Editor’s note: PGA TOUR veterans Frank Lickliter II, Corey Pavin, Jerry Kelly, Donnie Hammond and Howard Twitty spent Thanksgiving week in Iraq paying tribute to the soldiers stationed there as part of the USO’s “Operation Links Handshake Tour.” While there, Lickliter wrote a blog for PGATOUR.com.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- We were all thankful for the opportunity to get to see our troops in action. How they live, how they travel, how they eat, how they sleep, how they play and how they relax. If they get hurt, how they’re healed. And if they make the ultimate sacrifice how much respect they’re treated with. The reverence just in moving on and off the plane was overwhelming to see.

Ultimately, though, it’s not about any of us. It’s about every trooper who’s willing to serve his or her country. Every American owes a debt of gratitude to our servicemen and women -- and at the least, a simple thank-you to someone in uniform would be appreciated. No matter what your politics are, our troopers deserve every single American’s support.

Click here to see photos of some of the men I was fortunate enough to meet.

Happy holidays.