The Brazilian team of Fernando Nunes Ferreira, Breno Luz, Raphael Abreu, and Ricardo Dantas is happy to have won the 11th staging of the Sandals Latin American Travel Advisers Golf Tournament in what it describes as a warm and friendly environment on Wednesday.

The two-day tournament at the Sandals Golf and Country Club in Ocho, Rios Jamaica, brought together travel advisers from eight countries across Latin America, giving them the opportunity to compete on the course while experiencing Jamaica’s attractions and networking to strengthen their businesses back home.

While the quartet, from Sao Paulo, Brazil, competed to win, the fun they had as a group on the course, as well as engaging with the locals was not lost on them.

“It’s something amazing to be champions,” Nunes Ferreira said while the team spoke to the Jamaica Observer at the award ceremony. “The course was spectacular. We thank Sandals for all the attention they gave to us and my team. Everybody was so integrated and we just played well and we had some luck.”

He says the course allowed for a quality overall performance.

“The course was excellent,” he said. “It was one of the best courses that we played on for a while. It’s in really really good condition. They had everything prepared to have a good game.”

The team finished second in 2023 and Luz says luck was on their side this year.

“Actually, we came to have fun, to see the environment, enjoy Jamaica and we just played,” he said. “We had some luck, we had some fun and it was good. We just have to thank all of you guys from Jamaica.”

Abreu is one change made to the team from 2023.

“I’m very happy, I’m so excited because my team is the best and I love it,” he said with a big grin. “They brought me here and I’m the baby of the group.”

Dantas, like his teammates, thought the hospitality of Jamaican people made the trip especially memorable. He bonded with his caddies over football, as many Jamaicans have adopted the Brazilian national team as their second international side.

“Jamaica people are the best in the world,” Dantas said. “They treat us so kindly. We left two Brazilian football shirts, one for the caddies and one for the [Sandals] Foundation.”

Anne Nunes Ferreira, the owner of Sao Paulo-based travel agency Annestour, and wife of Fernando, is pleased to have been invited by Sandals Resorts. She appreciates the opportunity to network with colleagues and experience Jamaica through golf. Now, she says she has a mandate to spread the word about the vibrant offerings in Jamaica.

“I’m so proud to visit here, to have this opportunity to network through golf,” she said. “I have a lot of friends that like to play golf, but before, I just saw them play, but now we have an opportunity to stay and play together. This is so important for me. Now, my vision is different when we return to Brazil. The people, the rules, the atmosphere, the team, I am so grateful to Sandals for proposing this time to play golf.”

Anne says she wishes to see Jamaica market itself more in Brazil.

“Sometimes, Brazilians aren’t aware of places in the world unless they visit them,” she said. “But when you visit the place, the resort, it’s totally different. You can feel, for real, what happens in the country.

“My favourite experience being here was to play golf and see the beautiful beaches that you have. It’s so amazing. We have beautiful beaches back home but they’re so different.”

The team finished on 64 points, ahead of second placed Colombians Jaime Cendales, Gabriel Medina, Clara Bernal, and Claudia Lujan. The Mexican team of Claudia Alvarez, Yassin Beyrut, Edgar Lopez, and Jose Santamari also finished second, tied with the Colombians on 67 points.

The Brazilians now turn their attention to Sandals’ International Travel Advisers Golf Tournament in St Lucia in November. There, they will play the winners of Sandals’ United States, and Canadian Travel Advisers Golf Tournaments.

Anne Ferri Bernardino, owner of Sao Paulo-based travel agency Annestour.