Hamilton, Bermuda --- 12 Oct. 2006 ---Bermuda tourism today announced a major coup with the news that one of the most exclusive and prestigious tournaments in golf - featuring the world's top players - is set to be hosted here next year.

The PGA Grand Slam of Golf will see the winners of the sport's four majors duke it out for a $1.25million prize purse on the island.

Tourism has put up $1.5million to bring the tournament, which will most likely be held at the Mid-Ocean club next November, to Bermuda.

Minister Dr Ewart Brown said negotiations were in the final stages and a deal would most likely be finalized and announced at this year's event.

The '06 tournament is being held in Hawaii and will see Tiger Woods (winner of the British Open and PGA Championship) defend his title against Mike Weir, Jim Furyk and Geoff Ogilvy.

The tournament is the most exclusive in the game with a field of just four players - the winners of the US Masters, US Open, British Open and the US PGA championships.

It is the climax to the season - a 36-hole stroke play shoot out played over two days and beamed live to 100 countries worldwide.

Woods has won it six times and is the all-time record holder for the most number of victories.

Details of the event, without doubt the biggest
'sports tourism' initiative the Government and its glamorous US consultant IMG has come up with, was unveiled by Dr Ewart Brown at a press conference this afternoon.

He said: "Picture it… Thirty six holes of season ending drama on one of the world's most breathtaking courses - a golf green in Bermuda.

"The event receives broad exposure to over 28,000 PGA professionals throughout the USA and has consistently delivered the best players in the world over the last 10 years, which is the reason we bid for it."

Brown added that the money invested by tourism was 'great bang for the buck'.

"When you are able to showcase Bermuda's beaches and people on primetime TV, if you had to pay for that exposure, you would have to pay a lot more than that.

" We've been pursuing a premier golfing event for two years. When

we saw this opportunity, we went straight for it."

The timing of the announcement, on the day Dr Brown's PLP leadership bid was 'outed' by a fellow MP (see news), could not have been better for the minister.

And though he refused to comment on the leadership issue, the fact that a headline coup like this - marvellous PR for his bid - came on the very day his ambitions were unveiled has not been lost on political commentators.

Source: Bermuda Sun
www.bermudasun.bm