Pinehurst Area Scores With Golf Digest's "America's Greatest Golf-Home Towns"

SOUTHERN PINES, NC — MAY 10, 2006 — The area tagged as the "Home of American Golf" - Pinehurst/Southern Pines, NC - has garnered high praises from Golf Digest in their June 2006 issue which ranks US cites as the best "golf-home towns". As more and more Americans look for the perfect vacation home, golf continues to be a chief driver in the decision making process. The National Association of Realtors estimates that more than 1 million vacation homes were purchased in 2005, setting a record. To rank 244 counties across the country, Golf Digest uses data collected on a variety of criteria relative to golf vacation home buying from the Longitudes Group, a research firm specializing in leisure activities.

The top 80 communities were listed in the June issue, and of those, the Pinehurst/Southern Pines Area ranked second with a golf score of 38.3, out-scoring a number of larger, well known golf resort destinations in the Southeast, including: Williamsburg, Hilton Head, Charleston, Savannah, Orlando, Tampa, and Jacksonville. The golf in the Pinehurst/Southern Pines Area also rated higher than Scottsdale, San Diego, Denver, Hawaii, Palm Springs and Las Vegas.

Business leaders in the Sandhills region of North Carolina were not surprised with the findings, as they have seen interest steadily growing in both second home and retirement home purchases near golf courses. With 43 championship courses within a 15 mile radius, the Pinehurst/Southern Pines area offers one of the highest concentrations of highly ranked courses in the country, and combined with a more rural setting, and small quaint towns and villages as the central gathering and cultural hubs. Numerous golf communities offer a variety of amenities beyond golf, including equestrian, croquet, and tennis facilities, as well as recreational lakes and extensive club houses. "Great golf is woven into the fabric of the community here, and more and more people are discovering the great quality of life offered here while on vacation or a business trip," states Caleb Miles, President of the Convention & Visitors Bureau for the Pinehurst/Southern Pines/Aberdeen Area. "When they discover the great home and club membership values available here, it's only natural that they want to come back to live", he adds.

###

The Pinehurst, Southern Pines, Aberdeen Area Convention & Visitors Bureau is an economic development organization and non-profit authority of Moore County, North Carolina. The CVB mission is to promote the area as a destination for visitors, meetings, conventions and tours. The CVB is funded primarily by a three percent hotel / motel room occupancy tax paid by visitors to Moore County.