Golf Update heard of the Golf Festival 24 - 28 September at the Korineum Golf & Country Resort in North Cyprus. This made them curious and they started conversation about the festival. They want to anounce this special event for their golfers. Converted a lot of questioning begun and Claudia Rehart decided to check out the Golf course as well as the hotel directly on the spot. There she was impressed about the spectacular 18-hole Championship Golfcourse between mountains and amazing seaviews.

Golf Update Editor in Chief, Claudia Rehart talked to Korineum Golf & Country Resort General Manager, Umut Gurtunc.

l.t.r.Umut Gurtunc, Lyndsay Davies, Miriam Gurtunc, Claudia Rehart

Golf Update:   The Korineum Golf Resort opened 5 years before - what is your summary so far?

Umut Gurtunc: Korineum project started as a Golf Club 5 years ago in 2007. Since then we have expanded the project with a Boutique Hotel of 86 rooms, a vast Club House with Restuarants, Bars, Spa and Fitness Centers. We also have an open air swimming pool. We provide an excellent 18 hole golf course, an exquisite diving range with Academy facilities and 3 hole Acaemy course. The quality of the course and servies within the facilities are very important to us. We prefer to maintain the local cultural feel of hospitality at its best. As a resort we have hosted a Pro-Am, Festival of Golf many sponsored tournaments, many of the North Cyprus Federation tournaments and Club matches. We have many visitors from overseas who have a golfing holiday or summer holiday with us and we are quite specialist at hosting destination and local weddings. We will be opening our Beach this summer and aiming to host holiday-makers with golf & beach facilities.

Golf Update:    What are your goals with view of your championship course for the next years?

Umut Gurtunc:  We hope to increase the numbers of visitors from oveseas and host more tournaments. Our new concept of Golf & Beach shoul encourage this further, specially for holiday makers who are not golfers or who are keen swimmers.

Golf Update:    North Cyprus is a golf secret for the winter months how you many golfer do you host from October to May?

Umut Gurtunc: There are many golfers that visit us during these months mainly from colder climates. The course and weather conditions are optimal at this time and enjoyed by many. Also golfers enjoy to spend the Festive Christmas & New Year holidays under warmer climates with their love ones.

Golf Update:  What do you have in the pipeline for the next golf generation - let us say  promoting young talent in Golfing?

Umut Gurtunc: Previously we have hosted Junior golfing summer camps in order to promote the sport. We have also hosted junior camps in alliance with the Federation and given scholarships to up-coming talents. We are hoping to introduce golf in to the sports curriculum for some of the schools, however this is a very new project an we envisage that this will take time. However we are beginning to host Juniorgroups from overseas with their Golf Pros.

 Golf Update: Last year you had a perfect organized Pro-Am  tournament - when do you plan the next one? Are there any efforts and dates so far?

Umut Gurtunc: We have some plans for 2013, however unfortunately I am unable to give any definite dates yet.

Golf Update: Please let us know how many greenkeepers are working on the course per week.  

Umut Gurtunc: We have 24 people full time in the green keeping team.

Golf Update:  As you focus on enviromental protection you implentated a complex the irrigation system for the course. How does that function?

Umut Gurtunc: This is a vey complicated an technical system where we have a desalination plant that pumps the desalinated water in to the 2 man made lakes on the course from which the course watering takes place by a computer based program. This is just a simple overview of the system, but we work very hard to produce this water and keep the area (not just the course) green.

 Golf Update: Since December 2007 The Korinuem Golf Resort is a Member of the IAGTO - what are the plans for the future?

Umut Gurtunc: Since 2007 we are members of IAGTO and other golf related organisations. We plan to continue our membership and active particpation to golf trade and tourism fairs in order to introduce North Cyprus and North Cyprus Golf which is a well kept secret as a destination to the world.

Golf Update:   The last year started Golf Festival in September was a great success - are there any news for 2012?Could you already reveal details?

Umut Gurtunc: This year we will be having the secon Festival of Golf in September from 24th until 29th. This will be a fun-filled week of golf tournaments and a great GALA. There will be Mens Indiviual Tournament, Ladies İndiviual Tournament, a practice day and 2 mixed competitions. Many have already started to sign up.

click for more pics: http://golf-update.de/index.php?q=golf-bilder/cyprus-federation-cup-2012...

Thank you for being my interviewpartner said Claudia Rehart

Redaktion: CR Bild: Claudia Rehart