Port Royal Golf Course has thrown its support behind Butterfield Bermuda Championship qualifiers Camiko Smith, Eric West and Nick Jones.

The trio have been granted unlimited and free access to the par-71 golf course to both play and practise in the lead up to the PGA Tour event to be held from November 14 to 17.

“We first of all acknowledge and congratulate Camiko Smith, Nick Jones and Eric West for making the local qualifier and getting a spot into the PGA,” Andrew Trott, operations manager for Port Royal and Ocean View Golf Course, told The Royal Gazette.

“What we want to do, and it has been approved by the minister, is that we are going to give them full access to the golf course at Port Royal at no charge to play and practise and support them in any way that we can.

“We have lighting now at the golf course thanks to Digicel for sponsoring lighting to do so and the range is open until 9pm where they can just come up and practise and get tuned in for the tournament.”

Smith is poised to make this third appearance in the Butterfield Bermuda Championship, fellow professional Jones his second and amateur West his second in successive years.

Trott said the groundstaff at Port Royal have been working extremely hard in the lead up to the 54-hole tournament to ensure the course will be up to par.

“The course is in very good shape right now. Obviously we are just battling the fact that the tournament is a little later than it was in past with the growing aspect of grass and making sure that it’s in good shape come tournament time,” he added.

“Jason Jackson [superintendent for Bermuda Government Golf Courses] is doing a great job on the golf course with the support from the PGA and other entities. He’s doing a great job and we’re looking to be in really good shape.

“With it being a little later in the year, daylight changes after the end of October, so it’s just the growing season and how the grass tends to grow that we are monitoring at the moment so that it can look lush come tournament day.”