Grand Reserve Puerto Rico<\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nWhen most golfers imagine their perfect winter getaway, the picture drawn usually includes lush foliage, tall palm trees, gentle breezes, inviting beaches, and a huge blue body of water. PGA Tour players are no different. <\/p>\n
From October to March, the tour stops at seven tropical destinations, in six different countries or territories, five of which are available to the mobile golfer. If you’re looking to walk in the footsteps of the famous on the golf course and then stick your toes in the warm, sugary sand, here are five championship-tested resort courses that will let you immerse yourself.<\/p>\n\n
Port Royal golf course | Southampton, Bermuda <\/h4>\n
PGA Tour event:<\/strong> Butterfield Bermuda Championship<\/p>\nThis government-owned, 1970’s Robert Trent Jones Sr. film dazzles with camera-worthy opportunities, especially the beautiful, but brutal, Class III 16. At 235 yards from an isolated rear tee, the breezy hole up the cliff requires an expanse of 180 yards above Atlantic Ocean. The target is a tall, skinny green surrounded by bunkers and a jagged-covered slope to the right, making for horrific recoveries. “It could easily be the hardest hole you’ll ever play in your life,” Ernie Els said in 2010. It was his 16th game performance on day one of the 2013 four-man PGA Grand Slam of Golf, which only Justin Rose could match the equalizer. Adam Scott, Jason Dufner and Padraig Harrington caused such a mess that their efforts were edited out of the final (postponed on tape) TV broadcast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
The Port Royal has hosted the PGA Tour since 2019 and was also the venue for the PGA Grand Slam of Golf from 2009-2014. A few clunkers dot the hard-rolled, 6,828-yard, par-71 design, including the opening name 4, a right 90-degree dogleg that features a raised tee release into a blind landing. Hit it away and the ball will splash into an invisible lake. However, holes like the 213-yard, 3-8 that head straight into the sea and the 412-yard 15, which slide through the ruins of Fort Marine Batteries, with the ocean on the left, more than make up for it. <\/p>\n\n
The last word:<\/strong> \u201cWhen the wind blows here, this golf course is a real test. Probably my favorite fifteen and sixteen holes – two amazing golf holes. It’s a beautiful, beautiful course.\u201d – Graeme McDowell, 2010 US Open winner<\/p>\nEl Kamalion Golf Course in Mayakoba | Playa del Carmen, Mexico<\/h4>\n
PGA Tour event:<\/strong> World Tech Championships in Mayakoba<\/p>\nOn a golf course dotted with one joyous whim after another, it’s perhaps not surprising that Mexico’s first PGA Tour event of the 21st century was won by a PGA Tour Champions player named Funk. Then turning 50, Fred Funk acquired the 2007 Mayakoba Classic in a playoff with Jose Cosiris. Funk grabbed the trophy despite starting off with one last run that darted to the edge of “Devil’s Mouth,” the opening to a large cenote, an underground freshwater cave monopolizing the landing area. <\/p>\n
In 2004 Greg Norman designed this 7,039-yard layout and bar 71, which serves as the centerpiece of a gorgeous resort and residential community, located 45 minutes south of Cancun Airport in the Riviera Maya. Toss in the limestone-lined canals that bisect the Paspalum Trails, the jungle-like mangroves framing some holes, natural rock caves and a couple of beaches, this is one of the most memorable spots on the PGA Tour. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The last word:<\/strong> “The course is great. Although it’s a resort training course, it’s still a challenge for many parts of your game. If you’re out, you’ll be punished and if you play well, you’ll be rewarded. The weather is great, the food is great, the people are great. It’s just that A mixture of everything.” – Victor Hovland, two-time winner of the Mayakoba Classic (2020, 2021)<\/p>\n\nKapalua Resort (Plantation Course) | Kapalua, Maui, Hawaii<\/h4>\n
PGA Tour event:<\/strong> Guard Championship of Champions<\/p>\n
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