Wounded Warrior Andrew Bachelder added to American Century Championship

Retired Staff Sergeant Andrew Bachelder, a decorated veteran of Iraq and the ongoing war in Afghanistan, has been added to the American Century Championship field of celebrities for their annual Lake Tahoe tournament July 19-24, 2016.

Bachelder earned a spot by winning the George W. Bush Presidential Center’s Warrior Open this past October in Irving, Tex.

Competing in his third Warrior Open, Bachelder shot even par over two days to defeat 2014 winner Army Sgt. Major Rodney Gorman (ret.) and three-time champion Army Cpl. Chad Pfeifer (ret.). Both Gorman and Pfeifer have represented the Warrior Open and the Bush Presidential Center at the American Century Championship since American Century Investments launched the initiative to invite the winner to join the field of 90 sports and entertainment celebrities.

“The Warrior Open win means everything,” stated Bachelder, 34, a resident of nearby Fort Worth. “The American Century Championship invitation is awesome. I’ve heard so much about it from Chad and Rod. I can’t wait to get to Lake Tahoe.”

A decorated veteran of Iraq and the ongoing war in Afghanistan, Bachelder served for more than four years as a combat engineer and another four years as a helicopter crew chief before being injured in a mid-air helicopter collision in 2009. Four of the six crewmen on board were killed and Bachelder sustained life-threatening injuries including an open pelvic fracture, a broken right leg and shoulder, five fractured ribs, a broken back, a concussion and a traumatic brain injury. To this day, he copes with myriad challenges and has come back from two suicide attempts, which he attributes, in part, to survivor’s guilt.

“Golf saved my life,” said Bachelder, who received his Warrior Open trophy from former President of the United States, George W. Bush. “Winning the Warrior Open was a three-year goal of mine.” During his extensive rehabilitation, Bachelder found that golf was a great way to ease the pain of both his body and his mind. He has set his sights on becoming a head professional or a general manager at a golf course.

“We’ve been honored to host the Warrior Open Champions in Lake Tahoe,” said Jonathan Thomas, president and chief executive officer of American Century Investments. “U.S. service members unselfishly protect the freedoms we hold dear, so bringing the annual Warrior Open winner out to Tahoe for a great time with our celebrity field is American Century’s way of showing gratitude to our brave military.”

Like Pfeifer and Gorman before him, Bachelder will be cheered on by a large contingent of fellow members of the U.S. Armed Forces. For the third year, the American Century Championship is offering complimentary admission for all U.S. military. All active duty, reservists, National Guard and veterans can receive two complimentary tickets, including one for a guest each day of the tournament. All service men and women can apply at: http://bit.ly/ACCMilitary to redeem the special offer. Participants must show photo ID along with the ticket voucher at tournament gates for admission.

The American Century Championship has a history of promoting and fundraising for military and first responder causes. In 2002, following the terrorist attacks of September 11, three New York City firemen who had worked tirelessly at Ground Zero were added to the celebrity field and the tournament raised over $150,000 for the Uniformed Firefighters Scholarship Fund to aid the children of those lost in that tragedy. In 2003-4 Mark Cuban’s Fallen Patriot Fund was the tournament’s charity beneficiary and $1.5 million was raised to aid military veterans with extraordinary needs upon returning home from fighting for America’s freedom.
Tournament title sponsor American Century Investments is a leading, privately-controlled investment management firm serving professionals, institutions, corporations and individuals. Through its ownership structure, more than 40 percent of company profits support the Stowers Institute for Medical Research, an innovative biomedical research organization committed to finding cures for cancer and other gene-based diseases. Since 2000, more than $1.2 billion in dividends have been distributed to the Stowers Institute, which is the official charity of the American Century Championship.