OCHO RIOS, Jamaica — Jake Coldiron, national manager of golf sales, says the ninth staging of the Sandals Latin American Travel Agents Golf Tournament was another success, as the event continues to provide participants with the opportunity to experience Jamaica as a tourism and sports destination.

The competition, which took place on Friday and Saturday at the Sandals Golf and Country Club in Upton Estate in St Ann, drew 98 participants, including professional golfers from Latin American countries. The teams competed in a four-man scramble format throughout the competition, putting their talents to the test.

Coldiron was delighted with how the competition ended.

“Out of the US, Canada, and Latin America, Latin America is the biggest golf tournament this year. My job is to help the travel advisors grow their business through golf; if you want to bring a golf group down to Jamaica or if you want to bring a golf group to the golf course, I would be your main contact,” Coldiron said.

“This year we had 20 teams from around Latin America from 14 different countries, and it was a lot of good competition. Everybody seemed to have a good time.

“This year we actually had quite a few travel advisors that had never been to Jamaica, so the ultimate goal for them is to go back to their home country and sell Jamaica, sell Sandals and Beaches Resorts, and bring their clients down here.

“And for people who have been here before, we want them to continue to sell us and come back next year to the golf tournament,” he further stated.

At the end of the exciting two days, the team of Jorge Barbut, Jose Cabrera, Leonardo Curutchague, and Andres Elissadle from Uruguay were crowned the overall champions with a final score of 60 strokes. They scored 33 on the first and 27 on the final day of the competition.

The team of Breno Luz, Ricardo Dantas, Denilson Milan, and Raphael Abreu finished in second place, scoring 28 points on the first day and 37 points on the final day to finish on 65 points.

Barbut, who was visiting Jamaica for the very first time, said that without a doubt he is planning to visit the island back next year.

“We are very happy because we won the tournament, and I am also very happy to know that the Jamaican people are very good, and it has been a good experience working with them. I like the Jamaican people and think they are really kind, and I hope to visit next year as soon as possible,” Barbut told the Jamaica Observer.

Also, notable winners were Mauricio Fuerte (Closet to the Pin Men), Antonio Perez Verdia Rubio (Longest Drive Men), and Taryn Stanton (Longest Drive Women).

The Sandals Foundation had raised US$316 for both days of competition.

“We did like a long drive competition where every team donated money. The Sandals Foundation rose over US$300 and again, US$300 is a lot of money and it can change someone’s life, so there is a lot you can do with that money. We are excited that we were able to contribute that.

“The Sandals Foundation in general is a very important part of Sandals Resorts, and what is nice about it is that we as a company take it very seriously as far as ensuring that we give back — and not just in Jamaica but the entire Caribbean. We are a Caribbean-based company and the ultimate goal is to take care of the Caribbean,” Coldiron said.