[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 84 (Wednesday, June 22, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Page S7068]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  UTAH'S GOLF AMBASSADOR TO THE WORLD

 Mr. HATCH. Mr. President. I want to take a few moments to 
honor one of the State of Utah's finest men and an ambassador for golf 
throughout the world. On May 29, 2005, Mike Reid won the 66th Senior 
PGA tournament at Laurel Valley Golf Club in Ligonier, PA.
  Mike won this event in dramatic fashion. As he strode to the 18th 
hole, he was three shots down to the leader, Jerry Pate. This hole was 
a par five that called for a long shot over water if you dared to try 
and hit the green in two shots. Dana Quigley was already in the 
clubhouse at 8 under par with Mike at 6 under par and Jerry Pate at 9 
under par. Mike had to gamble and went for the green in two. He was 
able to stick a three iron about 20 feet below the hole and then made a 
dramatic eagle to go 8 under par and tie Dana Quigley. When Jerry Pate 
failed to make his par putt, the three men entered a sudden death 
playoff. Once again Mike was the only player to hit the par five green 
in two shots, and his tap-in birdie sealed the win in the first Senior 
Major event of the year.
  I have had the privilege of knowing Mike Reid for many years. Mike 
was a two-time All American at Brigham Young University and finished 
his collegiate career in 1976. I came to know Mike when he started 
visiting Washington, DC, to play in the Kemper Open. Over the years, 
our friendship has continued, and Mike has been gracious enough to 
donate his time to the charity golf tournament I host each year for the 
Utah Families Foundation. He had a distinguished career on the regular 
PGA tour, winning the Tucson Open in 1986 and the World Series of Golf 
in 1987. In 1990, he won the Casio World Open in Japan.
  Mike is a humble soft spoken man, a husband to his wife, Randolyn, 
and a father to six children, and grandfather to one grandson. When 
others are seeking the spotlight, Mike is content to look for the 
things that interest him in life. This was never more evident than 
during the tournament in Western Pennsylvania, when he left the course 
on Friday tied for the lead. In the press interviews, they asked him 
what he would be doing for the rest of the day. Mike informed them that 
he had always wanted to visit the Jimmy Stewart Museum in Indiana, PA--
and that is exactly what he did. His interest in Jimmy Stewart was two-
fold: First, Mike admired him as a man who made movies that his whole 
family could watch and someone willing to walk away from his movie 
career to serve his nation during World War II; second, Jimmy Stewart 
shared a spot on a list of pilots receiving medals that included Mike's 
own father, a B-17 pilot.
  Mike followed up his win at the Senior PGA by jumping right back on 
the leader board at the Allianz Open in Iowa the following week. At the 
end of the second day he had a two-stroke lead and eventually finished 
third. True to his form, Mike then went to Colorado to support his son, 
Daniel, while he played in a junior golf tournament.
  The fact that Mike played in the Senior PGA Tournament says much 
about Mike and his family. As they looked at the schedule, they 
realized that the Senior PGA Championship was being played on the 
weekend that his oldest son, Daniel, was graduating from Orem High 
School, and it was his daughter Clarissa's birthday. The family talked 
and urged Mike to play that week. Daniel told him that he would rather 
caddy for his dad than walk across a stage for a minute, but Mike 
assured him that it was more important for him to stay home and attend 
his graduation. Mike then took the week off before the Senior PGA to 
spend with his family.
  Mike is a devoted father, a quality best represented by a quote he 
gave to Sports Illustrated:

       I can live without winning golf championships, but it would 
     be hard to look in the mirror if I was a crummy dad. I'm not 
     going to let golf own me again. This is the type of athlete 
     that all of us are proud to call a hero, someone that has his 
     life in perspective and knows the real things that surround 
     us each day.

  I congratulate Mike Reid on his victory at the Senior PGA and I know 
that we will be seeing much more of Mike on the leader boards of future 
events.

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