Jekyll Island, GA — The first Singles Croquet Invitational Tournament to be held in Glynn County in 19 years is scheduled for October 23-25, 2009. The United States Croquet Association (USCA) sanctioned event to be held at the Jekyll Island Club Hotel has an impressive line-up of some of the top players in the country.

Tournament play is scheduled to begin at noon on Friday and continue Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Sunday, 8:30 a.m. to mid-afternoon. Spectators are welcome to attend the entire event, and seating will be provided courtside.

The 3-day tournament is sponsored by the Jekyll Island Club Hotel and the Jekyll Island Croquet Club, and they will award trophies at the end of the tournament on Sunday. Chairman of the Tournament, Dan Lott of Sea Island, Georgia, says, “We’re very happy with the line-up of players and anticipate a keenly competitive contest.” Fred Jones, a member of the Croquet Hall of Fame and winner of the Seniors and Masters Tournament in 2008, will serve as the Official Referee. The winner will be presented the championship trophy by Rob Jagger, president of the Jekyll Island Croquet Club, after the last round.

A croquet clinic, which is open to anyone interested in learning about croquet, is planned for Thursday afternoon on the Hotel’s greensward. At that time, expert players Fred and Jackie Jones, provide instruction on rules of the game, stroke technique, equipment, and winning strategies. Jackie is the recipient of the USCA Peyton Ballenger Memorial Award initiated in 1993 (an annual award presented to the woman who places highest in the USCA Nationals) for nine years between 1996 and 2008. Fred and Jackie have been National Seniors Doubles Champions in Croquet for two years. Registration for the clinic, which is free of charge, may be made by contacting the Jekyll Island Club Hotel concierge in advance.

Social events are planned for the competitors and their guests including special dinners on Friday and Saturday evenings. “The Jekyll Island Croquet Club (JICC), a competitive group of accomplished players, demonstrates the basic method of play used in tournaments as they practice on the lawn throughout the year. We are pleased to have them join us on court, the only competition level croquet greensward within a 200-mile radius,” said Hotel General Manager Kevin Runner.

Competition croquet is a game of strategy and technique, more than one of great physical exertion. Consequently, players of all ages can play and enjoy the sociability of the game as well as competitive play. The hotel’s greensward, designed and built by landscape architect William Edenfield in 1986, meets all the qualifications for tournament play. Its layered composition, specialized drainage system and patented grass provide a close-cut playing surface for a truer roll of the ball.

Competitors in the Tournament as well as spectators will enjoy the setting of the Jekyll Island Club Hotel, a National Historic Landmark and Historic Hotel of America. The handsome Queen Anne and Italian Renaissance architectural styles of the buildings and the landscaping, are reminiscent of the early Club era of the late 1800’s.

About the Jekyll Island Club

An exclusive hunting retreat for J.P. Morgan, William Rockefeller, Joseph Pulitzer and their friends, the Jekyll Island Club enjoyed a social season unparalleled in the nation. Over the course of time, An exclusive hunting retreat for J.P. Morgan, William Rockefeller, Joseph Pulitzer and their club members built a cottage colony for themselves, entertained the powerful and wealthy elite of the day, and attracted to their membership the titans of industry, politics, and finance. They created history while they were here. The first transcontinental telephone call, a visit by President McKinley, and the creation of the Federal Reserve were some of the exciting happenings on Jekyll Island.

Eventually, by 1942 the Club had begun to wane in popularity, and by 1947Jekyll Island became the property of the State of Georgia. After much political wrangling, it was declared a state park which it continues to be to this day. In 1984, when the Club buildings were in a state of disrepair, a group of entrepreneurs recognized their beauty and potential, and determined to breathe life back into them. They devised a plan, received approvals and financing, and set to work. The award winning resort exists today because of their vision and entrepreneurial creativity.

For more information, contact the concierge at the Jekyll Island Club Hotel, 371 Riverview Drive, Jekyll Island, Georgia, 31527, or call 912-635-2600 or 800-535-9547. Visit our website at www.jekyllclub.com.

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Get your 2009 Jekyll Island Shrimp & Grits: The Wild Georgia Shrimp Festival souvenir Poster Online!  Also, you can collect them all! Get the 2006, 2007, & 2008 posters for only $32! Maybe you forgot to buy yours at the festival. Maybe you couldn’t make it. Hurry and get yours while supplies last! Now only $15!

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By LINDSEY ADKISON
Reposted from TheBrunswickNews.com

When the Foreback family heard about the Jekyll Island Shrimp and Grits festival, they knew it was something they couldn’t pass up. In fact, they made it a focal point of their fall vacation.

“We’re from the Atlanta area and our girls go to school year around and they have fall break now. When we called the Jekyll Island Club Hotel to register for our hotel, they told us about the festival,” Pam Foreback said.

“We thought it would be fun. So we brought our dogs down and we’re having a great time.”

The Forebacks weren’t the only ones drawn to the event. Hundreds of people descended on the tiny island for fun, music and, of course, the food.

On Friday night, vendors lined the pathways throughout the historic district, selling everything from candles to furniture.

But they weren’t just there to sell their wares.

Pam Foot and her husband work for Logan Turnpike Mill and drove eight hours from Blairsville to take part. They were hoping to combine a little business with pleasure.

“We were invited by the Jekyll Island Club. A lot of chefs use our grits for their recipes,” Foot said.

“There really is no down side to it. It’s like a vacation for us. I haven’t been to the beach in a really long time.”

Throughout the weekend, the mood was light. Events included shrimp eating contests, music and cooking contests.

On Saturday and Sunday, there were BMX Bike demonstrations. There were also shows by the Disc-Connected K9 Frisbee Dogs.

One of the weekend’s highlights was a release by the Georgia Sea Turtle Center.

Hundreds of spectators hit the beach to watch three rehabilitated amphibians, Pumpkin, Skidaway and Nightwatch return to the ocean.

Camden County residents Erica Crews and her young daughters, Julie Ann and Andy, were on hand to wish them luck.

“We recently visited the turtle center, so I wanted the girls to see it,” Crews said.

As a whole, the expanded festival seemed a rousing success.

Jekyll Island spokesperson Eric Garvey said even though no numbers are in, this year’s event was likely the largest ever.

“It looks like this year’s event was up about 20 to 30 percent over last year and the weekend total will approach 15,000 to the festival,” he said.

“The additional activities were planned to give everyone a better festival experience with plenty to do and to bring people back for several days. We planned the additional activities because we anticipated a larger crowd this year. The festival has received tremendous publicity, so we were expecting large crowds.”

One of the new features of the weekend was a shuttle service that took patrons from the parking area of at the Jekyll Island Convention Center to the festival area in the Historic District.

Garvey said that it ran relatively smoothly.

“The shuttle system worked very well. Like any transportation system, there are bugs to be worked out. This was our first organized shuttle system on this scale and with more revitalization projects beginning this year, we will be utilizing shuttles to manage parking and move people around the island,” he said.

“Guests seemed to have no problem with it and it allowed use to utilize more of the Historic District for festival activities.”

Contest winners:

* The professional cooking contest award went to Cargo Portside Grill.

* The People’s Choice winner was Tasteful Temptations.

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ARE YOU READY FOR SOME SHRIMP & GRITS? Making Dinner Plans? Friday night is $3 Sample Night at Shrimp & Grits: The Wild Georgia Shrimp Festival. Halyards of St. Simon’s Island is one of the awesome restaurants vending at the festival, serving up that wonderful southern specialty: Shrimp and Grits! The Shrimp are Coming! Beth Burnsed of the Jekyll Island Authority Says the Weather is Great as they Are Setting Up and Getting Ready for an Awesome Shrimp & Grits: the Wild Georgia Shrimp Festival! Follow us on Twitter or Be our Fan on Facebook for Updates from the Festival! Not only do we have tasty shrimp but cold beer thanks to our sponsor, Michelob Ultra, at Shrimp & Grits: The Wild Georgia Shrimp Festival!

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by Lindsey Adkison, Reposted from The Brunswick News, September 17, 2009

The chef at Blackwater Grill on St. Simons Island is a contestant in this weekend’s Shrimp and Grits professional cooking contest and festival on Jekyll Island.

And he says his lips are sealed on his recipe.

“The only criteria is that it has to have shrimp and grits,” he said. “It’s more of a chef’s competition.”
All he can tell you is this: “I won’t be doing the shrimp and grits that I serve here.”

The cooking contest is part of the three-day festival sponsored by the Jekyll Island Authority that will begin Friday. The cooking contest, which is on Sunday, the final day of the festival, will feature several restaurant chefs like Cadden. Each will try to offer the judges something unique.

“Each year I come up with something new,” Cadden said. “We haven’t won yet, but maybe the fourth year will be the charm.”

The festival also has a people’s choice event. On Friday, hungry patrons can pay $3 to sample different restaurants take on the Southern fare.

Dan Dickerson, co-owner of Latitude 31, may have a home field advantage. The restaurant is on the Jeykll Wharf in the island’s historic district, where the event will take place. “On Saturday, they will tally all tickets, and I think Latitude has a good shot,” he said.

Besides being fun, participation in the festival is also a chance to give something back to the community, Dickerson said.

“One of reasons why we like doing it is because it helps the local shrimpers out,” he said. “Wild Georgia Shrimp is the best shrimp that you can possibly ever eat.”

Even though good food may be the biggest enticement, there are other reasons to come out. Beth Burnsed, event coordinator for Jekyll Island, says a host of activities are included on the menu. “The Shrimp & Grits Festival has something for everyone,” she said. “For the kids, we have a Family Fun Zone, shrimp eating contests, a King BMX Bike show and the Frisbee dog show.

“For adults we have cooking demonstrations, arts and crafts vendors, live entertainment and cold beverages.”

One particularly interesting portion of the festival will be the release of three sea turtles from the Georgia Sea Turtle Center at 3 p.m. Sunday. The turtle release is just one of the ways the program has expanded over the past four years. Burnsed says it has grown to include more than 70 arts and crafts vendors and 25 food vendors.

“Every year the festival has grown, not only in the number of attendees, but also in activities,” she said. “For this reason we are implementing a shuttle system this year. All parking for the festival will be near the Jekyll Island Convention Center on Saturday and Sunday. There will be no parking
in the Historic District.”

A shuttle service will be provided. “This has allowed us to add more activities such as the King BMX Stunt Show and expand our Family Fun Zone and arts and crafts vendor area,” she said.

The additions will come as a welcome surprise to many festival regulars.

The festival seems to have more meaning this year. The economy has dealt a heavy blow to both tourism and the shrimping industry, said Eric Garvey, spokesman for the Jekyll Island Authority. He feels the festival is a way of bringing attention to the industry and the coast.

“It makes great sense because our guests from our key markets like Atlanta, Macon, Athens and Augusta are the target consumers for Wild Georgia Shrimp,” he said. “We have had a tremendous response to this year’s event from businesses wanting to participate and from guests making their plans to come. We are looking forward to a big crowd, and we are optimistic that it will give us, the shrimp industry and all the restaurants and vendors involved a much-needed boost.”

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Dan Dickerson, owner of Latitude 31, the Rah Bar, and Driftwood Bistro, promoting Shrimp & Grits: The Wild Georgia Shrimp Festival on WSAV Savannah/Hilton Head’s News: He explains why Wild Georgia Shrimp tastes especially sweet . . .

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