Last month BOYNE Golf welcomed international golf travel professionals to the 15th annual North America Golf Tourism Convention (NAC), staged by International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO).
It was attended by 280 delegates from 29 countries, making it one of the most internationally diverse tourism events ever to have taken place in a region known as ‘America’s Summer Capital of Golf.’
Event host BOYNE Golf has 10 golf courses, appropriately named “Michigan’s Magnificent Ten,” including the Links/Quarry course at Bay Harbor Golf Club and the Arthur Hills golf course at The Highlands. Both received high praise from the convention participants.
There are seven golf resorts offering a total of 29 courses within a 90-minute drive of Traverse City’s Cherry Capital Airport. Those are in addition to numerous individual golf clubs set amidst a landscape brimming with lakes, forests, hills, islands and rivers, complemented by vineyards, lake resort towns, open roads and ideal summer golfing weather.
Peter Walton, Chief Executive of IAGTO said,
“For 95% of these well-traveled delegates, this was their first visit to northern Michigan, and it has really opened their eyes to the possibilities of developing summer golf programs for their golf traveling clients who are always on the lookout for new experiences.”
The event served brought the region’s golf tourism industry together, with the support from the Petoskey Area, Traverse City, Gaylord, and the State of Michigan, as well as the America’s Summer Capital of Golf Association of courses.
Walton also added,
“NAC has a long-established record as the single most important golf tourism event in the USA. During two days of meetings between golf tour operators and golf tourism suppliers, primarily from across North America, Latin America, and the Caribbean, new business and destinations were embraced that will set the course of golf travel throughout the Americas over the coming 15 months.”
Ken Griffin, BOYNE Golf’s Director of Golf Sales and Marketing, said,
“It was an honor for BOYNE Golf to host the IAGTO 2024 NAC at Boyne Mountain Resort. It was rewarding to see the delegates take advantage of our long days, to experience first-hand the quality and variety of our 10 courses, as well as the variety of activities available when they were not on our courses. The best golf travel experts from around the world experienced just how incredible a Northern Michigan golf experience at BOYNE Golf can be.”
Birmingham, Alabama, was announced as the host destination for the next NAC, which will take place June 17-19, 2025.
