As the Honorary Consul of Jamaica in Uruguay, Jorge Andres Elissalde felt it only fitting that he made the trip down to the Caribbean Island to not only enjoy the sun, fun and excitement, but also to play his part in assisting Sandals Foundation to give back to its community.

Elissalde was among the over 70 individuals that made the trek from various countries to strut their stuff in the Sandals Latin American Travel Agents Golf Tournament, which is used a driver for participants to experience and, later sell Jamaica as the destination of choice for sports and tourism.

As fate would have it, Elissalde's team which included Jorge Barbut, Jose Cabrera and Leonardo Curutchague, finished tops at the four-man scramble format, two-day event with a final score of 60 over nine holes. They scored 33 on the first and 27 on the final day of the competition.

They won ahead of the Brazilian team of Breno Luz, Ricardo Dantas, Denilson Milan, and Raphael Abreu, which scored 28 on the first day and 37 on the final day to finish five-strokes behind on 65 at the Sandals Golf and Country Club.

"I am very proud to be the Honorary Consul of Jamaica and I am happy that we had the chance to come here and not only participate in the Sandals tournament, but also to see what the foundation is doing because we know they do a lot of good for the people here, especially in the Ocho Rios region. So, it's always a pleasure to play our part and we also won which is double the excitement," Elissalde told SportsMax.tv. 

Besides the friendly competition between others from Mexico, Panama, Peru, Colombia, Argentina, among others, Elissalde reiterated the serious side of the golf tournament, as the side shows raised US $316 for the Sandals Foundation which might seem a small figure but will go a far way in helping those in need.

Mauricio Fuerte (Closet to the Pin Men), Antonio Perez Verdia Rubio (Longest Drive Men), and Taryn Stanton (Longest Drive Women), won those side events.

Beyond that, the travel agents also brought with them books and other school supplies to be distributed in the community.

"Jamaica is a destination that not many Uruguayans know, it is a beautiful country with beautiful people and so doing this (tournament) is one way of basically opening the doors so those Uruguayans can experience Jamaica through us and then they will be more eager to come and visit," Elissalde reasoned.

"So what Sandals is doing is very good, it's a mix of sports and tourism and, more importantly, the fact that they use these golf tournaments to raise funds for the foundation is incredible and giving back is always something that many people gravitate towards. So again, we are very happy to play our part," he added.

During his visit, Elissalde also paid a courtesy call on Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Meanwhile, Jake Coldiron, national manager of golf sales, expressed delight with the outcome of the tournament which is one of three travel-advisers’ event staged annually by the resort to promote the island as a golfing destination, while giving the resort chain’s sales reps personal experiences of its properties and Jamaica’s varied attractions.

The positive spinoff from the event has propelled Sandals to stage a World Travel Advisors Golf Tournament set for Emerald Bay, Bahamas, next year. Elissalde and his team are expected to be a part of that, along with those from the United States and Canada tournaments to come in September and October respectively. 

"My job is to help the travel advisors grow their business through golf and this year we actually had quite a few travel advisors that had never been to Jamaica, so the ultimate goal for them is to go back to their home country and sell Jamaica, sell Sandals and Beaches Resorts, and bring their clients down here," Coldiron said.

“The Sandals Foundation in general is also a very important part of Sandals Resorts and what is nice about it is that we as a company take it very seriously as far as ensuring that we give back not just in Jamaica but the entire Caribbean. We are a Caribbean-based company, and the ultimate goal is to take care of the Caribbean,” he noted.

By all indications, the Sandals Latin American Travel Agents Golf Tournament is not all about fun and games.

There is a serious side to the annual tournament.

Apart from serving as a common unifying force where Latin American-based travel agents meet to get their swing on and view close-up the exquisite Sandals Resorts International properties, the tournament also boasts a charitable side.

Financial proceeds raised, especially from a side-show putting contest, will go to the Sandals Foundation, which nourishes a robust junior golf programme that spawned the likes of Jamaican pro Wesley Brown.

Beyond that, Arlenes Garcia, director of sales and marketing for Latin America, pointed out that promoting the island as a major sports tourism attraction is of vital importance and the annual golf tournament presents the opportunity for travel agents to do so.

This year's ninth staging of the LatAm tournament attracted 98 agents from countries such as Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Panama, Peru and Mexico, who graced the Sandals Golf and Country Club in Upton, St Ann.

“The Caribbean and Jamaica is our home and so we are always pleased to be here spending time with our travel advisors and, more importantly, showing them the product. Being here is the opportunity to actually see the resorts and experience the Sandals product because seeing is believing,” Garcia said.

“So, when the travel advisors go back home, this is what they are going to talk about. Also, to be here playing golf on this fantastic golf course is the opportunity for them to actually grow that niche, as they make the most of the opportunities to bring tourism to this beautiful island,” she added.

While the putting contest – which sees the travel advisors contributing a small fee to participate –created some excitement of its own, there was also fireworks in the major four-member scramble tournament, as the two-day event picked up momentum on Saturday’s final day.

The team of Breno Luz, Ricardo Dantas, Denilson Milan, Raphael Abreu, were front runners from the start, while the trio of Artur Costa, Ricardo Silva, Marco Oliveira, and the quartet of Jorge Bardot, Jose Cabrera, Leonardo Curutchague and Andres Elissalde, also proved competitive.

Still, Garcia reiterated that camaraderie witnessed during golf, is just a small taste of how they work together to achieve a common goal.

“Year over year we see the increase of the tourism from the (Latin American) region into the Caribbean, especially Jamaica. We are one team promoting the life at Sandals beautiful resorts, this fantastic golf course and everything that we do day-by-day and so for me, Sandals has provided a career and the opportunity to grow,” she ended.