Denver Golf Expo Kicks Off Colorado Season

Be the first of your friends to hit the new Callaway MAVRIK driver. Get deep discounts from 65 courses. Win a trip to Hawaii or Bandon Dunes. Get your kids or grandkids hooked on the game.

It’s all possible at the 27th annual Denver Golf Expo taking place this weekend, February 7-9, at the Denver Mart (451 E 58th Ave at Washington St.).

Total Immersion

The largest consumer golf show in the Rocky Mountain region with more than 120 vendors, the Denver Golf Expo annually draws more than 11,000 avid, occasional and beginning golfers to North Denver in winter.

Some will come for deals, others to try new clubs, to get a free lesson or to introduce the sport to their children, grandchildren or significant others. Whatever the motivation, however, the majority are just itching to immerse themselves in a game winter has precluded them from playing.

Mark and Lynn Cramer, avid golfers who have co-owned the Expo for the last 20 years, clearly know the feeling. “Like most people, we haven’t picked up a club for months,” Mark says. “So getting folks to come before the season starts—and two weeks after all the new equipment launches at the PGA Merchandise Show in Florida—really gets everyone’s juices flowing. That’s why our slogan is, ‘Just play.’”

The Denver Golf Expo embraces that imperative. “We have done our best to offer an indoor golf experience which is interactive, informative, fun and immersive,” Mark Cramer says. “Couple all this with some great, show-only deals on green fees, equipment, apparel and golf vacations, and it is easy to see why the show attendees want to bring their friends, families, kids and grand kids to share in their love for the game.”

Deals Galore

Attendees get unreal deals on new equipment, rounds all over the state, lessons, clothing, membership programs and more. The Expo also stages hourly giveaways for some sweet swag (to be eligible, all you have to do is complete a brief attendee questionnaire near the entrance), including a $3,000 trip for two to Bandon Dunes Golf Resort.

Upon arriving, head directly to the Colorado PGA booth, where you can sign up for free (and thus wildly popular) 10-minute lessons with a talented Colorado PGA professional. Your “tee time” might not come for hours, but it will be worth the wait to shake the winter rust off your game.

Bargains abound, including those on absolute latest drivers, irons, wedges and putters from top manufacturers at the Lenny’s Golf Demo area.

Savvy golfers will visit the Colorado AvidGolfer booth to save thousands of dollars on green fees with the Golf Passport. This year’s edition comes with a free two-round, two-night stay in Mesquite, Nev. (while supplies last).

Looking to take your game on the road? Representatives from dozens of golf destinations across the country will tempt you with info and incentives.

Info to Go

At the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado (JGAC) and Colorado PGA booths, you can get information about attending or volunteering at the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship (July 13-20) at Eisenhower Golf Club. You can also find out more about other championship-related initiatives—such as the July 10 Women’s Leadership Summit—that make 2020 the “Year of the Woman” in Colorado golf.

Swing by the Colorado Golf Association booth to learn all about how the new World Handicap System, which has standardized how indexes are calculated around the globe, will affect you. While here, learn about the benefits of CGA membership, which extend beyond a hat and a handicap to discounts on apparel, golf equipment, rental cars, hotels, Avalanche and Nuggets tickets and other perks, including trips to Bandon, Kohler, Streamsong, Sand Valley and Ireland.

If you have a budding golfer, head to the Junior Golf Experience, the interactive golf concourse of the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado. Ask about the JGAC Youth on Course program, which lets kids between ages 6 and 17 play golf for $5 at 30 courses; the Drive, Chip and Putt program that could send your kid to Augusta National; and the life-changing benefits of the Solich Caddie and Leadership Academy.

Compete to Win

Like competing? The Expo features three opportunities:

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, with the winner receiving a stay-and-play golf package at Ka’anapali Royal in Maui.

The Long Putt Challenge, sponsored by TPC Colorado at Heron Lakes, gives you the opportunity to sink two putts from a distance of more than 60 feet. Tickets and VIP Packages to the Korn Ferry Tour’s TPC Colorado Championship at Heron Lakes await each day’s winners.

Co-sponsored by Optimum Golf and Lifetime Windows, the Long Drive Contest invites you to grip it and rip it on a Foresight GC2 Simulator. Winners in multiple categories receive indoor lesson packages at Optimum Golf’s state-of-the-art facility in Park Hill.

The Denver Golf Expo Difference

Food, alcohol and live music add ambience, but “what separates the Denver Golf Expo from others is Mark and Lynn are golfers,” says Colorado Golf Association Executive Director Ed Mate of owners. “They love the game. It’s who they are. As a result, the Denver Golf Expo has the same vibe and energy as the big PGA Merchandise Show in Florida—only on a smaller scale. It captures the essence of the game and it really resonates with golfers.”

Click here for ticket information.

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Colorado AvidGolfer Magazine is the state’s leading resource for golf and the lifestyle that surrounds it. CAG publishes eight issues annually and delivers daily content via coloradoavidgolfer.com.

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