[Pages S10344-S10345]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

BYRON NELSON CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL ACT

Mr. BENNETT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Committee on
Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs be discharged from further
consideration of S. 2491 and that the Senate proceed to its immediate
consideration.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The clerk
will report the bill by title.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

A bill (S. 2491) to award a Congressional Gold Medal to
Byron Nelson in recognition of his significant contributions
to the game of golf as a player, a teacher, and a
commentator.

There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
Mr. BENNETT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be
read the third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon
the table, and any statements relating to the measure be printed in the
Record.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The bill (S. 2491) was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading,
was read the third time, and passed, as follows:

S. 2491

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Byron Nelson Congressional
Gold Medal Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds as follows:
(1) Byron Nelson was a top player in the sport of golf
during the World War II era and his accomplishments as a
player, a teacher, and commentator are renowned.
(2) Byron Nelson won 54 career victories, including a
record 11 in a row in 1945, during his short 13-year career.
(3) Byron Nelson won 5 majors, including 2 Masters (1937
and 1942), 2 Professional Golf Association (PGA)
Championships (1940 and 1945) and the U.S. Open (1939).
(4) Sports journalist Bill Nichols recently ranked the
greatest seasons on the PGA tour for The Dallas Morning News
and picked Roanoke, Texas-resident Byron Nelson's 1945 tour
as the greatest season of golf in American history.
(5) In 1945, Byron Nelson accumulated 18 total victories,
11 of which were consecutive, while averaging 68.33 strokes
per round for 30 tournaments.
(6) At the Seattle Open in 1945, Byron Nelson shot a record
62 for 18 holes and the world record 259, 29 shots under par
for 72 holes.
(7) Byron Nelson is one of only 2 golfers to be named
``Male Athlete of the Year'' twice by the Associated Press:
in 1944, when he won 7 tournaments and averaged 69.67 strokes
for 85 rounds, and again after his 1945 season.
(8) The World Golf Hall of Fame honored Byron Nelson in
2004 by featuring an exhibit entitled ``Byron Nelson: A
Champion . . . A Gentleman''.
(9) Byron Nelson was selected for the Ryder Cup 4 times--in
1937, 1939, 1947 and 1965, and on that last occasion he led
the United States Ryder Cup team as team captain to victory
over Great Britain.
(10) Byron Nelson was also a pioneer in the golf business,
helping to develop the golf shoes and umbrellas used today.
(11) In 1966, True Temper created the ``Iron Byron'' robot
to replicate Byron Nelson's swing in order to test the
company's equipment, but the robot was eventually used for
club and ball testing by the United States Golf Association
(USGA) and many other manufacturing companies.
(12) Byron Nelson mentored many golf hopefuls, including
1964 Player of the Year Ken Venturi and 6-time PGA Player of
the Year Tom Watson.
(13) Byron Nelson was one of the first golf analysts on
network television where his understanding of the game in
general, and the golf swing in particular, was demonstrably
profound.
(14) Byron Nelson received the United States Golf
Association's Bob Jones Award for distinguished sportsmanship
in golf in 1974.
(15) In 1974, the Golf Writers Association of America
presented Byron Nelson with the Richardson Award for
consistently outstanding contributions to golf.
(16) Since 1983, the Byron and Louise Nelson Golf Endowment
Fund has provided over $1,500,000 in endowment funds to
Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas.
(17) Byron Nelson received the PGA Distinguished Service
Award in 1993. This award is presented to an individual who
has helped perpetuate the ideals and values of the PGA.
(18) Byron Nelson has served as an honorary chairperson for
the Metroport Meals on Wheels since 1992.
(19) In 1994, the Golf Course Superintendents Association
of America presented Byron Nelson with the Old Tom Morris
Award for outstanding contributions to the game.
(20) Byron Nelson helped to develop the Tournament Players
Course (TPC) Four Seasons at Los Colinas, Texas, site of the
EDS Byron Nelson Championship and the Byron Nelson Golf
School, into a world-class facility.
(21) The EDS Byron Nelson Championship is the only PGA tour
event named in honor of a professional golfer and
traditionally attracts the strongest players in the sport.
(22) Since its inception, the EDS Byron Nelson Championship
has raised $88,000,000 for Salesmanship Club Youth and Family
Centers, a nonprofit agency that provides education and
mental health services for more than 2,700 children and their
families in the greater Dallas area.
(23) In 2002, Byron Nelson received the prestigious Donald
Ross Award from the American Society of Golf Course
Architects (ASGCA) for his significant contribution to the
game of golf and the profession of golf course architecture.
(24) The United States Golf Association presented Byron
Nelson the Ike Grainger Award for volunteer service to the
game of golf in 2002.
(25) In 2002, the National Golf Foundation presented Byron
Nelson with the Graffis Award for outstanding lifelong
contributions to the game of golf.

SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.

(a) Presentation Authorized.--The President pro tempore of
the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives
shall make appropriate arrangements for the presentation, on
behalf of the Congress, of a gold medal of appropriate design
to Byron Nelson in recognition of his significant
contributions to the game of golf as a player, a teacher, and
a commentator.
(b) Design and Striking.--For purposes of the presentation
referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury
(hereafter in this Act referred to as the ``Secretary'')
shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and
inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary.

SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.

The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of
the gold medal struck pursuant to section 3 under such
regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, at a price
sufficient to cover the cost thereof, including labor,
materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses, and
the cost of the gold medal.

SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS.

(a) National Medals.--The medals struck pursuant to this
Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title
31, United States Code.
(b) Numismatic Items.--For purposes of section 5134 of
title 31, United States Code, all medals struck under this
Act shall be considered to be numismatic items.

SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF SALE.

(a) Authority to Use Fund Amounts.--There is authorized to
be charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise
Fund, such amounts as may be necessary to pay for the costs
of the medals struck pursuant to this Act.

[[Page S10345]]

(b) Proceeds of Sale.--Amounts received from the sale of
duplicate bronze medals authorized under section 4 shall be
deposited into the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund.

Mr. BENNETT. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. BENNETT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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