BAJA FRESH By Joe Passov

BAJA FRESH

MEXICO’S LOS CABOS SIZZLES WITH NEWLY BUILT, ACCESSIBLE GOLF

As 1992 dawned, Los Cabos, Mexico, was little more than a sleepy, if much beloved sportfishing destination. A single, governmentowned nine-hole course serviced the needs of local and visiting golfers. Fast-forward 28 years. Today, the region populated by the towns of San Jose del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas is a bona fide golf mecca, closing in on 20 courses. Make no mistake, Los Cabos is a pricey golf mecca, but a mecca, nonetheless. Its reputation on both fronts has recently been enhanced by the addition of three new courses, plus several more with expanded access. Bring your sticks and your pesos — and prepare to be amazed.

Twin Dolphin Montage The brightest new star in the Cabo golf constellation is Twin Dolphin Golf Club. Conveniently situated midway between San Jose del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas, Twin Dolphin is named nostalgically for a revered beachfront hotel that existed on the site from 1977 to 2006. The year-old, 7,156-yard course honors its namesake beautifully. It’s fun, thoughtprovoking and is loaded with stellar views and classic design accents.

40 | AZ GOLF Insider | PREVIEW 2020 Accompanying the Twin Dolphin experience is a laid-back vibe, perhaps no surprise given that Freddie Couples is both the course co-designer and a part-time resident. Couples collaborated with architect Todd Eckenrode of Origins Golf Design to create a throwback tract that melds seamlessly to the natural rolling terrain. It’s a true hillside desert course, framed by cactus and other spiny trees and shrubs, studded with strategically placed bunkers, crisscrossed by desert washes and backdropped by

Desert drama and the Sea of Cortez merge in spectacular fashion at Twin Dolphin’s par-3 11th hole (above). Following your round, the spa/pool at Montage Los Cabos awaits (inset). COURTESY TWIN DO LPHINS

rock outcroppings and ocean panoramas. Yet, the course isn’t at all penal. Wide landing areas, helpful speed slots and sideboards, numerous bailouts and a lack of forced carries into the greens make this pure fun for everyone. As Couples put it, “Sure we could have made Twin Dolphin play tougher, but I wanted a course that I would enjoy, and so could my 15-handicap pals.” Consider the deed done.

Couples’ input figured prominently in the design, notably at the par4 second hole, a 389-yarder that slithers downhill and to the right. He widened the original green, softened the surrounding green complex and shifted the configuration to embrace a magnificent Sea of Cortez vista.

Still, Freddie being Freddie, he claims his favorite hole is the range. It’s the ideal place for mellow, though meaningful practice. Targets staggered at a variety of elevations are backed by sea views. Also on the range are cabanas adorned with sofas and fridges, and your choice of four top-line brands of practice balls.

What truly elevates Twin Dolphin, however, are the service levels, the Red Door food and beverage stations — one on each nine, which come with complimentary eats and drinks, comfy chairs and massive televisions — and the tranquil satisfaction that comes from being one of the only groups on a great golf course.

Twin Dolphin is a private club, with membership available to owners of the upscale Montage Residences and to owners at the even more upscale Maravilla development. Book a stay at one of the 52 Montage Residences, or at the Montage Los Cabos hotel, an ultraluxe, 122-room property overlooking Santa Maria Bay, and Twin Dolphin can be yours, for Pebble Beach-like $425, plus a $50 forecaddie fee. twindolphinloscabos.com

Costa Palmas Four Seasons On Cabo’s vast, secluded East Cape, 45 minutes northeast of SJD, the Los Cabos Mexico International Airport, a game-changer for the area opened in late November: Costa Palmas Golf Club. The Robert Trent Jones II design unfolds on an exceptionally varied, 7,221-yard journey. Jones artfully describes it as “a golf symphony composed of three movements and two transitions.” Amid a rippled expanse of sand that rises to nearly 130 feet, the linksy, walkable layout boasts staggering vistas of the Sea of Cortez and the Sierra de la Laguna Mountains.

The opening six holes mimic a low-profile, Scottish experience in what Jones terms the layout’s “dunescape,” where open entrances into the greens permit and even encourage groundhugging run-up shots. Holes 7 through 13 are “upland” as they twist through mesquite trees and bold bunkering amid mountain backdrops. The home stretch dazzles with brilliant blue backdrops and a marina that houses the kind of sportfishing boats that separate the haves from the have-nots. To step aboard Costa Palmas you’ll need to be a property owner or guest at the Four Seasons Resort Los Cabos at Costa Palmas. This seaside retreat features 118 guest rooms and 23 suites, plus all the niceties one expects from one of the world’s most lauded hospitality companies. Golf rates are a firm $450. costapalmas.com

Guests at the new Four Seasons Resort Los Cabos at Costa Palmas (inset) enjoy exclusive access at a new seaside design from Robert Trent Jones II (below).

Rancho San Lucas Solmar Hotels & Resorts After a fistful of stops and starts, Rancho San Lucas is now playable, with an official grand opening slated for February. It was worth the wait. Located 15 minutes north of downtown Cabo San Lucas on the breezier Pacific Ocean side of town, this 7,260-yard, Greg Norman creation is mostly draped atop a desert hillside but also features a half dozen holes that front the ocean. The low-slung holes and tightly mown green surrounds encourage the ground-game attack, with the showstopping exception of the 168-yard, par-3 17th, where only an aerial approach will do to find the island green. Especially memorable are the lower-lying holes cocooned in dunes. Rancho San Lucas homeowners in this 834-acre community may join this private club. Outside play is limited

to guests of Solmar Hotels & Resorts, including the on-site Grand Solmar Resort. You’ll fork over $158-$242 (check for current rates), plus a $50 forecaddie fee for the privilege of tackling one of the Shark’s most inspired designs. ranchosanlucas.com Bottom line Cabo’s exciting new trio of seaside courses all fit the pattern — they’re really private clubs, with limited access to resort hotel guests with fat wallets. But then, you didn’t book a Cabo golf vacation to pinch pennies. If you’re seeking outstanding ocean and desert scenery, superior service and course conditions and a near-guarantee of great weather, Cabo and its new breed of courses is worth the splurge. n COURTESY RANCHO SAN LUCAS Greg Norman’s Rancho San Lucas bares its sharpest teeth at the stunning island green that serves as the course’s par-3 17th hole.

‘Stay and play’ just took on new meaning in Cabo

Mexico’s top-ranked golf course, the Dunes at Diamante, has been purely private since it opened in 2010, unless you were a weekly renter. Now you can play this aptly named layout by Davis Love — or its sibling, El Cardonal, the first completed design from Tiger Woods — by staying at either of two hotels that opened on property in 2019, Nobu or the Hard Rock. Fees are $320, plus $50 forecaddie fee. For the “new Cabo” experience, these lovely links are a bargain! diamantecabosanlucas.com

Rumors in 2014 were that Cabo’s most spectacular oceanside layout, the Jack Nicklaus-designed Quivira, would be completely private by 2020. The good news for visiting golfers is that the course remains accessible to resort guests at any of the four area Pueblo Bonito Resorts. Reasonable at $233-$380. quiviraloscabos.com

Also accessible, since 2017, is Tom Fazio’s magnificent Chileno Bay, which overlooks the Sea of Cortez at every turn. Stay at the Chileno Bay

Resort and Residences, part of the exclusive Auberge Resorts collection, and you can play for a hefty $500 green fee. (caddie included).

aubergeresorts.com/chilenobay

Puerto Los Cabos, the top championship resort course near the town of San Jose del Cabo, added a third nine in December 2017. Designed by Nicklaus, it can be combined with Nicklaus’ existing nine, or in tandem with the stunning Greg Norman nine. A smoking deal by Cabo standards at $150-$285. puertoloscabos.com

Soon to be less accessible is the Ocean Course at Cabo del Sol. Now known as the Cove Club, the best public-access course in Los Cabos for the past 25 years has undergone multiple renovations, taking a few holes off the sea and reworking others, in anticipation of going fully private in two years, save for tee times available for residence owners and guests of the new on-site Four Seasons and Park Hyatt Los Cabos hotels. Comes in at . . . $450. cabodelsol.com

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