Gary Player Officially Opens Guavaberry Golf & Country Club First Gary Player Signature Design in the Dominican Republic

Contact Pat Norton
203-454-4401

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. (September 30, 2002) - Legendary golfer Gary Player, winner of 163 tournaments worldwide including the career Grand Slam, has designed a dramatic 7,148 yard, par-72 Gary Player Signature course named Guavaberry Golf & Country Club in the Dominican Republic that already has been labeled a rare golfing jewel in the Caribbean. Located just 20 minutes from the Santo Domingo airport in Juan Dolio, Guavaberry is destined to become a very special golf experience. Player officially opens the course October 1st and 2nd with ceremonies that include a ribbon-cutting with Dominican Republic President Hipolito Mejia, an exhibition by golf's world ambassador and an international press conference.

Guavaberry is built into the lush rolling terrain of the area and the site incorporates corzo palm trees indigenous to the island. In fact, some 400 palms from areas of the course were moved to planned positions to aid in fairway locations. According to Player, "One of the things that impressed me, being very environmentally conscience, is that of the 200 courses I have done, I don't remember any project taking as much out of the original piece of ground. I told the developers here that when I go to a place I look at what is indigenous there and I try to ascertain what we can keep‹the plants, everything. The Guavaberry site has a lot of coral, which I liked, and we effectively worked with that as well." The course is named for the guavaberry, a fruit viewed with mystical properties that proliferates in many parts of the Caribbean and which produces a liqueur with a distinctive flavor.

Player particularly enjoyed designing the beautiful par-3 13th hole, which was carved into the site of an old limestone quarry. A 15-foot high waterfall cascades down in three tributaries in front of two greens, which allow for a variety of interesting pin placements. Every hole on the pleasantly challenging course offers five sets of tees. As with his other courses around the world, Player's design concept at Guavaberry is "playability." All golfers will find a fair test to suit their ability level.

The golf course will be operated by Coral Hotels & Resorts and the nearby Coral Costa Caribe Beach Hotel will accommodate guests with golfing packages.

Gary Player Design provides specialized golf course design services and the distinguished group has designed more than 200 championship courses around the world, including some 40 premier properties in the United States. The acclaimed Links at Fancourt in Player's native South Africa was selected to host the prestigious 2003 Presidents Cup and the legendary golfer will captain the International Team on the dramatic and challenging layout. This true links course was constructed by Player and his team to compare in scale to Royal Troon, Prestwick and Ballybunion. Presidents Cup competitors and an international television audience will experience one of Player's finest design masterpieces.

Gary Player Design courses of note in the United States include the TPC at Jasna Polana in Princeton, New Jersey, which hosts the Senior PGA Tour's Instinet Classic; The Floridian, Palm Beach, Florida; Manhattan Woods in West Nyack, New York; the highly praised Raspberry Falls in Leesburg, Virginia; the nationally recognized Raven Golf Club at Snowshoe Resort in Snowshoe, West Virginia; Kiawah Island's 4 _-star Cougar Point; and GlenArbor Golf Club in Bedford, New York.

The great marketability of Gary Player's dynamic personality coupled with the proven technical skills and expertise of the Player design staff is an unbeatable combination of talent and reputation. For further information about current design projects and Gary Player Design opportunities, contact: Scott Ferrell, President Gary Player Design (561) 624-0300 or scott@garyplayer.com.