The decision by the PGA of Australia nearly two years ago to stage the Australian PGA Championship at RACV Royal Pines Resort on the Gold Coast is proving to be an increasingly good one, particularly for the players and their families.

One of the reasons the event has been so successful over the years is firstly that the players see it as one of Australian golf’s flagship tournaments. But the provision of a relaxed environment with quality facilities, ensuring players recognise the event as a great way to wind down at the end the year, has been another catalyst for the growth of the time honoured event.

The PGA of Australia, in investigating alternative venues for the 2013 championship, considered a range of options and while the quality of the golf course was an important consideration so too were the additional recreational and entertainment facilities a potential venue could offer if it was to entice some of the game’s best players.

The new venue had to be one capable of providing some of the world’s best golfers the chance to head into a new year off the back of a week which helped them wind down from a tough and demanding season.

As part of RACV’s bid to secure the Championship at RACV Royal Pines Resort on the Gold Coast, it committed to the redevelopment of the golf course. The work began in March 2014 and the much vaunted front nine holes of the revamped layout will be on display when the 2014 Australian PGA Championship is played this year.

While the new golfing layout provides a breath of fresh air for RACV Royal Pines it may well be that it will be RACV’s commitment to the creation of quality leisure and recreational facilities that will prove the catalyst for players and their families to return to Royal Pines again and again, and secure Royal Pines as the home of championship golf in Queensland.

The opportunity for player’s wives to enjoy the luxurious pampering of the recently opened day spa while their husbands or partners tackle the subtleties of the new layout at Royal Pines is sure to be popular. It might be that several of the field assembled for the event itself find themselves winding down with the wide and enticing range of therapies and treatments designed to relieve stress and relax the mind. 

 
A visit to the gym has become very much part of the daily routine for Professional golfers of all levels and the brand new Health and Fitness Centre at RACV Royal Pines provides both the absolute latest in gymnasium equipment to work on every area of the body along with a great outlook over the resort’s pool.   

The past six months or so have seen the completion of the high-end gymnasium and the multi-million dollar day spa known as the One Spa, both the equal of anything in the region and perhaps anywhere in Australia. They will not only prove an attraction for some of golf’s best but, for those choosing RACV Royal Pines for a holiday or business trip, they too will have the opportunity to utilise the superb facilities.

So too will the public of the Gold Coast as the gymnasium and day spa are open for use by other than resort guests and, given the quality they offer, are sure to prove popular with all.

When the resort’s wide choice of award winning restaurants is added to the mix, one gets the feeling that the PGA Championship will establish a long-term base at RACV Royal Pines in the years ahead.