February 26, 2009
Thanks to the support from all of you in Southwest Florida, the 2009 ACE Group Classic was a huge success! Record setting attendance, beautiful weather and a nail biting finish made for an exciting year. Congratulations to Loren Roberts who joins Hale Irwin, Gil Morgan, Mike Hill and Lee Trevino as two-time tournament champions. TPC Treviso Bay challenged some of golf’s most experienced players as we saw high scores during practice and the first couple of rounds. But these guys are so talented and they really started firing at pins and scoring on Sunday. Last year’s champion, Scott Hoch, shot 80, 72, and 65 shaving several strokes off each round. Bob Gilder set the course record and narrowly missed a Champions Tour record for best turnaround by shooting 83 Saturday and 63 Sunday.
I want to express my most sincere thanks to our loyal and dedicated volunteer staff; they’re the folks behind the scenes that really make this tournament successful.
I couldn’t be happier with all the compliments our staff received about the layout from spectators, sponsors and players alike. We are excited about our new home at TPC Treviso Bay and look forward to renewing our sponsors for next year’s Tournament. Please stayed tuned throughout the year as I blog about clubhouse construction at TPC Treviso Bay and important news regarding the Champions Tour and next year’s Tournament.
February 17, 2009
Tournament week is finally here! Our staff has been extremely busy wrapping up last minute preparations and we are excited to have all the players and spectators out to see the new course. The first two days of Tournament week have brought a record number of early volunteers and spectators to the course and have provided an excellent opportunity to see the players up close and personal during their practice rounds.
My days have been very hectic leading up to the Tournament. Directing concessionaire and tent vendors around the new course has been very time consuming but well worth the effort as the layout has improved dramatically from last year. With over 800 ACE Group guests in town, numerous Tournament sponsors and Champions Tour professionals in town, it is my responsibility to make sure they enjoy their first time at TPC Treviso Bay. Throw in golf outings for more than 200 guests around the Naples community, charity visits for players’ wives and a large pairings party tonight at the Ritz Carlton… it can be a bit overwhelming.
Build out arrangements to prepare the course for Tournament play have gone better than expected and the course is in super condition for Champions Tour play. The course layout is much more fan friendly this year with the 9th and 18th greens and 1st and 10th tees located immediately upon the entrance to the course. And the 19th Hole concession location provides a perfect atmosphere for spectators wanting to catch exciting 18th hole action.
The pros have a tough test on their hands this week dealing with the new course. Very few of the guys have seen it yet and they will be welcomed by water on 14 different holes. Factor in afternoon winds and they will have a test on their hands. I think they will be very pleased with the condition it is in though. The staff at TPC has done a tremendous job getting it tournament-ready since it opened in December.
I have put in a lot of hours the last two months getting the new course approved by the Tour, finalizing design layouts for Tournament vendors and implementing details for Tournament operations and I’m ready to see it all come together this week. I’m ready to share a successful week with the Naples community, my staff, family and friends. After this week, I’m going to take some much needed R&R with my wife and kids.
February 4, 2009
Hello! With less than two weeks away, my staff is working hard to wrap up last minute preparations for the Tournament. However, we still took time off on Sunday to celebrate the Super Bowl with our families and friends. I was rooting for the Arizona Cardinals and began to get nervous as they faltered in the first half but was extremely proud of their second half comeback! Even Cody, my six-year old son, got to stay up to watch the first half commercials and the Bruce Springsteen show at halftime before he was hauled off to be bed.
Our staff is extremely excited as our field continues to come together. Although Peter will be unable to compete, we have gotten commitments from the who’s who of the Champions Tour. We even got a pleasant surprise when the one and only Lee Trevino decided to play. He’s now 69 years old and will only play a select few events, so everyone should come out and see him in competition while they still can.
I plan to post one more blog the week of the tournament and I believe Peter is also planning to update you guys from his world coming soon. Stay tuned!
January 13, 2009
Happy New Year! Our staff is excited to celebrate the 22nd anniversary of Gary Player’s ACE Group Classic win by offering the Naples community the chance to play golf with the living legend. We will host a one-day tournament on Monday, February 16 on the TPC Treviso Bay course.
Four flight winners from the event will have the chance to play with Gary Player during our Official Pro-Am on Thursday, February 19th. The entry fee is $500 per player ($1,800 per foursome).
I am also very excited about the eight past champions that will be a part of the 2009 field and the opportunity to build upon a lot of great memories going back more than 20 years.
Tournament construction has begun at TPC Treviso Bay and we find ourselves facing many challenges in developing a clubhouse structure in less than a month. Despite all of our structures being temporary, they will be first-class facilities.
December 12, 2008
Hello! My name is Jason Camp and I'm the Tournament Director for the ACE Group Classic Hosted by Peter Jacobsen. You've landed on my new blog page.
I'll be using the blog to pass on information about the Tournament, TPC Treviso Bay and the Champions Tour. It's been a busy, but exciting month.
After a short and successful stay at Quail West came to an end, we were forced to find a new home for the event. Last month we found a great host venue at TPC Treviso Bay. The new course was built with Tournament play in mind and will provide a great challenge for our Champions Tour players! I think it's going to be exciting for spectators too.
We also landed Peter Jacobsen as Tournament host. We think Jake will be a great partner to help promote the event, entertain guests and recruit another top field. I've got some interesting stories to tell about everything we went through to secure the new course so stay tuned for next week's blog!
