President George W. Bush, who succeeded his father as honorary chair of the First Tee in 2012, has been named recipient of the Ambassador of Golf Award, to be presented during the 2021 Bridgestone Senior Players Championship, the PGA Tour announced Tuesday.
One of five majors on the PGA Tour Champions, the Bridgestone Senior Players is scheduled for June 24-27 at Firestone Country Club.
Presented by the FirstEnergy Foundation, the award recognizes a person who has fostered the ideals of the game on an international level and whose concern for others extends beyond the golf course.
Bush is the third U.S. president selected, joining Gerald Ford in 1985 and George H.W. Bush in 1994. The two are the first father-son duo chosen in the award’s 39-year history.
An ambassador was not named in 2020 due to COVID-19’s impact on tournament events and attendance.
Bush took over his father’s role with the First Tee, which provides educational programs that build character and instill life-enhancing values.
In 2011, Bush founded Bush Institute’s Warrior Open for U.S. military members seriously wounded or injured since the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, which came during his first term. More than 180 have participated in the Military Service Initiative’s Team 43 Sports, which include the Warrior Open and the W100K bike ride.
In 2005, Bush served as honorary chairman of the Presidents Cup at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club near Washington D.C. He attended the matches in 2005, 2013, 2015 and 2017.
His family’s involvement in the game dates back to Bush’s great grandfather George H. Walker, the namesake for the Walker Cup who served as president of the USGA in 1920. Grandfather Prescott Bush was USGA president in 1935. George H.W. Bush was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2011 and received the PGA of America’s Distinguished Service Award in 2007 and the USGA’s Bob Jones Award in 2008.
“The PGA TOUR and the world of golf owe President George W. Bush a great debt of gratitude for his longtime contributions to the game and we are thrilled we will be able to honor the president with the Ambassador of Golf Award in 2021,” PGA TOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan said in a statement.
“In the longtime tradition of the Bush family, President Bush has used his platform to unify and shine a light on the impact the game of golf can have on our society through his tremendous work as honorary chairman of the First Tee and fostering the growth and worldwide goodwill of the Presidents Cup.”
Marla Ridenour can be reached at mridenour@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MRidenourABJ.