Barbados – My First Tournament On the European Senior Tour
In 1998 I qualified for the European SR Tour. I was excited. The qualifying site was on the northern coast of France in a small town called Hardelot….in early November! Wow, talk about bad weather. I’ve never played in worst weather in all my career. It was approximately 90 players for 8 qualifying spots for the 1999 season. I tied for 6th place and made the qualifying, but I’m going to save that story for another time.
So after everyone finished and the results were final, we began to celebrate with some nice French champagne. Our group of friends and players started talking about the schedule for next season and the tournament destinations we were going to experience. Now it was getting exciting.
To mention a few….Monte Carlo, Bad Ragaz (Swiss Alps), Biarritz FR, Venice IT (Lido island), Isle of Jersey, Paris, Ireland, Scotland, Wentworth (nice area of outside London and headquarters to the European tour), and many more. But, the best of all in my opinion was the season opener in March in Barbados.
What a treat! Barbados is a small island located farthest east and south of any island in the Caribbean. It’s just north of Venezuela. Bridgetown is their biggest city and their airport is a main stop for several airlines including Virgin Airlines landing 747’s from London. American has the most flights there from the states.
Lucky for us the tournament had a 10 year commitment. It was a pro am format. Most of the amateurs who played were local or from the UK and Canada. Several celebrities from the UK played as well. Hugh Grant, well known cricket and soccor players, older members of famous UK rock bands, etc. It was an most enjoyable week.
If you’re considering visiting an island in the Caribbean for the first time, I deeply recommend Barbados. The west side of the island possesses some of the best beaches with clear blue turquoise seas and fantastic sunsets. There is also a wonderful selection of “on the sand” restaurants for you to enjoy lunch or dinner. Just for your information if you are not familiar with the Caribbean, the normal prevailing weather direction comes from the Atlantic or from east to west. This means when one is considering a vacation venue or even a property purchase, the west side of the island should be more protected from the wind creating calm seas and tranquel beaches. It also means great sunsets to witness.
The Sandy Lane Hotel is not only the ultimate hotel destination on the island but also in the Caribbean. In the late 90’s two well known Irish billionaires bought the existing old hotel for 65 million and torn it completely down. They then built one of most magnificent hotels ever. Sandylanehotel.com. Its beyond five star and sits perfectly centered on the most beautiful beach on the island. Tiger Woods rented the complete hotel years ago for his wedding as he became friends with the owners. They also played in our tournament every year and knew most of the players not only on our tour but the regular European tour as well.
The Sandy Lane area is located in the middle of the west coast side of the island. It’s where the more affluent live. Large estate homes are plentiful up and down the coast. There are many othernice hotels to choose from as well. The Sandy Lane hotel has several wonderful golf courses to choose from if you want to pursue a round of golf. Royal Westmoreland Golf Club was the host course where we played our tournament every year. It’s an outstanding course and has nice ocean views from most holes.
So I highly encourage you to visit Barbados if you have never been. The first year I was fortunate to have Paul Altman as my amateur partner for the tournament. He is owner of one of the largest real estate companies on the island specializing in sales and vacation rentals. He spoiled me for 10 years taking care of my lodging needs for tournament week. We became friends. He represents a countless number of the best beachfront properties you will find large and small. Go to altmanbarbados.com for his website and please mention my name.
A few on the beach restaurant recommendations:
The Tides, Lone Star, Positano, and The Cliff. Paynes Bay Beach is one of my favorite beaches.