Memorial takes military appreciation to next level with Folds of Honor Friday

DUBLIN, Ohio — When the last putt drops to end the second round of the Memorial Tournament on Friday at Muirfield Village Golf Club, a new tradition will tee off—one familiar to fans of other athletic competitions but novel to professional golf.

Friday marks the launch of Folds of Honor Friday on the PGA Tour. At the end of competition, the national anthem will be performed by the 18th green. The initiative, which is the brainchild of Lt. Col. Dan Rooney, a veteran F-16 fighter pilot and Class A PGA professional, is designed to honor U.S. service men and women and first responders.

The hope is that the program spreads to select tournaments on the PGA Tour, PGA Tour Champions and Korn Ferry Tour. As a show of support, fans, sponsors, staff and players are encouraged to wear red, white and blue on Fridays at tournament sites.

“This debut is our ‘Hello World’ moment,” said Rooney, who founded Folds of Honor in 2007. “For me, it's incredibly personal because I love game. I love my country. It's been an oversight by the game that we love. And to be able to first and foremost bring the national anthem to golf on Fridays to honor all those who serve, it’s truly meaningful. The anthem is simply about honoring military and first responders, that small percentage of this world that runs toward trouble when everybody else instinctively runs away from it. So this is our way of saying thank you.”

In addition to the outward show of patriotism with the Star-Spangled Banner, Rooney and his Folds of Honor Folds will award 13 scholarships to central Ohio recipients, specifically children and spouses of fallen and disabled servicemen and women and first responders. Overall, Folds of Honor has awarded 52,000 scholarships worth nearly $244 million. Thirteen is an important number; it takes 13 folds to transform the flag into a triangle.

“It’s our privilege to support Lt. Col. Dan Rooney and Folds of Honor through the new Folds of Honor Friday initiative,” said PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan. “Lt .Col. Rooney and his team are doing incredible work to provide scholarships to children and spouses of disabled service members and those who have lost loved ones. We’re honored to play a small part in those efforts moving forward.”

The full program, which should begin around 6 p.m. local time, features the Central Ohio quartet Ladies of Longford singing the national anthem while Folds of Honor scholarship recipients gather around the 18th green. During the anthem, the Patriot Parachute Team, a group of veterans who are expert skydivers, will land in the 18th fairway and deliver a folded American flag to Jack and Barbara Nicklaus and Aneel Bhusri, chairman of Workday, the Memorial’s presenting sponsor.

“Folds of Honor Friday is a perfect addition to the week here at the Memorial,” said Memorial executive director Dan Sullivan, noting that the signature event hosted by Hall of Fame legend Jack Nicklaus has for years recognized U.S. service members with its Salute to Service Day program on the eve of the tournament.

That’s only part of the natural tie in between Nicklaus, the Memorial and the launch of Folds of Honor Friday at Muirfield Village. The Golden Bear has been an avid supporter of Patriot Golf Days, which Rooney started with the PGA of America as a fundraiser for Folds of Honor. And when Rooney wanted to create a golf course in Grand Haven, Mich., that would further support his foundation, he asked Nicklaus to design it. Jack waived his fee in the design of American Dunes Golf Club, which opened in 2021.

“The Memorial Tournament has always supported our military and first responders—those who sacrifice for our freedoms and the safety of our communities,” Nicklaus said. “At the same time, Barbara and I have been longtime supporters of Lt. Col. Dan Rooney and the Folds of Honor mission. I’ve enjoyed being Honorary Chair of Patriot Golf Days for the last decade, and then helping Colonel Dan create American Dunes was one of the highlights of my design career. So, it felt only natural for the Memorial Tournament to serve as the official launch of Folds of Honor Friday.”