Ford Championship at Doral

Nov. 17, 2003
MIAMI -- Golf world take notice: You with your titanium drivers and non-linear, solid core golf balls -- the Blue Monster course at Doral Golf Resort and Spa is looking forward to biting into your elongated drives and swallowing up your high-tech golf balls.

Scheduled to be completed by December, the ageless resort known as the "Kingdom of Golf" announces that 166 yards will be strategically added to five of the Blue Monster's 18 holes. The Blue Monster is home to the Ford Championship at Doral, a top PGA TOUR event. Doral has hosted a PGA TOUR event for over 40 years. Doral Golf Resort and Spa is working closely with PGA TOUR officials on the enhancements. Almost all construction will be completed behind the existing tees keeping interruption to regular play to a minimum.

"Golfers of all skill levels will continue to associate Doral with cutting edge advances that make the game challenging and exciting," said Tom Manno, general manager of Doral Golf Resort and Spa.

"The new changes at Doral will keep The Blue Monster is at the top end of all TOUR courses and I'm quite sure that the lengthening of No. 18 will make this, once again, the toughest finishing hole on the PGA TOUR," said world renown golf instructor Jim McLean, whose Jim McLean Golf School is headquartered at Doral Golf Resort and Spa.

Currently the Blue Monster's length is 7,125 yards from the tournament tees. While the added yardage will make the Blue Monster one of the longer Florida tournament stops, the real challenge is the landing areas and bunkers originally designed by Dick Wilson to force strategic shot making that will again be in play. Currently the holes that will be lengthened include:

No. 3: Lengthening the hole 29 yards will force most players to use a driver or 3-wood to play the hole effectively. The new yardage puts the left fairway bunker at 287 yards off the tee.

No. 8: By lengthening this hole 35 yards, the bunker has become approximately 290 yards off the tee -- out of reach for the average player to bypass. It will also leave most players with around 260 yards to the green.

No. 11: Has been lengthened by 40 yards, creating a 400-yard par 4. A fairway has been added on the right side of the middle bunker, giving players a strategic option (depending on pin placements). The left bunker has been reduced to make the left fairway more attractive for players who must now choose between equally challenging sides of the fairway.

No. 14: A total of 30 yards have been added to the hole, putting the bunker at almost exactly 290 yards and requiring players to play the hole honestly.

No. 18: This finishing hole now plays 467 yards. The average player will now be hitting into the green from 177 yards (instead of 145). In addition, the beach bunker has been converted to rough, putting a premium on accuracy.

Photos available upon request.

About Doral Golf Resort and Spa:

Situated on 650 tropical acres in Miami, Fla., with 692 rooms and suites, Doral Golf Resort and Spa features five championship golf courses, six restaurants, the acclaimed Jim McLean Golf School and the famed Arthur Ashe Tennis Center. The secluded, European-style Spa at Doral is nestled within the resort and offers 100 different spa treatments and services, a registered dietician/ nutritionist and state-of-the-art fitness center with 49 classes per week, as well as a range of high-end spa luxuries and facilities. Doral's Blue Monster Course has been host to the PGA TOUR since 1962. Doral Golf Resort and Spa is owned and operated by KSL Resorts.

About KSL Resorts:

KSL Resorts was founded in 1992 and is based in La Quinta, Calif. It owns and operates some of the most unique and memorable golf and spa resorts in the world. For more information visit www.kslresorts.com