Hosting a golf tournament might not be a big deal for Danny Willett or Lee Westwood but it’s a monumental achievement for disabled golfer Brendan Lawlor and another giant step in what is quickly becoming a fairytale career.

Not too long ago, the 24-year-old Louth man was a golfing unknown, popular with his peers at Dundalk Golf Club, where he played for fun during his downtime away from his father’s office furniture business.

He has Ellis-Van Creveld syndrome, a disability characterised by a shorter stature and shorter limbs. He’s just 4 feet 11inches tall, but he’s proved to be a giant in terms of his determination, his enthusiasm and his desire to show the world that anyone can play golf (or makes their dreams come true) no matter what obstacles stand in their way.

He’s also a professional golfer, managed by Niall Horan’s Modest! Golf stable, a staff player for TaylorMade-adidas and soon to be host of one of four new European Tour sanctioned events for Golfers with Disability.

The 36-hole tournaments are scheduled for Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland and England as part of the European Tour's UK Swing and Lawlor will host the ISPS HANDA World Disability Invitational presented by Brendan Lawlor at Massereene and Galgorm Castle in Ballymena from July 31 to August 1

“It’s going to be great, special,” Lawlor said of an event that will be played alongside the $3 million ISPS HANDA World Invitational where 144 men and 144 women will compete for two equal prize funds of $1.5 million each. “I can’t believe I am hosting my own tournament. It’s amazing.”

The announcement of the 2021 EDGA European Tour is all part of the European Tour's drive for inclusivity in golf.

It will consist of four new tournaments before the top eight players qualify for the EDGA Dubai Finale to be staged at the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai at Jumeirah Golf Estates in November.

In conjunction with the European Disabled Golf Association (EDGA), 20 golfers taken from the World Rankings for Golfers with Disability (WR4GD) will have the opportunity to tackle the same course set-up as the European Tour professionals, with the new 36-hole tournaments taking place over the weekends of successive events in Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and England.

Each player will be invited to participate in two back-to-back tournaments — those ten players with even-numbered rankings will tee it up at the EDGA Wales Open at The Celtic Manor Resort from July 24-25, and the ISPS HANDA World Disability Invitational.

Ten players with an odd-numbered ranking will then participate at the EDGA Hero Open at Fairmont St Andrews from August 7-8, and the EDGA English Open at London Golf Club from August 14-15.

The top four players from each group of two tournaments qualify for the returning EDGA Dubai Finale, held alongside the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai— the final Rolex Series event of the year at Jumeirah Golf Estates from November 19-20.

Brendan Lawlor in action at Galgorm Castle

It’s a massive achievement for Lawlor, who turned heads when he became the first disabled golfer to play in a European Tour event, teeing it up in the ISPS HANDA UK Championship at The Belfry last August.

“I am really only playing disability golf about three and a half years and the strides it’s made to where disabled players are not too far from being able to make money from this game, it’s just amazing,” Brendan explained.

“Having the European Tour accept that we can play on the world stage is just fantastic. It’ll help me bring more people into the game, which has always been my goal.”

It’s also another huge moment in the whirlwind career of a special person who has been a fighter since birth.

Apart from Ellis-Van Creveld syndrome, he was born with a hole in his heart and underwent surgery at just six weeks.

"The doctors said I would take six months to recover but I was out of hospital in 10 days so that was an indication of my fighter's attitude,” he explained.

It was a his grandfather who encouraged him to play golf and he went on to become a crack player at Dundalk, making the Senior Cup squad that featured such stars as Walker Cup player Caolan Rafferty.

Now he’s on a mission to show the world that anyone can play golf, no matter their background or physical ability and he’s hugely grateful to his management team at Modest, who treat him like all their other stars.

"They've never treated me any differently. They've treated me like Tyrrell Hatton and Leona Maguire....just like a normal person," he told BBC Radio Ulster in February.

His dream is to get disabled golf included in the Paralympics by the time the 2028 Games take place in Los Angeles and he won’t give up that fight.

After all, that’s how he’s always lived.

“There is no point in getting down about the small stuff or the crappy stuff because everyone has things going on in their life that it’s not perfect and you can either let it annoy you or get on with it,” he said. “That’s what I love about the golf.

Brendan Lawlor sign for Modest! Golf with Mark McDonnell (left) and Niall Horan

“Golf is a game for everyone. It doesn’t matter whether you have a disability or not. I think that’s an important message to get out. Obviously getting involved with EDGA was huge and then getting involved with Modest was even bigger.

“But I wouldn’t really be able to do what I do without the help of Niall Horan and Mark McDonnell at Modest. At first, I was a wee bit skeptical about turning pro and what opportunities there were.

@But the guys promised me I’d be able to travel and promote the game and I was so excited to sign for Adidas which is one of the biggest global brands in sport. For them to sign a disability golfer is unheard of.

“We are trying to create these opportunities not just for me but for everybody else and I think Modest or an example to other management teams.”

Ranked fourth in the world disabled golf rankings, he’s hugely impressed by the vision of European Tour CEO Keith Pelley. But his goal for now is to sharpen his game and then win his first event as a professional at Galgorm Castle this summer.

”Playing in the British Masters to years ago I obviously didn’t play my best golf but it was just great to be able to show people what was possible,” he explained. “The amount of people from all walks of life that got onto me was amazing.

He recently spent time in a teleconference with the global marketing team for Adidas, telling them his story.

Who knows if we will see him in an advertising campaign with Leo Messi one of these days but inclusivity in sport is now huge business and Lawlor is happy to do his bit and show people they just have to stand up and allow their voice to be heard and things can happen for them.

“I’ve always had the attitude that if you want something to happen, it will happen with the right people around you,” he said. “Don’t be afraid to speak up if you want something. Don’t be afraid to put your word in.”