Press Release

Roster Announced for the 2018 Bush Institute Warrior Open at the AT&T Byron Nelson

26 warriors selected to participate in golf tournament hosted by President George W. Bush

Roster Announced for the 2018 Bush Institute Warrior Open at the AT&T Byron Nelson

26 warriors selected to participate in golf tournament hosted by President George W. Bush

DALLAS, Texas (March 22, 2018) — Today, the roster was announced for the 2018 Bush Institute Warrior Open at the AT&T Byron Nelson, a competitive 36-hole golf tournament that honors post-9/11 U.S. service members seriously wounded or injured since September 11, 2001. The Warrior Open will be held May 21-22, 2018, and will immediately follow the Salesmanship Club of Dallas’s AT&T Byron Nelson PGA TOUR event held May 16-20 at Trinity Forest Golf Club in Dallas, Texas.

The first day of play, Monday, May 21, will be a Pro-Am, including PGA TOUR professionals and the warriors. The second day, Tuesday, May 22, will be open only to the 26 warriors selected for this year’s tournament.

Warriors selected for the 2018 Warrior Open include:

Sergeant Trevor Allenby, USMC, from South Deerfield, MA;
Staff Sergeant Andrew Bachelder, USMC, Ret. from Fort Worth, TX;
Captain James “Jae” Barclay, USA, Ret. from Missouri City, TX;
Sergeant First Class Dillon Behr, USA, Ret. from Arlington, VA;
Captain Roger Benimoff, USA, Ret. from Grand Prairie, TX;
Corporal Trent Brining, USA, Ret. from Kearney, MO;
Technical Sergeant Joe Byrne, USAF, from San Antonio, TX;
Sergeant First Class John Faulkenberry, USA, Ret. from Fair Oaks Ranch, TX;
Corporal Joseph Garrido, USMC, from Wesley Chapel, FL;
Specialist Colby “CJ” Geeker, USA, from Denver, CO;
Corporal Andrew Gitto, USMC, from Phillipsburg, NJ;
Sergeant Major Rodney Gorman, USA, Ret. from Southern Pines, NC;
Chief Warrant Officer Five James B. Herring, ARNG, from Roanoke Rapids, NC;
Sergeant Michael Jaborek, USA, from Bolingbrook, IL;
Major Robert Kilmartin, USA, Ret. from Riverview, FL;
Command Chief Master Sergeant Daniel McGuire, USAF, Ret. from Tampa, FL;
Captain Adam Napier, USA, from Myrtle Beach, SC;
First Lieutenant Denis Oliverio, USMC, Ret. from Jacksonville, FL;
Command Sergeant Major William “Billy” Paul, USA, Ret. from Phenix City, AL;
Corporal Chad Pfeifer, USA, Ret. from Nampa, ID;
Specialist Lee Sage, USA, Ret. from Crowley, TX;
Staff Sergeant Jack Schumacher, USA, Ret. from Annapolis, MD;
Sergeant Andrew Smith, USA, Ret. from Apison, TN;
Major Christopher Turner, USA, from Fort Drum, NY;
Sergeant Juan Velazquez, USA, Ret. from Kissimmee, FL; and
Sergeant Derek Walls, USA, from Fresno, CA. 

The Bush Institute Warrior Open began in 2011. The new partnership with the Salesmanship Club of Dallas’s AT&T Byron Nelson will further amplify and draw attention to the service, sacrifice, and resilience of post-9/11 warriors and their families, particularly the issues they face in making a successful transition to civilian life.

The Bush Center gratefully acknowledges the support of AT&T, Boeing, Zachry Group, Fisher House Foundation, Inc., Interstate Batteries, La Quinta Inns & Suites, Veritex Community Bank, Skanska USA, and Thompson & Knight LLP to help make the event possible, as well as several in-kind donations including: Boxed, ClubCorp, Ewing Automotive Group, NIKE, Inc., PepsiCo-Gatorade, and Premier Transportation.

For more information on this year’s Warrior Open, to follow along during the tournament, or to learn more about the Bush Institute’s Military Service Initiative, please visit: http://www.bushcenter.org/military-service-initiative/warrior-open.

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