Silvertip Resort Receives GCSAA/Golf Digest Environmental Leader Award

(ALBERTA, Canada) – Silvertip Resort – one of the six courses in the Canadian Rockies golf-and-resort lifestyle destination consortium- recently earned the prestigious GCSAA / Golf Digest Environmental Leader Award, which annually honors the best ecological efforts by superintendents worldwide.

The award specifically recognized Silvertip Resort and its Superintendent Robin Sadler for his ability to grow turf in a five-month golf season while facing severe weather conditions and upholding the club’s high expectations for aesthetics and playability. Silvertip – home course to PGA TOUR star Stephen Ames – sits at about 5,000 feet altitude and was one of four courses selected worldwide, the only non-American course.

“Silvertip’s terrain features 600 feet of elevation changes and precipitous drops,” says Sadler. “Factor in our harsh winters and this award is exceptionally meaningful. We are committed to environmental stewardship and look to improve ecological preservation and management in years to come.”

Silvertip joins Stewart Creek Golf & Country Club (2004) as winners of the GCSAA/ Golf Digest award and both are Audubon Sanctuary program members, joining virtually all of its Canadian Rockies destination partners in holding that respected distinction. The Fairmont Banff Springs, The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, and Kananaskis Country Golf Course have also earned Audubon status.

Canmore Golf & Curling Club rounds out the six prestigious Canadian Rockies co-op members, all internationally celebrated for their wildlife and their breathtaking mountain setting, the core of which sits amid thousands upon thousands of acres in protected national parkland. Its collective brand tagline says it all: Canadian Rockies Golf: Historic. Dramatic. Untamed.

“The Canadian Rockies golf-and-resort lifestyle destination mirrors our national reverence of and care for our land,” says Gordon Schultz, spokesman for the consortium. “Hence this award brings us great pride and thankfulness. Being honored for environmental contributions is the zenith for we Canadians, who are dedicated collectively to caring for our abundant wildlife and natural splendor.”

Canadian Rockies golf is defined by historic, top-rated courses designed by iconic architects such as Stanley Thompson and Robert Trent Jones and features stunning modern layouts by talented designers Les Furber and Gary Browning. A mix of alluring classical- and alpine-style routings complement one another and enhance golfers’ experience.

Combine the spectacular scenery and summer daylight as late as 11 p.m. and golfers can play to their heart’s delight and still have time for family and the region’s many activities. These include award- winning spas, helicopter tours, hiking, fishing, rafting, gourmet restaurants, indoor and outdoor pools, horseback riding and many children’s programs.

What people are increasingly discovering, however, are the proximity of these properties to one another as well as the combined wealth of resort and lifestyle options accessible by Calgary and Edmonton airports – from international and commercial to regional and private.

To view the stunning topography, vacation options and learn more about the area visit www.canadianrockiesgolf.ca. Website visitors can view stay-and-play packages or request custom quotes for trips and packages or they may call 877.323.3633 for more information.

The critical acclaim and extraordinary attributes of the six members of the destination – “Canadian Rockies Golf: Historic. Dramatic. Untamed.” – include:

1. Canmore Golf and Curling Club (www.canmoregolf.net, 888.678.4785)
   Valley-based property requires players use all clubs in their bag, narrow fairways challenge all levels of golfers. Tree-lined course, friendly community atmosphere provides intimacy and camaraderie. Located at base of Bow Valley, glacier-fed streams lace through course.
2. The Fairmont Banff Springs (www.fairmont.com/banffsprings, 800.441.1414)
   Historical course and castle-like hotel with regal ambiance, award-winning Willow Stream Spa and exquisite resort amenities 27 holes of golf – 18 Stanley Thompson-designed holes including the 200-yard, par-3 Devil’s Cauldron, 147 bunkers, and the 9-hole Tunnel Course Panoramic beauty, picturesque-mountain setting nestled between Sulphur Mountain and Mount Rundle Situated in Banff National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
3. The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge (www.fairmont.com/jasper, 800.441.1414)
   Featuring the “wild side of the Rockies” – elk, caribou, coyote, bear and wolves inhabit the national park Widely regaled as one of the world’s best resort courses Designed by Stanley Thompson, the 18 holes carve contours at the feet of mountains. Located in the heart of Jasper National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
4. Kananaskis Country Golf Course (www.kananaskisgolf.com, 877.591.2525)
   Robert Trent Jones Sr. exquisitely designed courses, situated in serene Kananaskis Country. 36 holes played beneath breathtaking Mt. Lorette and Mt. Kidd, after which the courses are respectively named. Features immaculate lush fairways, famed island-like 4th green on Mt. Kidd course, 140+ silica sand bunkers and the cascading Kananaskis River.
5. Silvertip Golf Resort (www.silvertipresort.com, 877.877.5444)
   Home course of PGA Tour Member and 2006 Players Champion Stephen Ames. Golf Digest rated 4 ½ stars and lauded for environmental sensitivity and maintenance practices. 600 feet of elevation change, including dramatic par-4 18th with extreme altitude drop from tee to fairway, fairway to green.
6. Stewart Creek Golf & Country Club (www.stewartcreekgolf.com/golf, 877.993.GOLF)