News
Tony Romo to play at the AT&T Byron Nelson on sponsor's exemption
Harry How
Tony Romo will again test his mettle against golf's best.
Romo, the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback and current CBS broadcaster, has accepted an invitation to play in the PGA Tour's AT&T Byron Nelson in early May. The Nelson is held at Trinity Forest, Romo's home course, in Dallas.
"Golf is one of my greatest passions outside my family and football, and I am honored to have the opportunity to compete amongst the pros again in this year's AT&T Byron Nelson," Romo said in a statement.
This will be Romo's second foray on tour. Last year the 38-year-old accepted a sponsor's exemption to the tour's alternate event Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship, although he missed the cut by 16 shots.
Since his endeavor at Puntacana, Romo's enjoyed some success, winning the Racine Tri-Course Amateur Championship by nine shots in July and capturing the celebrity-centric American Century Championship later that month. He also made it out of the First Stage of Q-School qualifying. Romo reached the First Stage thanks to a bit of luck, as a player's late disqualification due to an incorrect scorecard allowed him to advance out of the pre-qualifying stage.
He also attempted to qualify for the U.S. Open, but did not advance out of sectional qualifying.
More recently, Romo hit one of the shots of the tournament at Pebble Beach, sticking an approach off hospitality tent flooring. Competing in the celebrity portion of the event, Romo was forced to withdraw to attend a funeral.
"Following his summer successes, the timing feels perfect," said Jon Drago, tournament director at the Nelson. "Romo is a legendary competitor, member of Trinity Forest, and long-time friend of AT&T and the Salesmanship Club of Dallas. We look forward to watching him put his talents to test while competing against the best in the game of golf."