COP opens eyes with new tees

While the CNMI is fortunate enough to have five competing courses, golfers on Saipan have their choice of playing on any one of four beautiful and challenging establishments dedicated to providing paradise on the links.

Each venue offers a unique test of skill and patience, and soon the first course that people see from the air upon final approach to Saipan will offer duffers a new challenge as the Coral Ocean Point Golf Resort is a week and a half away from opening three new tee boxes.

According to Palikkun Thomson, the resort will show its appreciation to the local strikers and slicers by introducing them to their new launch pads in style with a Double Peoria Tournament on Saturday, Dec. 17.

Holes No. 13, 14, and 17 are undergoing the finishing touches of the redesign process, and duffers will be surprised with what they see as the distances are longer and they will have to adjust their approach to the greens.

When the players climb the stairs to the 13th tee box, they will notice an immediate difference on a windy day as they will be without the familiar tail wind that they once enjoyed.

“Before the wind used to be behind your back and now you’ll have to deal with a crosswind. Normally with the old tee, if the wind was coming from the airport it would be at your back but now you’ve got a side wind,” said tournament director Thomson.

After replacing the pin and circling down to the 14th tee box, golfers will have a much more challenging shot by battling the wind and crossing the crystal clear water to reach the green.

Golfers who drive from the white tee box today are faced with a forgiving 133-yard par three, but in 10 days they will encounter a 165-yard void from the front edge of the tee box and a gusty right to left wind. The shot will turn into a 6-7 iron away at roughly 170 yards.

The 17th is perhaps one of the nicest upgrades to the course as duffers will go from a rather long and straight 414-yard fairway from the white tees to a formidable 450-yard opening shot overlooking the cliff.

“It really puts you on the water. Now you are driving from the rocks and looking way out there to the 450-yard par four,” said Thomson.

While the COP course plenty of challenge in the past along and history with the left over Japanese bunkers and defensive positions from World War II, Thomson said that it was time to make a change.

“This golf course has been here about 16 years, and nowadays there are so many new clubs and new balls, so the distances are not like before. So what we are trying to do is adjust the distance to make it comparable with the growing challenge of the game,” said Thomson.

The new equipment isn’t the only thing sending the drives further down the fairways, as Thomson explained that the level of skill that the local players have reached has improved so much that the COP needed to make a change to offer the top flights a challenge.

“We are always trying to improve the golf course so that it stays challenging for the golfers. Now there are so many long lobbers and we don’t want it to be too easy for them. We want to make it challenging for the players by having a championship caliber golf course,” he said.

Registration for the tournament is ongoing, but golfers need to arrive to the course at 11am to prepare for the 12pm tee times. The cost to enter the tournament is $60, which includes an awards banquet in addition to the day on the links. The pro shop will also be offering special discounts on merchandise during the tournament as well.

Thomson said that he expects more than 50 golfers to take the tournament challenge, but since the COP regularly draws more than that he has placed a cap pf 70 players.

The opening of the new tee boxes isn’t the only good news to come out of the COP as local golfers will be able to take advantage of $20 greens fees from Monday, Dec. 18, through Thursday, Dec. 22, a savings of $10 from the current $30 local rate. The savings will not last; however, as the COP will be raising the local rates to $35 effective Jan. 1, 2006.

For more information about the new tee boxes, the upcoming Double Peoria Tournament, or upcoming events at the COP, contact Thomson or Omori by calling 234-7000.