At a press conference held Friday, September 24, at the Mayan Palace Puerto Peñasco, world-famous golfer Jack Nicklaus reminded his audience that tourists are attracted to Puerto Peñasco for its water and its weather, but now, he said, they will be attracted to it for golf as well.

The press conference was sponsored by Grupo Vidafel, developers of the Mayan Palace mega-project, to announce the plan for an 18-hole, 72-par golf course designed by Jack Nicklaus as part of the project. Co-designer of the course will be Jack Nicklaus, Jr., who was also present at the event.

In attendance were local dignitaries, including the mayor of Puerto Peñasco, Guillermo Flores; and the governor of Sonora, Armando Lopez Nogales. The Mayan Palace sales team members, wearing gold shirts for the occasion, were there to show guests around and answer questions about the project. Among the guests were Puerto Peñasco business owners, media representatives from Puerto Peñasco, Phoenix, and Tucson; local real estate brokers; and potential buyers for the condos, townhomes, and villas soon to go on sale at the Mayan Palace site.

The occasion began in the just-completed model home. It is a striking white building a central tower at the entrance in bright gold. The same gold is used for exterior trim. Looking up from inside, one can see light coming through the small windows around the top of the tower. The floors are white marble chips embeddded in concrete, with a border made of small stones inset by hand--very attractive and unusual. Living room, dining room, and master bedroom face the ocean. The living room and bedroom have sliding glass doors opening onto a terrace. The front of the dining room is a complete half-circle, with windows set into it and long thin mirrors hung between each window. The hall leading to the bedrooms is lit by a skylight, and the master bath has a semicircular wall enclosing the jacuzzi. Another large bathroom serves the other two bedrooms. The kitchen has all modern appliances, and there's a small utility room between it and the double garage.

We had first seen the model home when it was still under construction, and the difference when seeing it now fully furnished was remarkable. Jose Puig of Pueblo Viejo is the decorator, and he has done a superb job. Paintings hung in niches flanking the front door bring the gold color inside. The bedrooms are furnished in bold colors typical of Mexican decor, which is both elegant and homey. Contemporary paintings chosen to harmonize with the colors of the furnishings hang on the walls, and vases, jars, and statues enhance the decor.

After inspecting the model home, the party moved to the almost-completed office building on the point of land stretching into the beautiful La Pinta estuary. The building has offices constructed around a central courtyard in which chairs had been set up for the guests, with a microphone for the speakers in front. One appliance not yet in place was the air conditioning system, so when Jack Nicklaus made his remark about the attraction of the Puerto Peñasco weather, it drew a ripple of laughter from the assembly. While the company was waiting for the guests of honor to arrive, attentive young servers passed throughout the room with trays of bottled water, soft drinks, and beer.

The conference was initiated with an introduction by the architect, Arturo Hernandez, who described the project, aided by colored pictures on a large screen. Following him, Daniel Chavez, the President of Grupo Vidafel, spoke words of welcome in both English and Spanish. Then Jack Nicklaus was introduced, to enthusiastic applause, as not only the world's premier golfer, but the greatest designer of golf courses in the world.

In his remarks, Nicklaus made the point that some of the holes of the golf course had to be on the ocean. People will not come here to play on an inland golf course, he said. To be truly successful, the course has to unite the three attractions of water, weather, and golf. In addition, Nicklaus said, the course will be large enough to accommodate major events, as well as golfers playing just for fun.
Asked when players would be able to tee off, Nicklaus said it would be one year from the date construction is begun. That is estimated to be 6 to 9 months from now, so, golfers, get ready to play in about April or May of 2001.

The reception following the press conference was catered by Plaza las Glorias, and the food was exquisite, both in taste and appearance. The buffet table was decorated with several edible sculptures. One was carved from a whole watermelon standing on end to resemble a large flower with open petals curving inward. Against this red background, a spray of small white flowers completed the work. An even more striking sculpture was a ship carved from a watermelon. There were 3 tiers of decks, and on each, the watermelon seeds were the portholes. Carrots topped with radishes were the smokestacks, and carrot slices were lifesavers. A third remarkable sculpture was a turtle constucted from a pineapple with head and tail made out of carrots. In addition there were cantaloupe tulips, watermelon roses, and a bouquet of flowers made from vegetables. I asked one of the servers who carved these artistic masterpieces and he told me it was Adrian Nava, the buffet chef of Plaza las Glorias.

A large variety of delicious canapes was offered --smoked salmon, jumbo shrimp wrapped in bacon, pastries filled with cream cheese and olive spread, salami, cheeses, chimichangas, and guacamole. Wine was served: whoever said that Mexico doesn't have good wines? I sampled several varieties, purely in the interest of journalistic accuracy, of course, and found them delicious. There were 2 zinfandels: Blanc de Zinfandel by L.A. Cetto and Zinfandel X-A by Pedro Domecq, Blanc des Blancs by Pedro Domecq, and Concha de Toto by Casillero del Diablo, a red wine, the only one I didn't sample. Pedro Domecq makes an excellent brandy that we really like, so it wasn't surprising to find that the company also makes good wine. Chenin Blanc by Cetto is a wine I've tried and liked; obviously Cetto is also a fine winemaker. I think many of the guests were glad to have this introduction to Mexican wines.

While people were clustering around Jack Nicklaus getting his autograph or enjoying the food and drink, entertainment was provided by a mariachi band, Mariachi Superior from Caborca. There were 3 trumpeters, 3 violinists, 2 guitarists, and an accordionist. They played and sang and stamped their feet with enthusiasm and skill and contributed greatly to the festive atmosphere.

This grand occasion, capably orchestrated by Rafael Covarrubias, the Sales and Marketing Director for the Mayan Palace Puerto Peñasco, fittingly inaugurated the mega-project and marked the beginning of a new era for Puerto Peñasco real estate.

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