- By Delilah Martinez, Momentous School 5th Grade Student
- 2018 AT&T Byron Nelson Junior Reporter
- When I found out I was meeting Mike Rawlings, Mayor of Dallas, Texas, I thought he was going to be a boring adult. After meeting him, and actually getting to know him, I can now tell you that he is a friendly, normal guy. He is also very honored to have the AT&T Byron Nelson in Dallas, saying “It’s personal.” The tournament took place in the neighboring city of Irving for 35 years, and Rawlings says he’s thrilled it’s now here in Dallas.
- The interview with the mayor also included Scott Goldstein, Chief of Policy and Communications. A former reporter for the Dallas Morning News, Mr. Goldstein helped me and fellow Junior Reporter Nestor, interview Mayor Mike.
- We asked him five questions regarding the AT&T Byron Nelson’s move to the Trinity Forest Golf Club.
- 1. How do you feel about the AT&T Byron Nelson moving to Dallas?
- “In my time as mayor for seven years, this is one of my highlights.”
- 2. What caused you (and others) to create a golf course at this location? (It’s on a landfill!)
- We thought Dallas should have its own world-class golf course, and there were a lot of different, caring people that wanted to make this happen. We also needed enough room. We found the space in southern Dallas.
- 3. What are some of your hopes and worries about the tournament moving to Dallas?
- My hope is that throughout the tournament, we get to see the best of southern Dallas. My greatest fear is that this is the first tournament in southern Dallas, and we don’t know what we don’t know. What I mean is we will maybe be unprepared for something: maybe parking, maybe in the different venues – we’ll just have to see.”
- 4. Are you hoping that more people in Dallas will get know the Trinity Forest?
- I hope people will get to see the beauty of this forest. Also to get to know it better. It will be a domino effect. People will hopefully love the tournament and be inspired to help the forest. I did some research and found out that the Trinity Forest is 6,000 acres. I didn’t even know it was possible to fit that big of a forest into a city! I want to go see it and learn more about it.
- 5. Who would you like to win this year’s AT&T Byron Nelson?
- The Mayor didn’t hesitate to say, “I’m rooting for Jordan Spieth because wouldn’t it be amazing for a Dallas home boy to win the first AT&T Byron Nelson?!?!”
- I was excited to hear that answer from Mayor Mike, as I also really like Jordan Spieth.
- Well, after meeting the mayor, and asking him five challenging questions, I think we can all agree this year’s AT&T Byron Nelson tournament will be one to remember!
