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Celebrity golf in The Bahamas
WELCOME BAHAMAS NASSAU - 2008
Celebrity golf in The Bahamas
Celebrities and Professional Golfers' Association (PGA) stars find Bahamian golf courses as irresistible as handicappers from the lands of ice and snow up north.
Every January Michael Jordan hosts a celebritytournament at the spectacular Ocean Club Golf Course on Paradise Island, raising funds for scores of charities.
In January 2008, Jordan's list included tennis great John McEnroe, The Unit star Dennis Haysbert, Maury Povich, Don Cheadle, Alan Thicke of Grwing Pains and many others.
If you are staying at any Atlantis property, or the Comfort Suites hotel, you too can enjoy this beautiful 18-hole, par 72, course designed by former PGA star Tom Weiskopf. It features six lakes, a full-service practice faciliy, large putting green and driving range as well as a pro shop and clubhouse.
One of Weiskopf's favourite opponents when he was on tour, the great Jack Nicklaus, was redesigning the Cable Beach golf course early in 2008. Nicklaus' layout is part of an abitious makeover of the entire Cable Beach strip by the Baha Mar development company.
Nicklaus is also building a course at West End, Grand Bahama-part of the giant Ginn sur Mer development there. Preparatory work was already underway at Cable Beach in arly 2008.
The original layout was designed and built in 1928 by a famous designer of yesteryear, Emmet Devereaux. It has been redone several times, most recently by architect and course operator Fred Settle Jr of Florida in 2003.
If you play before te course is closed for final changes, you'll find that it will "satisfy all players who want to enjoy a relaxing game," says head professional Chris Lewis. "It's a strategic challenge with short fairways. You can have a good round in about four hours."
Bt watch out for the 14th hole, advises Lewis. This par-three looks simple at first. The green is only 140 yards away, but it's surrounded by water, with a slight incline. Lewis started playing as a youngster and is a nine-times player on the national team
A shark cruises in
Greg Norman is another PGA superstar who has brought his celebrity and designing skills to The Bahamas. After creating a spectacular course at Emerald Bay on Great Exuma in 2003, he arrived in New Providence to work on the venerable outh Ocean layout, originally put together by Joe Lee.
Now renamed the Blue Shark Golf Club, it was expected to be open for continuous play in the spring or summer of 2008.
Norman lengthened the course to 7,200 yards from the gold tees, making it a possble site for pro tournaments in the future.
"Blue Shark offered a rare opportunity," Norman told reporters. "It was a challenge and an inspiration to transform a popular and well-designed existing layout into a new and entirely distinctive golfing experence."
Be careful of "the shark's teeth," holes 10, 11 and 12-with pars of five, three and four. They include spectacular views of the ocean, blue holes, and 18th century ruins. At press time, the Blue Shark Golf Club was already accepting reservations or tournaments and events.
Ernie Els and Tiger Woods
Finally, the number one professional golfer in the world today, Tiger Woods, and South African star Ernie Els are partners with Tavistock Group-the holding company owned by billionaire Joe Lewis-in a ew development called Albany House in western New Providence.
This multi-million-dollar project will include an 18-hole championship course designed by Els, and described by an Albany spokesman as a "joint venture" between the two world-famous golfers.
While no details of the course have been revealed, Els promises on his website that it will be one of the "best of the best" in the world.
Rounding out available golf on New Providence is the exquisite course at Lyford Cay, a private community developed n the 1950s, built around a first-class club.
Lyford Cay offers amenities such as tennis, pools, beaches and water sports, restaurants and a marina, as well as the golf course. Play at Lyford is restricted to members, such as actor Sean Connery of James ond fame, and sponsored guests.
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