The Westin Jersey City Newport has only been open eight months, but it’s already experienced a dream week—at least for Bob McIntosh, the hotel’s director of sales and marketing. The 429-room hotel hosted the PGA Tour, CBS Sports and the title sponsor of The Barclays golf tournament two weeks ago.

The opening event of the PGA Tour Playoffs for the FedEx Cup was played at Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, offering stunning views of the Statue of Liberty and the Manhattan skyline, also visible from the nearby Westin.

McIntosh and the Westin hosted 62 PGA Tour players, including eventual winner Heath Slocum; CBS broadcasters like David Feherty and Jim Nantz; executives from Barclays and a smattering of fans and other corporate groups during the week of Aug. 24-Aug. 30.

McIntosh, who was looking forward to his first day off in almost two weeks, recently chatted about the experience, from how the hotel landed such lucrative customers to some insight into the life of a PGA Tour pro.

How did hosting the PGA Tour come about?

We came into the scene fairly late—this hotel opened Jan. 27. I was the first guy hired, and my passion is golf as well—which has nothing to do with the other until I discovered The Barclays was in Bergen County the previous year and was going to take place at the new golf course in Jersey City called Liberty National this year. At that point my interest was immediate.

Did you have a contract with the PGA Tour?

We did, as well as with CBS Sports and Barclays. I knew Starwood was a strategic partner with the PGA Tour and that’s where I started. I met the tournament director and it went on from there. We negotiated a price and created a room block. Being the glutton that I am, I knew this was going to be covered by CBS so I worked back and contacted them and booked the crew, technicians and talent. I took it further and contacted Barclays (the sponsors). We ended up tying it all together very neatly.

So who from the tournament stayed with you?

We had 62 players and their families … Heath Slocum, Vijay Singh, Y.E. Yang, Angel Cabrera…winners of quite a few majors.

What percent of hotel guests were associated with the event?

About 80 percent. We had some caddies in the hotel, although more stayed out toward the airport. We did have some corporate groups in during the week and some fans stayed at the hotel, but everyone was extraordinarily respectful of the players.

What were the players like?

The players are really independent contractors. They travel without an entourage, as any business traveler would, just instead of a briefcase and luggage, they’ve got golf clubs and luggage. They’re here to relax. They enjoy meals as any guest would. They want to be hassle free…you learn that quickly from the players, from their demeanor. They’re with their children. They really are living a family-man’s life.

Do the players who miss the cut check out after their round on Friday?

Typically. Some left on Saturday. It’s not a pleasant sight to see. Some stick around, but most go home. We were extremely fortunate; we lost only a small part of the field staying with us. We only lost seven players. We had the majority of the leader board staying with us.

What happened when Slocum returned Sunday night after the win?

He came in and we lined up and clapped to welcome him back. He stayed the night, had room service for breakfast and checked out Monday.

Did you and the staff get invested in the players?

It does get kind of emotional for us. We got attached to them, to their children. One player, everyone fell in love with his son. When I first met Justin Rose, he had this big blue-eyed baby in a papoose across his shoulder. Everyone couldn’t care less about the father; the kid was a magnet of attention. (Justin) and his wife would give each other breaks and come down to the lobby with the baby and people would just gravitate to the baby. It was really neat. You do get attached. We had TVs set up in the lobby playing the Golf Channel and CBS, and everyone was watching and rooting. Even staff you would never consider golf fans found themselves taken up in the moment.

Were you surprised at anything about the players?

My biggest takeaway was these guys are really connected to their families. Geoff Ogilvy was so committed to his children. It was really cool to see. It was not a boys club. They all hang with their families.

How did you handle the pros compared to your more typical business travelers?

You learn who likes specific things in their rooms. Knowing golfers, it was important from my perspective to be sure they were hydrated. We had fresh fruit, energy bars, iced waters in the lobby so they could grab them on the run each day on the way in and out. We made it as hassle-free as possible. These folks really become very internal as the competition progresses. We didn’t want them to have any distractions. They had tough days in some cases, so you really have to respect their desire to be internal. You don’t ask a lot of questions. And we have a code of conduct, so you don’t requests autographs or interviews. Clearly they’re working.

Were there any instances where you had really random and high-maintenance requests like you sometimes here about with movie stars or musicians?

I think to the contrary, these guys try to fly under the radar. Unlike celebrities, these guys are much easier to manage. You just want to make it comfortable for them. I’ve been doing this 32 years and this was the easiest group of people to work with. The PGA Tour people, the CBS people, the Barclays group were all very professional in what their needs were and how you handled them in pre-planning and execution. There were no surprises. Not all customers know what they want and how they want it, but these folks were well defined.

So who’s your pick to win the FedEx Cup?

That’s just wrong. I have some favorites, but I’m not picking.

So it was a pretty good week for the hotel?

It was a top-performing week. It was the icing on the cake. We began our ramp-up in January and had business on the books, so cash flow was not a burden on the owners (LeFrak Organization and Melvin Simon & Associates). We’re already at fair share to the market. (Tournament week) certainly helped the month because the business travel we depend upon really dried up in this market. This kind of business was a shot in the arm for all the hotels. It was super for the city, no question. Three years ago, it would have been full anyway, but in this environment, it was an absolute joy to have and plan for—a great way to finish the month of August. In-room dining for us was huge. Breakfast was huge. On Thursday, I was wiped out and stayed in the hotel. I went down to the restaurant and every single table at 9:30 was full, and every one had a player and wife or newscasters and their guests. It was 100 percent full of these folks. That’s the long-winded answer that the restaurant did extraordinarily well.