This month, French management company NGF Golf opened the much anticipated 18-hole Exclusive Golf Deva New Caledonia, forming part of the Sheraton New Caledonia Deva Resort and Spa.
Australian company Golf Industry Central has been appointed to undertake inbound marketing support for the Australasian Region.
Located 2.5 hours north of the capital Noumea and 1.5 hours from Tontouto International Airport, the Par 72 championship golf course is beautifully spread across 131 hectares of unspoiled savannah land. It offers a unique South Pacific location at the base of the Deva domain, with its hills and valleys facing the translucent blue waters and UNESCO World Heritage barrier reef.
According to Mike Orloff, Managing Director of Golf Industry Central, the international standard championship resort golf course officially opened on December 20, 2014.
“The golf course is part of a Sheraton managed resort and has been designed by American Cynthia Dye, of Dye Designs. Renowned for her unique and environmentally-sensitive golf courses it will feature a 30-bay driving range (both grass and synthetic) and a PAR 72 resort standard course.” he said.
The golf course unfolds across a mosaic of picturesque woodlands, dense dry forest, meandering wetlands, majestic mountains, and pristine beaches. The most prominent feature is undoubtedly the sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean. The green of the dramatic Par3 Hole 17 has been designed so that is appears to fall right off into the ocean.
Mr Orloff said: “French management company NGF Golf, managed locally by Mr. Laurent Heutte, has been contributing to the development of golf in France for the past 30 years, and was asked to take on this project as New Caledonia is a French territory. Having the leading French golf management company oversea the opening and operations made perfect sense for this location.”
The development, located in the municipality of Bourail, has been in the planning stages since the early 2000’s, with local Southern Province government recently committing to finalising the project as a way to stimulate growth in jobs and tourism for New Caledonia. This now brings the total golf course offerings in New Caledonia to four, with Tina, Dumbéa and La Ouenghui golf courses already available for play.
According to Mr Orloff, when people were told about the New Caledonia golf course, they were surprised to discover it is only a 2-4 hour flight from most major cities in Australia and New Zealand.
“It is a great honour to have Golf Industry Central appointed as the marketing company for the world class Exclusive Golf Deva New Caledonia facility. Golfers from the Australasia region will thoroughly enjoy the high standard and uniquely French/island experience on offer not just for the golfers but also their non-golfing partners,” Mr Orloff said.
“We are responsible for all marketing initiatives for the Australasia region to build awareness of the new course and drive more inbound golf tourists to the uniquely French Pacific Island nation.”
According to Mr Heutte, the presence of NGF Golf in New Caledonia allows the organisation to showcase their expertise in the operation and development of golf courses, in the hope of developing further collaborations in the Pacific area.
Course designer, Cynthia Dye said, “When I was first contacted to design a golf course in New Caledonia, I had to get out the map to locate it. Later I discovered that one of my childhood TV series, McHale’s Navy, was set in these islands with the headquarters based in New Caledonia. This is Dye’s first adventure into the southwest Pacific Ocean and I was thrilled to have the opportunity to explore the archipelago.”
Golf Industry Central www.golfindustrycentral.com.au
NGF Golf www.ngf-golf.com
Dye Designs www.dyedesigns.com
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