Tobago ideal for Hoerman golf

TRINIDAD and Tobago will not be giving up home advantage in the annual Carribbean Amateur Golf Championships which will be hosted from August 3 to 10 at the Tobago Plantations Beach and Golf Resort.

These fears were allayed recently by top golf officials who insisted that every effort will be made to adequately prepare the team for the strong challenge expected from the ten visiting countries. William “Bill” Agard, Tournament Director, has already been to Puerto Rico on a mission to find out how to successfully stage the region’s biggest golf championship following last year’s tournament there. He said conditions in Puerto Rico were not unlike the testing and tricky Tobago Plantations course and he is making every effort to enable the TT team at least five weekends on the competition course before the big championship. Ten years ago when the competition was staged at St Andrew’s Golf Club course at Moka, Maraval, TT had the distinction of making a clean sweep of the four categories at stake. Agard said despite the shift of venue this year to Tobago, the TT golfers should be able to hold their own especially after the series of preparatory rounds battling the strong Atlantic Ocean winds and blustery rain which is likely to occur. The knowledgeable tournament director said the logistical problems posed in getting the ten overseas team into Tobago with the minimum of inconvenience is also posing a challenge. Agard said efforts are being made to have direct flights into Crown Point Airport from San Juan, Puerto Rico, which he hopes will act as a gathering point for golfers from up the islands.

He envisaged a TT national team with most of the players Under-21 years of age judging by the string of excellent performances by the major contenders so far on the local circuit. The distinct possibility of Tobagonian Carlos “Sexy” Baynes not making the national team looms large but it has been suggested that the new category this year, the Mid-Amateur Class for players over 35 years of age will afford the talented player a chance to please his home fans. Robbie Charlett, former national golfer, who now represents Tobago Plantations, also debunked the theory of the surrender of home advantage by playing the important competition in the sister isle. “Do we want golfers who can only play at Moka?”, asked Charlett. “We want golfers who can play in all kinds of conditions and rise to the challenge,” he said. Charlett boasted of the golf programmes in Tobago and those especially of Tobago Plantations which have motivated a legion of young golfers eager to make their mark on the regional and international scene. “Tobago Plantations is the ideal venue for the Caribbean Championships,” Charlett said.