Maureen Barnes-Smith, vice-president of sales for Unique Vacations Canada, says the 26th staging of the Canadian Travel Industry Golf Tournament was an “amazing” success.

A total of 68 golfers, including professional players from the Canadian travel industry, took part in the two-day tournament, which ended on Tuesday at the Sandals Golf and Country Club in Upton, St Ann. The teams played in a four-man scramble format, putting their skills to the test throughout.

Presented by Sandals and Baxter Media, the Canadian Travel Industry Golf Tournament, raised over US$1,000, surpassing the amount raised by the US Travel Advisors and Latin America Golf Tournaments, also staged annually by Sandals to promote the country as a golfing destination. Proceeds from the event will go towards the projects being undertaken by the Sandals Foundation.

“It was absolutely amazing. The tournament was very successful; everybody here is already planning to come back next year and to bring more people. I don’t know how they are going to improve this event, but we are hoping to have a really great event again, and so we are excited,” Barnes-Smith told the Jamaica Observer.

Jonathan Newnham, the golf course professional, said they would continue to build on the success of the tournament.

“We are going to make it bigger and better, and by next year we will have the new Club House up and running, so they will have an even more enjoyable experience with us at the course,” he said.

Ana Paula De Souza, director of sales at Air Canada Vacations, said the signs are good for the industry despite experiencing its fair share of ups and downs in the past few years.

“As you may have all experienced, travellers are eager to get away. This has brought positive results for many industry partners and suppliers, and it’s a sign of even better days ahead, De Souza said, adding that Air Canada has been providing service to Jamaica for over 60 years.

On the gold course, Team 5, comprising Norah Hogan, Joanne Shinwell, Curtis Dewar, and Jake Coldiron, was the overall champion of the tournament. After posting scores of 60 and 59 on the first and second days, respectively, for a total of 119, Team 5 took first place ahead of Team 11 (William Duplak, Logan Senathirasa, Michael Degrace, and Michael Curni) on 135 (67 and 68).

“It was amazing and of course we had help with golf pro Jake [Coldiron] being on the team, but it was awesome,” Dewar told the Observer.

“It was just a pleasure to play with someone of that level, and we also contributed, so we all had a great time. It was really about team spirit. We had fun and were just enjoying Jamaica at its fullest level, and a Red Stripe [beer] did not hurt either,” he said.

— Ruddy Allen