Denver Golf Expo Kicks Off Colorado Golf Season

Golfers make annual pilgrimage to Denver Golf Expo this weekend.

Forget that li’l ol’ tournament in Augusta. Colorado golfers know the golf season starts every February with a trip to the Denver Golf Expo.

In what has become an annual ritual, thousands of golf enthusiasts will converge on The Denver Mart (58th and Washington) February 8-10, for one of the country’s foremost consumer golf exhibitions.

By Jon Rizzi

Some come to try the latest clubs; others to learn how to use them. Many want a chance to win free or discounted rounds at different courses, or to get screaming deals on products, annual memberships and golf vacations. A good number will also look to enrich their golf experiences by learning about this year’s sweeping changes to the Rules of Golf.

Above all, every attendee arrives to rekindle his or her passion for a sport that winter doesn’t easily lend itself to playing. “We want you to think of the Expo as ‘Your Key to the Game,’” says Mark Cramer, who with his wife Lynn has owned the Expo since 2000.

And with more than 120 vendors and active participation by the Colorado Golf Association, Colorado PGA Section and Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado, the Denver Golf Expo certainly gives you every opportunity to turn that key.

HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:

• Special Pricing on The Golf Passport. Get deep discounts on golf at 63 courses (including The Ridge at Castle Pines, Inverness, CommonGround, Colorado National, Perry Park, Raccoon Creek and Heritage Eagle Bend). All prices include a cart fee; all but four courses allow weekend play; and 19 courses offer unlimited play. Purchase The Golf Passport at the Expo for $59.95 and, for only $15 more, get 12 Callaway Chrome Soft golf balls. Upgrade at the Expo to a Deluxe Passport PLUS (which includes the Chrome Softs, CGA membership and an official USGA handicap) for $109.95, and you’ll also receive a complimentary round at CommonGround Golf Course. Every version of the Golf Passport also includes more than 100 exclusive dining deals, free Warrior Golf Custom wedge or hybrid and other bonuses.

• Club Demo Area. At a 15-bay space sponsored by Lenny’s Golf Shop, you can not only try the newest models from Callaway, TaylorMade, Ping and other major manufacturers, but also buy them at preferred prices and optimize them with a complimentary master club-fitting at Lenny’s Aurora store.

• Closest-to-the-Pin Challenge. Sponsored by Stan Sayers Golf, the Closest-to-the-Pin contest utilizes a Trackman to gauge your shot’s proximity on a simulated par 3. The closest to the pin all three days will qualify for a Sunday afternoon playoff. The winner then receives a stay-and-play golf package at Ka’anapali Royal in Maui.

• Long Putt Challenge. You get you two balls—one of which is a “money ball”—to putt from a distance of more than 60 feet. Hole the non-money ball and you’ll get a round of golf at Tubac Golf Resort & Spa in Arizona, while sinking the “money ball” earns you a spot in the Sunday Putt-Off and a shot at the grand prize of a Tubac stay-and-play vacation.

• Free Lessons. Take your first swing or tune up your old one with a free lesson from one of Colorado’s PGA Professionals, or learn all about the groundbreaking programs—including the money-saving Youth on Course—of the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado, which has become a national model for youth golf organizations.

• Hourly Giveaways. All attendees are eligible for raffle prizes, ranging from a golf hat to a trip to Bandon Dunes Golf Resort.

• “The Turn.” A beer area with music sponsored by Corona Premier will replace the beer garden in the center of the Pavilion.

To understand how important the Denver Golf Expo is to the state’s golf community, look no further than the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame, which is this year honoring the Cramers with its Lifetime Achievement Award for their lifelong efforts in growing the game of golf.

Click here to purchase advance tickets.

Colorado AvidGolfer Magazine is the state’s leading resource for golf and the lifestyle that surrounds it, publishing eight issues annually and proudly delivering daily content via coloradoavidgolfer.com.

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