The “Mountains of Gold” golf promotion launched with great fanfare last spring has been put on hold, at least until next year, according to an announcement left on the organization’s web site.

The message on the website said the event has been postponed until next year largely because of the slow economy this year.

“Despite generating significant exposure and interest and enjoying a slow but positive start to the season, we at Wildhorse Event Management have taken the decision to postpone this season’s Mountains of Gold event into the 2011 season,” the website message said.

“The success of the event is dependent on player registrations, corporate sponsorships and private investment, all of which has been considered in rendering this decision. Given the restructuring of Shadow Mountain together with a slow economic recovery, we feel that the interests of all concerned are best served by a postponement.”

The website said money will be returned to those who want it or they can continue with the golf package they purchased minus the Mountains of Gold component and the prizes offered which included a grand prize to be paid in September of $1 million.

Brenna Baker, event office manager for Mountains of Gold, said many of the golfers that booked time to play are continuing with the tournament anyway. “Ninety-five per cent of our bookings say they want to come back next year and we’re not getting any negative feedback from them.”

The ones that have played already are also enthusiastic about coming back, she said. “Many of them are from Alberta, and in places like Calgary it’s almost impossible to play on weekends, even if you belong to a club. When they come here, it’s like having their own private course.”

Next year, Mountains of Gold will do more of its marketing directly in Alberta, especially Calgary, because that’s where the bulk of the bookings came from, Baker said. And Mountains of Gold is definitely coming back, she said.

“Personally, I think the idea behind the concept is awesome. We’re definitely working on what we will do next year to make it bigger and better and get more people on board to come and play.”

Organizers were hoping to get a minimum of 8,000 participants playing this year to generate enough revenue to cover the daily prizes and the $1 million prize in the season-ending tournament in September. “But maybe next year will be a better year to start Mountains of Gold,” Baker said.

“With the economy the way it is this year, people are just not spending their dollars. It’s not just Mountains of Gold, it’s the whole area,” she said.

Tourism Rockies President Chris Dadson said anecdotal information he’s received so far this season indicates golf numbers in the area are “flat.”

“With the weather we’ve had this year it was a slow start in the spring, but it got much better in July and August. Overall, we’re probably down somewhat from the previous year.”

A slow recovery, a fragile economy and a dearth of American tourists are all combining to make this a slow tourism year. But it depends on what part of the region is being considered because some areas are doing very well this summer, Dadson said.

Meanwhile Cranbrook Golf Etc. manager Jay Majkowski said cancellation of the Mountains of Gold promotion this year is disappointing, but the industry itself is still solid.

Golf in Canada is a $12 billion-a-year business, he said. “I believe in the golf industry and I believe it’s strong enough to survive anything that gets thrown at it.”