Gary Player - The Legend

Gary Player Opens Donnafugata Golf Resort In Scenic Sicily, Italy

Oct 19, 2010 | Filed Under: General News   

Ragusa, Italy – On the heels of a dramatic European Ryder Cup victory enjoyed by the Italian Molinari brothers, Gary Player has played his ceremonial first round at the Donnafugata Golf Resort course that he designed in Sicily.

“Not only am I excited about this beautiful golf course, I am also very pleased to see the renewed enthusiasm about the game in general in Italy.”  The Molinari brothers and young Matteo Manassero have brought tremendous exposure to the sport and have laid a foundation for the future,” Gary Player said to a large group of media at Donnafugata on October 6th.

Donnafugata Golf Resort and Spa is a new NH Hotel destination near the historic town of Ragusa, which is in an area recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  The Gary Player Design team went to great lengths to protect and even incorporate the surrounding environment.  Groves of olive trees were spared, and ancient rock walls once delineating family property boundaries were preserved and rebuilt as features of the golf course.  There is even an archaeological site adjacent to the sixth hole, where it is possible to visit a Greek necropolis of the sixth century B.C.  “I love history, and you really feel the heritage of this remarkable part of Italy as you play,” said Mr. Player.  “And we have achieved something that doesn’t often happen…..there is not a marginal hole on the course….all eighteen holes are very, very good, very playable, and very natural.”

The NH Hotel Group did a wonderful job of creating state-of-the-art resort facilities around the Baroque style Donnafugata Castle.  Rooms, restaurants and the spa offer all one would expect in a modern resort, but guests can also tour an historic wine operation that has been restored and offered for private dinner parties.  One can imagine generations past stomping grapes in huge containers that are on display.

Donnafugata Golf Resort is just one of several Gary Player Design projects in Italy.  The beautiful Palazzo Arzaga Golf Resort in Bresia has been open for many years, and both the second course at Is Molas in Sardinia and Manzano Golf Resort in Cortona are currently in planning and under construction.

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