Now in the fourth year at Blackhawk Country Club in the scenic town of Danville, the CVS Pharmacy/LPGA Challenge returns on Oct. 11-17.  Tickets are now available online at the tournament website.  Guest attending this event are treated to warm sunshine, excellent golf and extraordinary hospitality.  To plan your trip, visit the tournament website for tickets  – then visit the Tri-Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau website for additional things to do during your stay,  including where to dine, where to stay and of course information on the Tri-Valley’s own Livemrore Valley Wine Country.

Gorgeous Callippe Preserve Golf Course in Pleasanton, CA

Congratulations to Callippe Preserve Golf Course in Pleasanton for being named one of Golfweek’s Best Municipal Courses in the nation for 2008-2009.  The list is compiled by a nationwide team of more than 475 evaluators who rate the courses on the basis of 10 strict standards including routing, conditioning, variety and memorability of holes. The result is an average of scores, which then dictates a course’s overall ranking.

“This is a very prestigious honor for Callippe Preserve Golf Course, to be considered one of the top 50 municipal courses in the nation out of more than 8,000 courses. This well-kept secret of local golfers is now out of the bag to the larger golf world,” according to course General Manager Mike Ash.

This marks the first time that the course has been included on the elite list, which also boasts Torrey Pines course in La Jolla, host of Tiger Woods’ dramatic U.S. Open victory last summer, and San Francisco’s Harding Park, which will host the President’s Cup this fall.

Callippe Preserve Golf Course, which opened in November 2005, is also one of the newer courses on the distinguished list. Callippe Golf Course was developed as part of a cooperative effort to create an 18-hole golf course, hiking and equestrian trails, endangered species habitat, wetland establishment, and dedicated grazing land. The course site is a protected habitat for the federally endangered Callippe Silverspot Butterfly and the California Tiger Salamander, and the federally threatened California Red Legged Frog.

There are five sets of tees on this par 72, with the black tees playing at 6,748. The blue tees measure at 6,409, then the white tees at 6,024 yards, the gold tees at 5,560, and the red at 4,788 yards. Players on this course will get a preview of the demanding approach to the 10th hole when making their way to the number one green.  Varieties of terrain are spread throughout the course as the front nine is routed through the valley and the back nine sits on a higher elevation with the Happy Valley Creek winding throughout. Read the article here:

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World's Greatest Golf Movie. EVER!

Wishing that you could be teeing up this morning instead of in your office? I sure do! Let’s lighten up our day with a  little humor for this sunny Monday  morning.

My husband & I watched Caddyshack over the weekend, and we were talking about our fave quotes! What’s are your favorites?   Gunga galunga… gunga, gunga-galunga.

Here’s a few of mine to start us off!

Carl Spackler: This crowd has gone deadly silent, a Cinderella story outta nowhere. Former greenskeeper and now about to become the masters champion … He’s on his final hole. He’s about 455 yards away, he’s gonna hit about a 2 iron I think … IT’S IN THE HOLE!

Judge Smails: You know, you should play with Dr. Beeper and myself. I mean, he’s been club champion for three years running and I’m no slouch myself.

Ty Webb: Don’t sell yourself short Judge, you’re a tremendous slouch.

Carl Spackler: Correct me if I’m wrong Sandy, but if I kill all the golfers they’ll lock me up and throw away the key.

Sandy: Not golfers, you great fool. Gophers. The little brown, furry rodents.

Carl Spackler: We can do that. We don’t even need a reason.

Let’s have some fun this morning! What’s your favorite Caddyshack Quote?

Throughout her storied 15-year playing career, Annika was fortunate to experience many of the best wines the world has to offer. At Wente Vineyards, they share the same passion for fine wine, fine dining, and golf as a way of life. The same scenic acres that produce their varietals are also home to Northern California’s premier destination golf course. It’s only natural that Annika would choose to meld her passions for fine wine and golf together in the rolling hills of the Livermore Valley at Wente Vineyards.

Working closely with fifth generation Winemaker Karl Wente, the two hand selected the 2006 Syrah from the Silva block on the Livermore Valley estate to be the backbone of the wine. The Syrah emits aromas of wild blackberry, plum, and strawberry that continue with chocolate and coffee flavors from the barrel. The Cabernet Sauvignon boosts the structure of the wine in the mid-pallet and augments the cassis and clove aromas. The amenable, big tannins carry the diverse flavors through the mouth for a long, rewarding finish.

“I was drawn to Wente Vineyards because we share the same passions, fine wine, fine dining, and championship golf,” Sorenstam said. “I really enjoyed the blending process with Karl, as we are both perfectionists. I am very excited about our end product.” “It was our goal to blend a wine that Annika is passionate about, and that had the strength of a Cabernet Sauvignon, but the refined elegance and fruit of the Syrah,” says Winemaker Karl Wente. “Our Syrah has an intensity of flavor and aroma without being too big.”

About Annika

Annika is one of the most dominant players in women’s golf. Throughout her storied career, she rewrote the LPGA and Ladies European Tour record books, won countless awards and events, and brought unprecedented attention to women’s golf. Her success has changed how women’s golf is played, covered, and viewed, and in her rise to mainstream athlete and celebrity, she has had a positive impact on all women’s sports. Annika continues to impact lives with the establishing of the ANNIKA Foundation, which teaches children the importance of living a healthy, active lifestyle through fitness and nutrition, and offers aspiring junior golfers opportunities to pursue their dreams. In addition, her boutique golf instructional school, the ANNIKA Academy outside of Orlando, Fla., provides individualized golf instruction and custom-made fitness programs to help golfers of all levels improve their game.

About Wente Vineyards

2008 marks Wente Vineyards’ 125th Anniversary. The country’s oldest continuously operated family-owned winery, Wente Vineyards is led today by the fourth and fifth generations of the Wente family. Blending traditional and innovative winemaking practices, the winery draws from 3,000 acres of sustainably farmed estate vineyards to create an outstanding portfolio of wines. Located just east of San Francisco in the historic Livermore Valley, Wente Vineyards is recognized as one of California’s premier wine country destinations, featuring wine tasting, fine dining, and championship golf.

Suggested Retail Price – $75.00 750ml Bottle Nationally Released – May 2009 611 cases produced

To purchase, please visit www.annikavineyards.com.

Chris Conway of The Course at Wente Vineyards provides this putting drill for The Course at Wente Vineyards.

AP reports opponents are the California Alliance for Golf.   “You don’t see a tax on movies,” said Bob Bouchier, executive director of the California Alliance for Golf. “You don’t see a tax on bowling. You don’t see skiing. You don’t see a tax on any other sport.”

You can learn more about the golf tax proposal here CA Alliance for Golf  by clicking this link http://www.forecalifornia.com/cag/index.cfm

A beautiful view of Wente from the 9th hole

Happy to report that RV Life published a fantastic article called “Pairing Golf with Wine”.  The article features reviews of the Course at Wente Vineyards and the Bridges Golf Course in San Ramon.  Writer Rick Stedman states that “One of the top attractions of the region is The Course at Wente Vineyards. This is a one-stop entertainment venue that features wine tasting, excellent dining, outdoor concerts, and an 18-hole Greg Norman-designed championship golf course. What more could a visitor want?”

As for Bridges, Stedman suggests that “One of the most challenging and exciting holes is the horseshoe-shaped 557-yard, par-5 sixth. This elongated dogleg right features a set of bunkers anchoring the fairway at around 200 yards. The downhill terrain leads you to a deep, no recovery creek, and one of those aforementioned bridges. You’ll want to stay below the hole on this monster green that’s curvy, slanted and fast.”

Read the article at http://rvlife.com/index.php/RV-Golfer/Pairing-Golf-with-Wine.html

PLEASANTON, CA – September 16, 2008 – The Tri-Valley, California Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB), in partnership with the third-party travel-packager SilverVoyages.com, announces the launch of Northern California’s newest golf consortium, dubbed Golf Tri-Valley.  The Tri-Valley, California CVB in conjunction with its area hotels and public golf courses, has created the consortium to increase rounds for participating members, while generating room night bookings for Tri-Valley hotels.  Unique to Golf Tri-Valley is the ability to book tee times at the time of booking, and customize packages based on cost.  Visitors can purchase stay and play packages at www.golftrivalley.com or www.golftrivalleyca.com.

“The creation of the Golf Tri-Valley marketing consortium aligns with our strategy to promote Tri-Valley, California as a desirable golf destination as well as our mission to generate measurable spending and awareness by partnering with our public courses and area hotels on stay and play packages,” said Amy Blaschka, president & CEO of the Tri-Valley, California CVB.

Golf is a significant niche market in Tri-Valley, generating approximately 500,000* individual and tournament-play rounds annually at the area’s public courses.  While rounds per year have been decreasing, competition for golfers has been increasing.  The Golf Tri-Valley consortium will effectively market the five-city region as a highly desirable golf destination, and increase consumer and media awareness.  Participating courses include The Bridges Golf Club, Callippe Preserve, The Course at Wente Vineyards, Las Positas Golf Course, Poppy Ridge Golf Course, Springtown Golf Course, and the Sunol Valley Golf Club.

The consortium’s launch is supported by the creation of a new brand identity, web page development (www.golftrivalleyca.com & www.golftrivalley.com), advertising, collateral design and production, public relations outreach, and the development of an e-newsletter.

Having already recognized Tri-Valley, California as a premier golf destination, the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) will return for a third year during the 2008 Longs Drugs Challenge at Blackhawk Country Club.  The tournament will take place October 9-12, playing host to 108 professional women golfers.  The tournament is open to the public, and is expected to draw more than 60,000 spectators.  For more information on ticket purchasing and parking details please visit www.longsdrugschallenge.com.

*  Annual total calculated from figures provided by the East Bay Business Times’ Book of Lists, and participating courses.

About SilverVoyages
Silvervoyages.com was created in 1999 out of the need for golf and ski packaging solutions.  Silvervoyages.com is an ‘outsource’ company that specializes in seamless, back-of-house package booking functions. We are contracted by our clients to facilitate the needs of their guests’ rooms, golf, skiing, and all other components that generally make up a travel-related package.

About the Tri-Valley, California Convention & Visitors Bureau
The Tri-Valley, California Convention & Visitors Bureau is the destination marketing organization for the cities of Pleasanton, Livermore, Dublin, San Ramon, Danville and the surrounding region.  It markets Tri-Valley, California as a preferred destination for visitors, meetings, and events by promoting CVB member businesses and bringing overnight visitors to the region, to increase awareness of and measurable spending to Tri-Valley, California.

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Tri-Valley, California Convention & Visitors Bureau – www.trivalleycvb.com
349 Main Street, Ste. 203, Pleasanton, CA 94566 | alison@trivalleycvb.com