Enjoy Golf on Cabo Time at Cove Club Diamante, Cabo San Lucas

CABO SAN LUCAS, Mexico — Booming.

This is the term used to describe the drive you make on the par-5 16th at Cove Club, which races downhill and even downwind depending on your luck.

The growth of golf in the Baja California Peninsula is a boom.

Los Cabos is the area between the twin cities Cabo San Luis and San Jose del Cabo. These two towns are located at the opposite ends of the 20-mile-long corridor. Mexico’s golf mecca is only 30 years old. What’s already there and what’s to come will ensure that this hotspot remains a popular location for many years. The tourism industry grew by double digits between 2022 and 2023. Several new golf courses were either under construction or planned.

Cabo only had one course in 1987, but now there are 18. There could be 25 courses by 2030. Most are high-end venues that cater to golfers who want to complement their resort lifestyle with golf.

There’s a debate going on: Do golfers flock to Cabo for the great courses or is it something else? Great courses are continuing to pop up because people want a place where they can enjoy a country club-style lifestyle with all of the modern amenities.

You’ll probably have to answer this question for yourself. You may wish to leave the departure date flexible when planning your trip. A six-day trip to Cabo can easily turn into nine, twelve, or even more days. When you arrive, you’ll understand what we mean.

Easy access

A recent trip by a Golfweek employee was made easy with the arrival at Los Cabos International Airport, San Jose del Cabo. Direct flight from Phoenix took a little over two hours. Music was blasting and bartenders were serving at the taxi stand where vacationers waited to be whisked off.

Cabo time!

Photos: Tiger Woods and Davis Love III Golf Courses at Diamante Cabo San Lucas

The Pacifico beer was the beverage of choice after finding a ride in a white Chevy with dark tinted windows. First stop: Diamante San Lucas.

Jose, our driver, made the right decision by taking the Los Cabos Toll Road which crosses the desert just a few miles to the north of the corridor. This toll road is relatively new, and it allows for a faster route to the Pacific Ocean side of Cape San Lucas.

Downtown Cabo is the center of action, with bars, restaurants, shops, and the pier. The nightlife hub is on the itinerary, but the SUV must return to home base in the first leg of the trip. The double sliding glass doors on the second floor were opened about 45 minutes later. They brought in cool desert air, and provided an incredible view of the sunset to the west.

Right off the patio was the ninth green on the Davis Love III designed Dunes course. The Lagoon is Diamante’s 10 acre saltwater swimming pool. Its stunning blue water stands out against the desert landscape. The Lagoon is the perfect place to stay if you have a family with you. It has a children’s water park.

El Cardonal is the second of three 18-hole championship golf courses that will be built in the near future. El Cardonal, better known as Tiger Woods’ first golf course, will be officially introduced to the world when the World Wide Technology Championship is held in November.

Tiger follows in the footsteps Jack Nicklaus who owns six golf courses in Cabo. Here on the peninsula, two legends of golf are once again linked.

Exploding on scene

Los Cabos used to be a sleepy fishing village, like many other coastal Mexican locations. The area has also been known for its whale-watching and scuba diving. The area, located about 1,000 miles south from San Diego, is Instagram-famous because of El Arco de Cabo San Lucas (also known as Land’s End), the stunning natural arch which dips into water. This photo opportunity is a must for visitors to the region.

Cabo has become just as famous for its golf, but it is a little shocking to think that there was only one course in Cabo a few decades ago. Vidanta Golf Los Cabos, a nine hole course built in 1987 by the government, is still operational. The next course would not be built for another five years, but it was Jack Nicklaus’ introduction to the region and the beginning of a subtropical destination.

Brian McCallen is a Cabo expert. He was responsible for golf public relations at the Los Cabos Tourism Board. He was previously the travel editor of Golf magazine for sixteen years.

The second Nicklaus course in Cabo was what really started the ball rolling. Cove Club, originally called Ocean Course at Cabo del Sol, is now a golf and beach private club. After 25 years as a resort/public facility, it became a private residence. Nicklaus said that it was the “best golf property I have ever seen .”

I don’t refer to him as a Golden Bear. McCallen said, “I call him the Golden Amigo.” He’s the man, he is the one who really put this town on the map .”

Photos View the golf courses in Cabo de Sol, Cabo San Lucas

The Ocean Course eventually earned its praise, but at one time the idea of flying from Cabo to play golf raised a few eyebrows.

McCallen told his fellow Golf magazine golf course rating panelists, “Hey guys, come on down. You gotta see this Jack Nicklaus Course.” They said, “We’re going to Mexico for golf. What are you saying?

The course was able to convince some golfers that it was worth the trip. Nicklaus had it right. The Ocean Course was a big hit.

McCallen stated that the course was a game changer. It was this course that made Los Cabos a premier international golf destination .”

Cove Club has all the amenities you’ll need to be a premier destination. Cove Club was redesigned as a private course in 2023. The original 17th and the 18th holes were removed to allow for the Cabo del Sol Beach Club. The 17th hole was originally a par 3, but the land around it was better suited for a sandy beach. The 17th green has been transformed into a pool with a negative edge, and the Beach Club now boasts a great outdoor bar and restaurant. It was just too obvious to maximize the space.

It’s an excellent way to end your round. The 18th hole is located where the 16th used to be. All three closing holes will make your round memorable. The 16th tee is one of Cove Club’s highest points. You begin your final stretch from there and head downhill towards the ocean.

Stop at the comfort stations along the way for a quick rest, a tasty bite or even a shot Casamigos tequila.

Golfweek’s Best 2023 list of the Top 50 Courses in Mexico, Caribbean and Central America includes Cove Club Golf course. You will be a convert after one trip.

Cabo Del Sol also has another 18-hole Tom Weiskopf designed course called the Cabo Del Sol Course. It was originally called the Desert Course and opened in 2001.

The golf course is higher on the terrain and therefore farther from the ocean. However, there are still views of the deep-blue water on many of the holes. The Desert Course is currently undergoing a month-long renovation. It’s a perfect complement to Jack’s course, which is located down the hill.

Pacific Views

Diamante is located on the western edge Los Cabos. The Pacific Ocean dominates the view in the distance. Once you arrive, it will be hard to leave. A sports bar and a coffee shop with smoothies and coffee are all available. Workout center with basketball and tennis. Hiking trails. A private yacht that offers sunset cruises to members two nights per week is also available. Golf, golf, and more golf.

Diamante opened in 2009. It features two championship 18-hole courses: El Cardonal by Tiger and the Dunes, designed by Davis Love III. Tiger designed The Oasis – a 12-hole course that loops a large lake. The clubhouse is just steps away from a 15-hole putting area. The routing is changed every day, presenting a new challenge. Coming soon, the Legacy will be an ultra-private Tiger Woods designed course.

Diamante residents like to say, “We are in the Tiger Woods Business.”

Woods’ Legacy is going to take Diamante to the next level, and will further cement his influence. The Legacy is scheduled to open in late 2024 and will eventually be home to the World Wide Technology Championship. The golf course will be one of the most beautiful at Diamante. Shadow Creek, Las Vegas’s design inspiration, is likely to have a major influence.

The Legacy course is an engineering marvel. While the Dunes layout of Davis Love III and Tiger’s El Cardonal ebbs and flows with the terrain, it’s a major feat.

The Legacy will require more than 2,500,000 cubic yards of earth to be moved. This compares to a few hundred thousand cubic yards for El Cardonal or the Dunes.

The landscaping will include dozens of species of trees and plants, as well as lakes, creeks, and waterfalls. Golfers may forget that they are in the desert when they play at Shadow Creek.

The membership will be limited to 250 members. The Legacy is extremely limited with only 14 lots. Diamante CEO Ken Jowdy and founder Ken Jowdy have one. Tiger also has one in mind.

The Legacy course will have competition from Diamante.

The Dunes course is ranked No. The Dunes course is No. 3 on Golfweek’s 2023 Best courses: Mexico, Caribbean and Central America list. El Cardonal is ranked at no. 26th place, up six places from 2022.

The “Tiger Course” was opened at Diamante in 2014. Tiger was at the course to make the first ceremonial tee-shot. His ball ended up in the fairway bunker on the right. There are numerous plaques in his name commemorating the famous shots he made around the globe. And there is a plaque right here, on the sand, as well. It may not have been his best moment, but it was a historic first: the first shot Tiger made on his first golf course.

Woods told Woods in December 2014 that he was “very excited” about the opening. This is the culmination of my dream and that of my team. I’ve always wanted a career in golf course design .”

This trip, the second course at Diamante had been on the agenda. The first hole, which is a downhill racetrack with a large fairway, allows golfers to ease in their round. Tiger’s bunker was not hit by anyone’s tee-shot, so we were able to get going after par.

A steeply elevated green makes the fourth hole, which can be as long as 483, even more difficult to find the putting surface within two shots. Consider using two extra clubs on this approach shot.

The first comfort station lies just beyond the 5th hole. But the pre-golf drinks were working so we moved on to the 6th. The par-3 ninth hole takes you back to the clubhouse. It was still not time for lunch but it was time for an egg and bacon snack.

The course is a climb, and the 10th hole sets the tone for the rest of the nine holes. Cardons are a common cactus found in Arizona. They can be seen all over the course. The saguaro is familiar to anyone who has played golf in Arizona’s Grand Canyon State. Cardons are larger. El Cardonal, however, is not a reference to the Cardinal mascot at Stanford University, where Tiger played college golf. This name pays homage to the Baja Peninsula’s majestic desert plant.

On the back nine, the key hole is probably the 15th with its severely right-to-left sloped green. The green slopes right-to-left, so you will need a mid-iron to hit the correct part of the putting area.

Rest easy, whatever your score is on the 15th hole. The second of two comfort station awaits. The second comfort station has a cabana with a thatched roof. You can’t miss the white donkey wearing a Mexican blanket. This is a great photo opportunity.

The 16th hole is a par 3 that has a three-tiered, huge green. It is a manageable 150-yard par 3, but you can’t miss to the left, right, or deep. The course is surrounded by steep slopes and gnarly desert shrubs. You may need to change your club choice depending on the wind direction or the location of the hole.

A bakery is coming soon to El Cardonal. It will be located on the other side of the 16th-hole. Yes, you read it correctly. A bakery. Imagine the aroma of freshly baked bread as you finish your round.

You can get a great view of the Pacific Ocean from the 17th tee. You might be wondering how the Platinum Paspalum Turf gets so green. It’s a combination of technology and gravity.

Diamante’s desalination facility – required for newer developments in the area – removes salt from ocean water. Pumps bring the water up to the highest point on the property, the 17th hole tee. A gravity-fed system then distributes the desalinated drinking water throughout the land.

The first hole is also a wide, downhill par 5. The 18th hole is a downhill, wide par 5. It could be a thrilling bookend score for PGA Tour professionals.

Soon, golfers will be able walk from Tiger’s 18th-hole course to Tiger’s Restaurant. The Woods Cabo is the second of The Woods’s brands to open, and it has been highly anticipated. The Woods Cabo is scheduled to open in September. You don’t need to be a Diamante member to enjoy this hotspot.

The room is dominated by a four-sided marble bar. The venue has about 30 large screen TVs and round high-backed booths that offer privacy. Three large windows on three walls provide views of the ocean and course.

Diamante has hired Larbi Dhrouch to be its head chef. He will be joined by the sushi chef Jesus Humberto Villalobos Avilés, whose team is responsible for preparing sushi every day. The Woods Cabo’s large butcher counter will allow guests to select their own steaks and cook them themselves.

The desert, the mountains and the ocean all meet here

Los Cabos has a unique landscape and climate. It is a tropical oasis, where the mountains meet the desert and run into the ocean. You can play golf and be sifting through the desert scrub in search of a Pro V1 only to find yourself 20 minutes later dipping your toes into the ocean.

The Pacific Ocean, which stretches to infinity, is located to the west of the Marina in Cabo San Lucas. The Sea of Cortez runs along the east side of this peninsula all the way up to Puerto Penasco (aka Rocky Point), another popular Mexican beach resort that is easily accessible from the American Southwest.

Most Americans who visit Cabo come from western states. Direct flights from Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Diego and Dallas are all within two hours. Charlotte, New York and even Toronto will soon have direct flights. You can even fly direct to London and Spain.

A second airport is being discussed near the Pacific coast of Cape Town, another sign of rapid growth in this area.

Dunes: Love is the key to success

Golfweek’s list of the Best Courses 2023 includes 11 Cabo golf courses. They are located in Mexico, Caribbean islands, Central America, and Atlantic Islands. There are 18 golf courses in Cabo. That’s quite a field.

The Dunes course is the best. It was designed by Davis Love III in 2009 and is the closest course to the sea. The holes wind up and down over and through dunes that were created thousands of years ago when the wind whipped through the area. The course is well-deserving of its praise.

The Dunes also has two comfort stations but they are placed strategically.

On our second day at Diamante, we were paired up with two members who loved to point out the tamales. They recommended that you get one red and two green tamales and wash them down a Pacifico.

You’ll find that the flow of your game at Diamante will be perfect. You won’t rush to play your next shot or eat those delicious tamales. You’re still on Cabo Time.

Don’t lose focus on your game. The 12th hole was a par 3, 180-yard par 3. There is danger lurking. The elevated green will require you to use one or two more clubs than you thought. You’ll end up in a bunker if you miss to the left.

The views are more rewarding than using the flatstick when you reach the green. You can watch the waves crash onto the beach on your left from this perch.

Your swing commitment will be crucial as you stand on the 14th hole’s tee. The hole is 380 yards long from the tips and 358 yards long from the more reasonable tee. The blind tee-shot has more space to the left than one might expect. The odd obelisk on the fairway gives you some direction, but it’s still a “hit-and-hope” shot. Most likely, your ball will be in the fairway. A member pounded a drive and, thanks to the wind to his back, his tee-shot landed on the green. He settled for a birdie with two putts.

The course is always a challenge, but when it’s windy the game gets a little more interesting. The original 18th is no longer there, but you will be able to notice the new 18th. Your approach to the green will need to be high and elevated because the putting surface is so elevated. You’ll feel great about your round if you can get home in two.

The PGA Tour is in the home stretch

El Cardonal is closing in on the Dunes, which gets around 55 percent of the play. El Cardonal will likely remain closed for the time being, but this trend is expected to continue. The course was closed on July 15 to prepare for the PGA Tour.

The World Wide Technology Championship was a fixture on the PGA Tour’s fall schedule from 2007 to a different Mexican coastline, El Camaleon Golf Club, south of Cancun, in Riviera Maya. Mayakoba switched to the LIV Golf League, which created a gap for Tiger Woods and Diamante to fill.

Will Mazzeo, who was Mayakoba’s tournament director, has now moved to Cabo and will continue in this role. In August, his entire team was with him as he prepared for the tournament. Diamante closes down for a week or so in September, as Cabo receives 90 percent of the annual rainfall. This is a great time to do some “rehab”. A little fresh paint, some cleaning and repair work here and there. El Cardonal will be closed until Monday, October 30, in time for the second of two pro-ams.

The golf course is ready. The Woods Cabo is going to rock. Golfers will be watching the cape. The 16th-hole bakery will have to be waited for.

Closing with style

Carly Schneider, Cove Club’s director of instruction, plays both courses at Cabo del Sol frequently. She does so with her students and members. Schneider, who is a former college golfer and was later a Loyola University coach in Chicago, grew up on the golf course her grandfather built. She first became interested in Cabo or at least its idea, via Instagram. Through his photos, she was drawn to the subtropical location. She said she was looking for a place to land at a private members club and Cabo Del Sol fit the bill.

She said that the weather was great for 10 months of the year. Even in August and Septembre [Cabo’s wet season], I love the off-season. The water is warm and the surf is great. The seasons are truly beautiful and magical. After the storms, the water gets warmer and everything becomes green. In the winter, we have cool desert nights with 80-degree temperatures. .”

Even barefoot golf is acceptable, especially if you are playing consecutive par-3s along the coast.

On this visit in May, the temperature was in the high 80s. It was windy, but warm and dry. Schneider displayed her golfing skills as she came down the Cove Club’s stretch. The 16th, the last par 5, starts on a tee-box with stunning views of course. On this particular day, the wind was at our backs. Schneider was able to get over the green with two strong shots. She calmly eagled a wedge from the large swale that was behind the putting area.

A large green is located on the other side a deep arroyo at the par-3 17th. You only need a short iron, but you should be aware of the green’s two levels.

The original 16th hole of the Cove Club is 18. This stunning par four is the perfect way to end your round. It’s a downhill hole that finishes at the edge of Sea of Cortez. As you approach the putting area, and wait for the group to putt, you can enjoy the view of the sea. This is a great spot for a last-minute photo before you head to the next door for drinks and snacks.

The Beach Club has a fantastic outdoor bar and restaurant with views of the crashing waves against the craggy rocks. You can watch the kitchen team at work preparing the selections of the day.

For large family gatherings, there’s a private area with floor to ceiling windows.

This five-flight tasting of tequila is a must. Each of the agave flavor combinations are paired with a perfect snack. The ultimate way to finish this experience is by sipping extra anejo and enjoying the chocolate dessert.

The only way to go up is up

spanstyle=”font weight: 400 ;”>”When i first came down, it felt like a real cowboy town,” said Erik Evans. It was a small town where everyone knew each other. Everyone knew your name when you went into a restaurant, bar or club. There weren’t many golf courses in the past .”

Evans arrived first in 2009 and his first stint was at Diamante. He is the best at knowing what’s going on. He says that you can now buy good wine in this area, something that was not possible 10 years ago.

Cabo had 12 golf courses before 2010. He said there are 18 golf courses now, and that by 2030 they will be 25 or 26.

Golf’s popularity is growing along with the rest of the area. Los Cabos Tourism Board reported a significant increase in visitors for the calendar year 2022. They called the double-digit tourism growth “unprecedented”. This trend has not abated, as similar numbers have arrived so far in 2023.

Nicklaus started the ball rolling, and many other famous designers are also involved. Tom Weiskopf designed the Cabo Del Sol, originally called the Desert Course. It is now under the Fry/Straka Design Group. Six holes have already been completed of the new layout. The course is currently being completely redone.

Greg Norman currently has two golf courses in Cabo, and two more are being planned. Fred Couples worked on the Twin Dolphin Club. Tom Fazio is working on a new project. Ernie Els signed on recently to build Oleada near Diamante, the Pacific.

This destination is marketed by big brand names.

This high-end golf is accompanied by high-end residences and resorts. Vacationers can enjoy an all-inclusive experience. There are plenty of options for those who want to play private, high-end, exclusive golf. The area is increasingly becoming that way, with many properties offering all-inclusive golf memberships that offer exclusive benefits that will make you want to extend your stay, or find a cheap flight for that last-minute trip.

Cabo is the perfect destination for those who want to enjoy a few rounds of golf in the sun.

Taco station at the Cove Club Golf Course in Cabo del Sol, Cabo San Lucas (Photo: Golfweek). When you are at Diamante, Cove Club, or any other course, make sure to enjoy your stay.

McCallen advised: “Set aside the pencil and enjoy the experience. “Don’t stress about your score. Take a few deep breaths.

I would say that great land is needed to create great golf, and we have excellent land. There is elevation change and there’s beautiful desert vegetation.

I will say with certainty that the people here are warm, welcoming and always welcome. The people are what make this place .”