We had a successful Montecristo Cup 2001. The Montecristo Cup recently was held at the renowned Hyatt Dorado Beach Resort and Country Club in Dorado Beach, Puerto Rico from November 28 to December 2, 2001. Congratulations to Champions Tour Pro's Jim Thorpe for first place, Miller Barber in Second Place and Paul Parajeckas for Third place.

Montecristo Cup

Cigar-loving golfers from around the world gathered in Puerto Rico in December to play in the third annual Montecristo Cup, a charity Pro/Am tournament hosted by Altadis U.S.A., cohosted by Cigar Aficionado, and sponsored by Hyatt, Beringer-Blass Wines, Bacardi and NetJets. Attendees were paired with Champions Tour golfers for a two-day tournament, plus a practice round. The weekend featured a silent auction for charity, an awards banquet after the final round of golf, and all the cigars the participants could smoke.

The event was held at the Hyatt Dorado Beach Hotel, a luxurious resort with two world-class golf courses. Golfers paid $5,000 to compete, and were placed in threesomes and foursomes, each of which was joined by a Champions Tour golfer. The tournament was a scramble format, meaning that all four golfers teed of on each hole, the best tee shot was selected, and all members of the foursome would hit from that spot, continuing until the ball was holed out.

The winners of this year's tournament were Altadis U.S.A. senior vice president of sales and marketing Jim Colucci, Michael Hachikian of Players Club by Don Diego, participant Jim Ellis, and Champions Tour pro Jim Thorpe, who also won the tournament last year. The winners were presented with first-place trophies, plus Montecristo Cup golf bags and travel bags.

The weekend was highlighted by cigars, which flowed freely from the time the guests arrived until the weekend ended. Each participant will receive a custom Montecristo Cup 2001 humidor containing custom made Montecristo Serie V cigars. The humidors will be shipped after the New Year.

Proceeds from the Montecristo Cup go to the Hurricane Relief Funds of the Caribbean Islands and the Jane Stern Community Library of Dorado, Puerto Rico. Adding to the worthy causes, the weekend featured a silent auction. Virgin Atlantic donated two upper class tickets to London, followed by a five nights' stay donated by the Savoy Group at Claridge's, one of London's finest hotels. The Savoy Group also donated a three-nights' stay at the Parisian hotel as part of the same lot, with Altadis covering the costs of first-class transportation from London to Paris. A gentleman from Puerto Rico was the high bidder.

Additionally, Altadis donated a trip to Casa de Campo in the Dominican Republic including golf at the famed "Teeth of the Dog" golf course and a tour of Altadis's Tabacalera de Garcia Ltd. factory. Hyatt donated a seven-day, six-night vacation for two couples at the Hyatt Dorado Beach, the hotel hosting the tournament, and Cartier donated a woman's steel watch. There were several other items up for bid, including sports memorabilia.

"It's a lot of camaraderie, a lot of fun with the pros," said Janelle Rosenfeld, director of marketing for Altadis U.S.A.. "It was like having a personal lesson with a pro for three days running. It's a very intimate event. You become pretty close to everybody."

- Excerpted from Marvin Shanken's Cigar Insider magazine