Cutting Edge Technology At Castle Pines

By REBECCA SIMMONS
INTERNATIONAL Daily News

Welcome to the age of technology — forever changing our lives — even how we watch a golf tournament. This week at Castle Pines, The INTERNATIONAL Presented by Qwest is featuring some cutting edge technology, making it one of the most advanced tournaments on the PGA Tour.

For starters, spectators will find four golf information kiosks on the course, two at the driving range and two located by the 18th hole. They are also found throughout the course in corporate-sponsored tents and the media room. The touch-screen computers are created by Event Hospitality Network and offer everything from player profiles to daily pairing information and real-time scores.

Want to catch up with Sergio? Just touch the screen on the leaderboard option and find out exactly where he is on the course. If you’re new to Castle Pines, you might go to the course map which shows you how to find him and gives you a layout of each hole. There are even Tour and tournament highlights for the whole season and statistics for individual events.

EHN’s system gets a data feed from ShotLink, the PGA Tour’s new electronic scoring system that uses Palm Pilots and lasers to capture every shot and ball location during a tournament. This feed allows the kiosks to offer the most up-to-date information and real-time scores. The computer kiosks debuted earlier this year at the Player Championship as an officially licensed program of the PGA Tour.

EHN also has an in-house feed of tournament play, ideal for televisions in corporate cottages or sponsor tents, which can tune in to the action on the private network before it’s broadcast on a major network. The split screen shows tournament play and a current leader-board while a ticker runs player scores below topped off with an individual company logo. “It’s a presentation of your corporate identity,” says president and CEO Steve Suttman. “It’s beyond a banner hanging on the wall.”

Another way you’ll find golf watchers staying connected is with the Palm Pilots. Ciber, a tournament sponsor, is the largest integrated technology firm in the world and is based in Colorado. Ciber has integrated the Palms with a mobile database allowing wireless real-time scores, course layouts, player bios, and tournament information among other things. But it’s the opportunity to hold the internet in your hand while you keep stride with Ernie Els along the back nine that makes the wireless gadgets so unique.

“It’s like a golf version of Yahoo,” explains Austin Gayer, national alliance manager with Ciber. You’ll find about 55 of the Palms throughout the course, mostly in the hands of corporate sponsors and premier clients. The Palms have been a popular item, showcasing things like video footage of the course flyovers and the ability to send an instant message to another Palm user.

“We keep everyone connected and let them do their networking,” Gayer said. The Palms may tell clients where their favorite player is on the leaderboard, but it’s a handheld presentation of Ciber’s capabilities. “We’re showcasing the golf tournament to let clients see how they can utilize this in the work force,” Gayer said.

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