In a further indicator of the growing popularity of cruise ship golf, NCL Corporation announced on August 20th that Norwegian Cruise Line has been named "Official Cruise Line of the PGA Tour and
Champions Tour."

NCL said the two partners will work together promoting the cruise line's current Golf Hawai`i and Golf Bermuda programs, as well as on expanding the golf experience in ways that may include cruise golf tournaments and participation by tour members.

"We expect that this partnership with the PGA Tour will let golfers around the world know that you can combine a great cruise vacation with top golf experiences at the best courses in the world on NCL," said Scott Rogers, NCL's senior vice president of sales and marketing.

In recent years, a growing number of cruise lines have offered golf programs, ranging from shipboard simulators -- which now can be found on most cruise ships -- to shore excursions to famous golf courses.

Cruise ship golf is particularly attractive to corporate incentive groups, and in addition to the simulators -- which use electronic sensors and a video screen to provide the feel of playing a world-famous course -- some cruise ships offer golf clinics led by PGA instructors.

Golf simulator tournaments are also taking their place alongside casino blackjack and poker tournaments as a cruise attraction.

“We’ve seen a boom in golf on all our cruises,” Rogers said.