VONORE, Tenn., Feb. 20, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MasterCraft Boat Company (NASDAQ:MCFT) continues its leadership accolades in the towboat category with a prestigious innovation award for its most advanced towboat to date, the 2018 XStar. Just announced at the Miami International Boat Show, the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA) and Boating Writers International honored MasterCraft with this award as one of 17 winners out of 62 total evaluated products.

NMMA 2018 Innovation Award Logo

“With the new XStar, validation came when ranks of pro wakeboarders outside of the MasterCraft team were raving about its versatility and what it will allow them to do off the wake. It’s truly the first wakeboard boat in the world that is so versatile that it enables progression for anyone from family riders to the world’s best,” said Terry McNew, President and CEO of MasterCraft Boat Company. “We’re thrilled and honored to receive our seventh innovation award in eight years from the NMMA. We recognize that so many owners buy MasterCraft because of our industry-leading innovation, and with the X Star, its innovations transcend even beyond its on-water performance.”

Two decades after changing the sport of wakeboarding with the first XStar, the first true performance wakeboard boat, the 2018 XStar was completely redesigned to debut as the highest performing, most technologically advanced wake-specific boat in the industry.

Innovation: Achieving the industry’s largest wake
In terms of performance, the 2018 XStar produces the largest, most customizable and user-friendly wake in the industry through several key features: the largest ballast capacity in the industry - at 4,100 lbs. - achieved through new midship ballast tank that enhances the wake and improves wake surfing performance; the optional, award-winning Gen 2 Surf System that creates three zones of perfectly sculpted, customizable surf; and the new MasterCraft innovation, the FastFill Ballast System that speeds time to towing by filling the XStar’s ballast tanks under three minutes.  

Innovation: Revolutionizing operation and entertainment
Introduced as standard features in the new 2018 XStar are MasterCraft-exclusive technologies that revolutionize the driving and entertainment experience: MasterCraft’s Dual-Screen Dash and its superior Klipsch Audio sound system.
The proprietary Dual-Screen Dash simplifies and enhances the on-board experience with technology that tunes the boat’s operations to three usage modes, improves helm styling and ergonomics, integrates with consumer technology devices and provides important diagnostic information, navigation and even tutorial videos.

The XStar also delivers the best sound on the water with standard customizable Klipsch Audio systems, exclusive to MasterCraft. Klipsch Audio’s MasterCraft-proprietary marine speakers and amplification solutions create a heavy-hitting, customizable concert-style entertainment experience that also is paired to each driving mode with the Dual-Screen Dash.

Continued legacy of innovation
Over the last eight years MasterCraft’s top new products and technologies have laid claim to seven annual Innovation Awards from the NMMA and Boating Writers International. Last year, the company won the award for its revolutionary DockStar Handling System. In 2015, the company’s ultimate wake surf boat, the X23, also received the innovation award being recognized for its groundbreaking hull design and performance. In 2014, the company’s Gen 2 Surf System received the annual designation. The same year, the ProStar ski boat, received the Innovation Award due to a bevy of innovations. In 2011 the ZFT5 Power Tower received the award and in 2010 the X25 boat laid claim to the annual distinction.

To learn more about the XStar and see the boat in action, please click here.

About MCBC Holdings, Inc.:
Headquartered in Vonore, Tenn., MCBC Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:MCFT) is the parent of MasterCraft Boat Company, a world-renowned innovator, designer, manufacturer, and marketer of premium performance sport boats. Founded in 1968, MasterCraft has cultivated its iconic brand image through a rich history of industry-leading innovation, and more than four decades after the original MasterCraft made its debut the company’s goal remains the same - to continue building the world’s best ski, wakeboard, wakesurf and luxury performance powerboats. For more information, visit www.mastercraft.com.

Media contact:
Eric Doyne // Dispatch
415.652.8452 // eric@dispatchco.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/af36148b-c393-422a-a636-ae2a3fe1e95d

Source: MCBC Holdings, Inc.