TOYOTA KARNATAKA GOLF FESTIVAL KICKS OFF GOLF TOURISM DRIVE

The 2nd Annual Toyota Karnataka Golf Festival was announced today by Mr. Ramesh R K, General Manager – Marketing, Toyota Kirloskar Motor Pvt. Ltd. and Mr. K. Jothiramalingam, IAS & Principal Secretary to Government Tourism Department. The event would be held at Eagleton Golf Resort, Bengaluru from September 10 – 12, 2010.
“We are proud to be associated with an event that promotes the growth of golf in the country and emphasizes the importance of Bengaluru as an emerging golf destination" said Mr. Ramesh R K. “This is our way of thanking our customers and patrons, many of whom are avid golfers and have been invited to participate in this tournament,” he added. 

"The Toyota Karnataka Golf Festival celebrates the emergence of Bengaluru as a great golfing destination and a major attraction for golf tourism in the country. The Karnataka – One State Many Worlds campaign is catering to a highly specialized branding of Karnataka in different niche areas. The campaign will highlight areas like golf tourism and medical tourism,” said Mr. K. Jothiramalingam.

The major attraction for the participants is the chance to win one of the five handicap division titles and become a part of the Indian team at the World Golfers Championship (WGC) in Hua Hin, Thailand, which sees participation from 40 countries. The WGC is patronized by golfing legends as Arnold Palmer and Severiano Ballesteros.  

 “The Toyota Karnataka Golf Festival is an example of private – public partnership,” said Rishi Narain, former Asian Games Gold Medalist and Managing Director – Rishi Narain Golf Management, the event organizing company. “The Department of Tourism’s objective is to promote golf tourism and Toyota’s objective is to associate their brand with the premium sport of golf in India, enjoyed by many of its customers. By combining the objectives of both parties, we were able to create the Karnataka Golf Festival last year which is in its 2nd year now and sure to reach new heights” he added. 

 “The travel industry in India has been aware for some time now that globally, golf tourism is big business. In fact, our information shows that more tourists than ever before have been traveling from Europe, Japan and North America to Bangkok, Singapore, Malaysia and other Asian destinations to indulge their passion for the game.  Also, travel within the ASEAN region for golf is growing fast and we want to tap this market soon,” said Mr. Vinay Luthra.

The tournament is open to any team of three amateur golfers with a recognized golf handicap from any golf club in India. Each player on the team plays one round of golf on his individual score and the three scores are counted to make up the team score. There are nearly 75 prizes in various categories for individuals and teams and the winning team wins a seven day holiday on the Golden Chariot Luxury Train (courtesy KSTDC).

The tournament will feature the Ballantine’s Long Drive Challenge where prizes will be awarded for the winner of the contest in each group of four players, on each day and overall for the tournament.

Over 100 teams of three have confirmed participation to make a tournament of over 312 golfers, establishing the “Toyota Karnataka Golf Festival” as the largest single venue tournament in Karnataka. These teams are from Eagleton Resort and other Bengaluru Clubs as well as from Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mysore, Coorg and Pune.  
The Toyota Karnataka Golf Festival is supported by Indian Terrain – leading apparel brand; Taj West End – hospitality partners; and TaylorMade – one of the world’s leading golf equipment brands.

“We are pleased to welcome our neighbors Toyota back to Eagleton Golf Resort for the 2nd year and we are pleased that Department of Tourism is taking such strong steps towards positioning Karnataka as a golf destination. Eagleton is a complete golf resort and we look forward to welcoming an increasing number of golf tourists to our resort” said Ashok Kumar Meda, Chairman, Eagleton Resorts.

“The Taj West End is excited about this initiative to put Karnataka on the world golf map. The Taj Group is intrinsically tied into tourism development and many of our properties in this state are located close to important golf courses. We are happy to be associated with this venture” added Sanjay Sood, General Manager, Taj Group of Hotels. 
In future, the “Karnataka Golf Festival” hopes to match other leading golf festivals around the world like those held in Florida, Spain, South of France and other leading golf holiday destinations worldwide. More courses involved and more rounds of golf for visitors will help golfers plan their golfing holiday during the ‘Golf Festival’ week as this becomes a focal point for projecting Bengaluru as what it has truly become – a world class golfing destination and the golfing capital of the South Asian region. 

According to the International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO), an organization founded in 1997 to promote
the Golf Tourism Industry, having 760 member companies including 200 specialist golf tour operators in 38 countries, there are 50 million golfers worldwide and the global golf tourism market is worth US$30 billion annually.  
Tourism Authority of Thailand reported 400,000 golf tourist visitors in 2009 spending around $150 million (approx Rs 700 Cr) and Tourism Malaysia reported 250,000 golfers in 2009 spending around $130 million (approx Rs 500 Cr). Both countries are working at doubling revenues and arrivals by 2014. It is estimated by IAGTO that a typical golf tourist spends 30 per cent more per day than other tourists.

The TKGF would be concluded by an entertaining cocktail and dinner conglomeration of all the corporates at the Taj West End, Bengaluru during which the teams going to Thailand for the World Golfers Championship and for the Golden Chariot holiday experience will be announced. Taj West End has been TKGF’s hospitality partners for the second year in a row. Taj West End has been adjudged 8th amongst the top 10 overseas business hotels in World in the prestigious “Conde Nast Readers travel awards 2009”. The hotel topped on various parameters including service, value for money, comfort and luxury offered to the guests. The Taj West End scored an impressive 86.25 points out of 100. The Taj West End is also ranked among the ‘Top 10 Best Luxury’ hotels in India according to the 2009 TripAdvisor Travellers” Choice Awards.