Detroit ― The 2025 Rocket Classic has its first player.
In announcing a new partnership with Folds of Honor, which provides scholarships to kids of fallen or disabled military members and first responders, the Rocket Classic will award an exemption into the 2025 PGA Tour tournament to the winner of the 2024 Folds of Honor Collegiate. The winner was Alabama’s Dominic Clemons.
Clemons will make his PGA Tour debut at Detroit Golf Club, which is hosting the Rocket Classic from June 26-29.
The Rocket Classic also announced Tuesday that it will fund 13 scholarships for Folds of Honor recipients.
“At Rocket, we are committed to honoring and supporting our military members and first responders ― and their families ― whose selfless sacrifices make such a massive impact,” Bill Emerson, president of Rocket Companies and the Rocket Giving Fund, said in a statement. “The Rocket Classic is about more than golf ― it’s about recognizing those who serve and uplift our communities.
“Partnering with Folds of Honor gives us a meaningful platform to celebrate these heroes while also providing Dominic the opportunity to make his PGA Tour debut.”
As part of its new partnership, on Friday, June 27, a ceremony will take place at Detroit Golf Club, with the playing of the national anthem. Fans attending that day are encouraged to wear red, white and blue. Special pins will be distributed to fans that day.
The Rocket Classic again will offer two free tickets to military members, and this year for the first time, the complimentary ticket program will be extended to first responders.
The Folds of Honor Collegiate is a 54-hole tournament held each September at Grand Haven’s American Dunes Golf Club. Golf legend Jack Nicklaus designed the course while waiving his standard $3 million fee because he was so impressed with the mission behind Folds of Honor.
The winner of the 2025 Folds of Honor Collegiate, hosted by the Michigan State golf program, will be awarded an exemption into the 2026 Rocket Classic.
“We are grateful to the outstanding and patriotic team at the Rocket Classic for supporting our recipients,” Lt. Col Dan Rooney, founder and CEO of Folds of Honor, said in a statement. “The families of American heroes deserve and need our help, and the Rocket Classic is doing something about it.
“The tournament’s commitment will truly make a life-changing difference. We are thankful, too, for showcasing the Folds of Honor Collegiate at American Dunes and our men’s champion.”
Clemons, a native of Cambridge, England, also won the 2024 Scottish Men’s Open Championship, and is among the top college golfers, making the watch list for the 2025 Ben Hogan Award. Clemons’ Alabama team won the team championship at the 2024 Folds of Honor Collegiate.
Folds of Honor has awarded nearly 10,000 college scholarships, valued at about $50 million, for the 2024-25 academic year. And since its founding in 2007, it has awarded nearly 62,000 scholarships, valued at around $290 million.
The Rocket Classic has raised nearly $10 million for local Detroit charities since its founding in 2019, including nearly $6 million for the tournament’s chief mission, “Changing the Course,” which aims to end Detroit’s digital divide.
➤ June 12-15: Meijer LPGA Classic, Blythefield Country Club, Belmont
➤ June 26-29: Rocket Classic (PGA Tour), Detroit Golf Club
➤ June 26-29: Dow Championship (LPGA), Midland Country Club
➤ July 14-19: Women’s Western Amateur, Red Run Golf Club, Royal Oak
➤ Aug. 22-24: LIV Golf team championship, The Cardinal, Plymouth
➤ Aug. 22-24: Ally Challenge (Champions Tour), Warwick Hills Golf & Country Club, Grand Blanc
tpaul@detroitnews.com
@tonypaul1984
