Dwayne Pearman Jr is relishing the chance to provide the island’s golfers with another opportunity for greater exposure and tournament experience at the inaugural annual Rosewood Cup and Tucker’s Point Club.

The tournament, which tees off on Saturday, features club members and non-professional players, as well as a host of international entrants, compete in teams of two over two days, starting with a 2-Ball Shambles format and followed by a Best Ball format on the final day of competition.

For Pearman, the head pro of Tucker’s Point Golf Course and commissioning leader of the Rosewood Cup, the tournament represents the opportunity for himself and the club to fulfil a longstanding ambition.

“We’ve always wanted to host a big tournament and so we thought this would be a great chance to start,” said Pearman, whose family have a strong affinity with the game. Pearman’s father Dwayne is also a professional while his uncle Sheridan Ming, a local carpenter, has created the bespoke trophy for the tournament, with the base crafted from Bermuda Cedar reclaimed from natural timber that has fallen within the grounds of the course.

“This gives us an opportunity to shine a light on some of the young golfers and hopefully try and encourage others into the sport,” Pearman said.

“Golf is a big sport on this island and it is great to be able to add another tournament for people to compete in. We want to give the local players a chance to play in another event and have more exposure and competition. It will also help the younger golfers and those who are at a lower level.

“The handicap element helps keep everyone at the same level and gives everyone a chance to enjoy it and compete together. It’s a chance for our players to show what we are capable of as well as bringing people together from different levels of ability. The more tournaments on island the better for people to have a chance to compete.”

Pearman also believes that this year’s inaugural event will help lay the foundations for greater success in the coming years, with the aim for greater participation from overseas competitors.

“This is just the start for us and hopefully it will lay the foundation for us where it can go and keep getting bigger,” he added.

“We’ll have a number of overseas competitors, which is really exciting for the club, and hopefully as the years go by the event will only get bigger and we’ll have more players coming over to compete.”

Those ambitions for the tournament’s continual growth are shared by Joe Sepesy, Director of Golf at Tuckers Point, who believes the event will also further contribute to add to the successful recovery of sports tourism on island as Bermuda continues to bounce back from the Covid-19 pandemic.

“These sorts of tournaments can also have major benefits for the hotel and so we are definitely looking at the big picture,” said Sepsey, who highlighted the social aspect of the tournament, including a cocktail party on Friday evening, as well as huge prizes on offer.

“We are seeing sports tourism pick up again following the Covid pandemic and now people have the chance to come out and enjoy themselves over the three days of competition,” he said.

“We can see this tournament really going on and growing. This year we have about 16 groups but I can see that easily becoming a lot more next year. I think people will hear about this first tournament and then want to be involved next time.

“The prizes on offer are fantastic with hotel stays at sister properties in the Virgin Islands, St Barth and the United States, as well as a car for the first player to hit a hole-in-one. Those sorts of incentives should attract people to want to be part of it.

“We wanted to do something unique to showcase the club and having the golf and social activities is a great way to do that. It’s a chance to bring people together from our members, other non-members and people from overseas. We’re blessed here with what we can offer and so we’re confident it is going to be a fantastic event.”

The Rosewood Cup organisers have also formed a partnership with The Family Centre, an accredited non-profit organisation dedicated to improving families’ lives on island, with all proceeds from a silent auction being donated.

For details of the tournament and prizes, visit tuckerspoint.com/annual-rosewood-cup/