and heal itself in amazing ways.

"I'm ready for that to happen. I've been ready for a long time because every time I think it's the last one, you know? Every time, I think it's finally gone for good."

------

To register for the second annual Matt Snodgrass Golf Tournament, go to www.mattsnodgrass.org.

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney can be reached at 702-383-4618 or egraney@reviewjournal.com.