Former sportscaster Bob Lobel paragolfs for a cause

TYNGSBORO — In a full field of 128 golfers at Vesper Country Club, only former WBZ sportscaster Bob Lobel played his round from the perch of an all-terrain mobility vehicle.

Also known as a ParaGolfer, it’s a power wheelchair designed to fully lift, tilt and support the user to allow for a golf swing.

“This thing does everything,” Lobel said with a laugh, as a reporter trotted from hole to hole beside the vehicle that can reach speeds of up to 6 mph. “It moves up, down, it tilts. It’s pretty unbelievable.”

Lobel played the links along with fellow Quincy resident Rich Mahoney and his son, Connor, during the 31st annual Academy of Notre Dame Golf tournament on May 6, to raise money for the Eric P. Hanson Memorial Scholarship.

Under beautiful blue skies that set off his bright red patterned shirt, Lobel made solid drives before motoring to the next hole to line up his putts. His partner and tournament caddie, Deedee O’Brien, placed the balls on the tees for Lobel, who became paralyzed from the waist down from a sudden virus that attacked his spinal cord just as COVID hit in March 2020.

“It is what it is,” Lobel said. “I don’t sit around feeling sorry for myself.”

Over Lobel’s long career, among many other attributes, he was noted for his quick wit, including his popular and oft-repeated phrase, “Why can’t we get players like that?”

“That was a wise-guy comment directed at the Red Sox,” Lobel said by phone after the tournament. “It really caught on. It’s very flattering to hear it today.”

According to Lobel, Lou Gorman, then the general manager of the Red Sox, traded first baseman Jeff Bagwell for Houston Astros pitcher Larry Andersen. Bagwell ended up in the Hall of Fame, and Andersen “really didn’t do much of anything.”

“Every time Bagwell hit a home run, I’d say, ‘Why can’t we get players like that?’” Lobel said.

Lobel’s 1992 interview of three of the greatest athletes in Boston history — Larry Bird, Bobby Orr and Ted Williams — is still talked about.

“These guys were the Mount Rushmore of Boston sports — still are, basically,” Lobel said.

Vesper has hosted NDA’s tournament for nearly 10 years, said Lauren Marquis, director of institutional advancement at the academy. She said Lobel added a little star power to the local golfing event.

“I’m a fan,” she said. “We’re really happy that Bob joined us today.”

That sentiment was echoed by NDA President Vittoria Pacifico, who is a neighbor to Lobel and O’Brien in Quincy.

“Shout out to our new friend, Mr. Bob Lobel,” she said, in remarks before the players climbed into their carts to start the golf scramble. “Thank you for supporting us, Bob.”

The four-hour round concluded with Lobel and his partners coming in second from last, but Lobel said he loved playing such a “beautiful course for a good cause.”

The scholarship was established by the family and friends of Eric Hanson, a Lowell resident, NDA parent and former board member, who died by suicide in 2018. It is renewable award given to students with a strong academic background and financial need.

The Academy of Notre Dame Tyngsboro — a private, Catholic school — is sponsored by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur and offers co-educational programming from pre-K through eighth grade in the Lower School, and a college-preparatory Upper School.

The Hanson family was represented by Eric Hanson’s parents, Martha and Rick Hanson, and his daughter, Caroline.

“My family is so grateful to be part of another great NDA Golf Tournament to benefit the Eric P. Hanson Memorial Scholarship,” Caroline Hanson said by email. “It is always special for me to return to the course that [my dad] and I played at together for so many years.”

Caroline Hanson graduated from the NDA Class of 2023, and currently attends the College of the Holy Cross. She played the tournament in a foursome that included her stepbrothers, Daniel and Bobby Meehan, and faculty member Lyndsey Stroh.

“I would like to thank the Academy of Notre Dame Tyngsboro, Vesper Country Club, and all those who participated today for continuing to honor the memory of my dad and for ensuring that more students have access to the wonderful educational experience that I had at NDA,” Caroline Hanson said.

The event was a spectacular success, said Marquis.

“We are still receiving gifts, but we have already raised $128,498 for the Eric P. Hanson Memorial Scholarship this year,” Marquis said by email. “This is a new fundraising record in the 31-year history of the tournament.”

Since the NDA started honoring Eric Hanson at the tournament, it has raised more than $500,000 for his scholarship to benefit high school students in need of tuition assistance.

The post-play awards and cocktail hour found Lobel back in another familiar chair — as a sports broadcaster. He announced the winners, including the first-place team of Bryan Fucarile, NDA parent and board member; Shawn Micklovich, NDA parent; Bret Cote and Jeff Moynihan, with a score of 57.

And O’Brien, who was executive director of Ironstone Farm in Andover for 40 years, won the coffee raffle. She also won some admirers with the Mahoneys remarking on her bond with Lobel.

“The most heartwarming part of the day was watching the relationship between Deedee and Bob,” Rich Mahoney said by email. “There is a special kind of love and magic there. Connor and I kept commenting on their bond.”

For Lobel, it was a perfect day.

“I just came out to support the family, play golf at Vesper and raise money for a great cause,” he said. “I plan to come back next year.”