In 2012, President George W. Bush succeeded his father as an honorary chair of the First Tee. Now, he will be named the recipient of the Ambassador of Golf Award, to be presented during the 2021 Bridgestone Senior Players Championship.
One of five majors on the PGA Tour Champions, the Bridgestone Senior Players is scheduled for June 24-27 at Firestone Country Club in Ohio. 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.
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, G.W, Bush founded Bush Institute’s Warrior Open for U.S. military members seriously wounded or injured since the terrorist attacks on 9/11, 2001, which happened 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 #43 served as Honorary Chairman of the President’s Cup at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club near Washington D.C. plus attended matches in 2013, 2015, and 2017.
His family’s involvement in the game of golf dates back to his great grandfather George Herbert Walker, the namesake for the Walker Cup who served as the President of the United States Golf Association in 1920. The Walker Cup Match is a biennial competition for amateurs from Britain, Ireland, and the USA managed by the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews and the USGA. Grandfather Prescott Bush was USGA President in 1935. #41, George Herbert Walker 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 Bobby 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 that we will be able to honor him with the Ambassador of Golf Award,” said PGA TOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan. “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 Chairperson of the First Tee and fostering the growth and worldwide goodwill of the President’s Cup.”
