Some of the best golf in the world is played on the Champions Tour, and many of the top players on the men ’s 50-and-over circuit are sure to participate in the inaugural playing of The Ginn Championship at Hammock Beach. That ’s partially because players won’t be able to resist the brand-new tournament’s whopping $2.5 million purse, $375,000 of which goes to the winner.

Scheduled to be played March 26-April 1 at Ginn Resorts’ newly acquired, oceanfront Ocean Hammock
Resort in Palm Coast, Fla., the tournament offers a purse that eclipses everything but the major championships on the 2007 schedule.

“This tournament is a prime example of Ginn’s penchant for ‘going big,’“ said Tournament Director John Subers. “We have the best players on the Champions Tour playing one of the best courses in Florida for one of the biggest purses on Tour. Without a doubt, the inaugural Ginn Championship at Hammock Beach will blow both players and fans away. ”

At press time, 38 of the top 40 players on the 2006 Champions Tour money list have committed to play at Hammock Beach, including Jay Haas, who won both the money title and the Charles Schwab Cup as he took home four tournament titles and put together an astounding 16 top-10 finishes and $2,420,227 in 21 starts.

Charles Schwab Cup Championship winner Jim Thorpe has also committed, as have consummate Champions Tour pros Gil Morgan, Lee Trevino and Hale Irwin, who leads the all-time Champions Tour money list with more than $23 million. Mark O ’Meara, who shocked the world when he won both the 1998 Masters and British Open as a 41 year old, turned 50 in January and will also play, as will fellow youngster Fred Funk, who recently won the Turtle Bay Championship by a record-breaking 11 shots.

More commitments have also come from Tom Watson, Allen Doyle, Ben Crenshaw, Brad Bryant, Craig Stadler, Curtis Strange, Gary Player, Peter Jacobsen and Scott Hoch, among others.

Ginn Resorts acquired the aptly-named Ocean Hammock Golf Club Jan. 3 as a part of the Ocean Hammock Resort. Shifting the tournament from Watson ’s Conservatory to the 7,201-yard, par-72 Ocean Hammock Golf Club in late January, Ginn Resorts retained not only a world-class test for professional golfers but ensured a breathtaking scene to host the Ginn Championship. Eight holes overlook the Atlantic Ocean on the only true oceanfront course to open in Florida in more than 70 years.

In his design, Jack Nicklaus maintained the elevated mounds of scrub oak and native brush, called “hammocks,” to create natural ocean barriers, and he used native coquina sand to mold the distinctive cinnamon-colored bunkers. Six of Ocean Hammock ’s holes are actually on the Atlantic Ocean, while the remaining wind through unspoiled wetlands and past sparkling lakes. The last four holes of the course have been nicknamed the “Bear’s Claw” and are considered to be among the most memorable finishing holes anywhere.

When it opened in 2000, Ocean Hammock Golf Club quickly earned accolades from professionals and amateurs alike. Golf Magazine deemed Ocean Hammock among the “Top 10 New Courses You Can Play,” in addition to Silver Medal Resort honors.

Although the Ginn Championship and the Champions Tour players will most likely become the best to have ever teed it up at the Ocean Hammock Golf Club, it is no stranger to high-caliber golf: The course has hosted U.S. Open Qualifying, the U.S. Women ’s Public Links Championship, the American Amateur Golf Tour National Championship, the Amateur Golfers Tour Championship and the Georgia Seniors Golf Association Championship.

The Ocean Hammock	The Lodge and Pool

Florida Hospital Flagler boasts a new 300,000-square-foot facility, and its unique healing environment provides patients and their families with a nurturing atmosphere while giving them access to some of today ’s most advanced medical technology.

“This tournament is right in our backyard and provides Florida Hospital with a great opportunity to inform the community about the area ’s only acute care hospice house, the Stuart F. Meyer Hospice House, which is set to open in spring 2007, ” said Kent Ryan, executive director of the Florida Hospital Memorial Foundation.

Florida Hospital Flagler is part of Florida Hospital Memorial System, which also includes Florida Hospital Ormond Memorial and Florida Hospital Oceanside. With more than 400 licensed beds, nearly 500 physicians on its medical staff and more than 2,000 employees, Florida Hospital Memorial System combines medical expertise with state-of-the-art services to serve its community members with the highest quality health care in the area.

Not only will the Florida Hospital Flagler and the Stuart F. Meyer Hospice House see charitable gains, and the player walking away with the trophy will leave with bulging pockets, but the community as a whole will also see an increase in revenue.

Local hotels, condominiums, rental units, restaurants, grocery stores, convenience stores – essentially any type of retail establishment – will see a spike in sales as a result of out-of-towners in the Hammock Beach area to take in the tournament. In fact, Subers said tournaments in similar locations have netted up to $30 million for their communities.

“People don’t realize how much a tournament like this benefits the community economically,” Subers said. “The quality of life effects are easy to sight, but the deepest positive impact comes when the area businesses add up their sales for the week and see how much income an event like this can bring the community each year. ”

Ginn Sports Entertainment and the Champions Tour have signed a five-year deal that will keep the event at Hammock Beach. Three of the tournament ’s four rounds will be televised by The Golf Channel. Ticket, volunteer, sponsorship and hospitality opportunities are still available by calling the tournament office at (386) 246-6700.

The Ginn Championship at Hammock Beach is one of four tournaments owned and operated by Ginn Sports Entertainment – the Champions Tour’s ACE Group Classic will be played Feb. 19-25, while the LPGA’s Ginn Open will tee off for the second time April 9-15, and the LPGA’s Ginn Tribute Hosted by Annika Sorenstam will be played for the first time May 31-June 3.