Mixing keen competition with the showcasing of Jamaica’s golf tourism product is a long-established strategy used by Sandals Resorts to woo visitors to the island.

That tradition continues this week with the 20th annual USA Travel Advisors Golf tournament at Sandals Upton Estate Golf and Country Club in St Ann.

The event is set to feature two days of golf, beginning on Sunday and culminating with an awards ceremony on Monday.

Jake Coldiron, national manager for golf sales at Sandals, said the competitors will be a mixture of Sandals and Beaches resorts’ top travel advisors from across the United States. He said the advisors will be split into 18 teams of four people each.

Coldiron noted the multi-faceted nature of the tournament.

“The goal is to get more bookings and get more business for Sandals Resorts overall, and specifically, Sandals and Beaches resorts in Jamaica. Sandals/Beaches is a world-class resort chain and we’re so excited to host some of the best travel advisors in the world at Sandals Ochi Beach Resort,” he told the Jamaica Observer on Saturday.

“It’s competitive golf but at the end of the day it’s an event to have fun, it’s an event about networking and it’s an event to bounce ideas off different travel advisors and different Sandals staff to figure out ways to get more clients to Jamaica.

“While it’s fun, it’s also competitive because the winners and runners-up will get invited to the global golf tournament which is going to be in the spring of 2025,” he added.

With much of the country experiencing wet weather in recent days and more rain on the forecast in St Ann, Coldiron said he does not expect it to damper the spirit of competition among the teams of golfers.

“This is the 20th year, and almost every year we’ve had beautiful weather. But this is one of the first years in which it [rain] is going to definitely play a factor over these two days of golf.

“There’s a good chance of rain on Sunday, so we’re going to provide everyone with umbrellas. But at the end of the day the travel advisors will be happy to be in Jamaica and they and the caddies are going to just enjoy beautiful days of golf, whether it’s sunny or rainy,” said the Sandals golf sales manager.

Proceeds from the tournament will benefit the Sandals Foundation and its charity initiatives, which include the transformational Care for Kids Junior Golf Programme. The junior programme helps numerous at-risk young people to identify mentors, develop life skills, and offers them upward social and economic mobility through sports.

—Sanjay Myers