Glorious Golf: The Fifth Puerto Rico Open

By Sidney Wolf, president of the Puerto Rico Golf Association and chairman of the PGA Puerto Rico Open.

 ‘More than a game… an experience’

Puerto Rico is the premier golf destination in the Caribbean, boasting championship-level courses designed by the industry’s biggest names, and plays host to the only PGA Tour event in the region. The Puerto Rico Open presented by  seepuertorico.com—an official PGA Tour FedEx Cup event—will be held March 5-11 at Trump International Golf Club Puerto Rico, located in Río Grande. The event is entering its fifth year and will again bring the best golfers in the world to Puerto Rico.

Both vacationers and professionals agree Puerto Rico has some of the finest golf courses in the Caribbean and Latin America. When asked about golf and his experiences on the island, Michael Bradley—the tournament’s winner in 2009 and 2011—said: “Puerto Rico is a special place.”

Thanks to the growth of the Puerto Rico Open presented by seepuertorico.com as a global event, the Puerto Rico Golf Association—official host to the Professional Golfers’ Association PGA Tour event—has truly taken the lead in promoting and developing golf within the region. Not only has the local association partnered with the pre-eminent golf brand in the world, but it has also brought the game to the island’s youth through its dealings with the American Junior Golf Association and by managing the Puerto Rico Junior Open.

This sense of connecting the game and the Tour to the community has made the Puerto Rico Open presented by seepuertorico.com a very special event.

The Puerto Rico Open presented by seepuertorico.com is perhaps the largest sporting event on the island. We have created a tournament that provides enjoyment and entertainment for the entire family. The 2012 tournament theme is “More Than a Game… An Experience,” and our goal is to provide every attendee with a memorable one. Each year, we add more activities to the schedule so the community stays involved throughout the tournament week. This year, we will host a fashion show, a charity 5K race, fishing pro-am, a corporate barbeque contest, and live music each day after play. The Puerto Rico Open presented by seepuertorico.com truly has something for everyone.

In the tournament’s first four years, the Puerto Rico Open presented by seepuertorico.com has given nearly 300,000 fans the opportunity to watch the best golfers in the world. They have witnessed everything from the high drama of Jason Day missing a six-foot putt for the win in 2009, to Michael Bradley’s second victory in three years. Bradley—who will be on hand to defend his title in 2012 against a top-notch field of players—is looking forward to the challenge and recently said: “I’m so excited to return to Puerto Rico, and I always tell my fellow Tour players that the hospitality, food, and everything else about this tournament is first class.”

Every year, the tournament has a profound impact on the community through its charitable efforts, as well as from the economic impact created by the event. We have amazing partnerships with United Way and our title sponsor, the Puerto Rico Tourism Company, has helped us generate about $3 million in charitable funds during the tournament’s four-year history.

This collaboration has directly benefited the Río Grande community and Puerto Rico’s youth. Furthermore, through both direct and indirect spending associated with the tournament, we have created more than $80 million in economic impact over the life of the event.


The Puerto Rico Open presented by seepuertorico.com and Puerto Rico Tourism Company invite you to see why we do it better during the 2012 Puerto Rico Open presented by seepuertorico.com.

For more information, visit www.gotopuertoricoopen.com. For tickets, go to www.ticketpop.com for early-bird package discounts, or call 787-993-0880. For golf package tours at any time, visit www.golfparadisetours.com or call 787-321-4777. Golf Paradise Tours serves visitors from Europe, South America, Canada, and the northern United States year-round—but especially in the months when climate conditions prevent them from playing golf back home. The company also offers custom tours that include all their interests—from water sports and ecology to extreme sports and sightseeing—and handles all arrangements, from lodging and dining to tee times and transportation. For help reserving tee times, call Caribe Golf at: 787-278-3442 or 1-800-588-8670.

[ “I’m so excited to return to Puerto Rico, and I always tell my fellow Tour players that the hospitality, food, and everything else about this tournament is first class.” - Michael Bradley, tournament’s winner in 2009 and 2011]