{"id":1041,"date":"2010-06-23T16:36:37","date_gmt":"2010-06-23T23:36:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jeffwallach.com\/?p=1041"},"modified":"2012-02-12T11:09:01","modified_gmt":"2012-02-12T18:09:01","slug":"yucatan-yardages-golfing-cancun-and-the-mayan-riviera","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/golf\/courses-and-travel\/1041\/yucatan-yardages-golfing-cancun-and-the-mayan-riviera","title":{"rendered":"Yucatan Yardages: Golfing Cancun and the Mayan Riviera"},"content":{"rendered":"
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You already know you're going to hit this palm tree at El Camaleon Golf Club.<\/p><\/div>\n

The ancient Mayan culture invented one of the earliest forms of ball games, so it\u2019s only fitting that golf thrives among the stone pyramids, jungles, and gorgeous shorelines of their homeland.\u00a0 Visiting golfers will be glad to note, however, that unlike in early Mayan times, the winners of modern contests will not be sacrificed to the gods.<\/p>\n

The state of Quintana Roo, on the eastern edge of Mexico\u2019s Yucatan peninsula, makes for a perfect happy\/sunny destination combining golf, archaeological tours, fine resorts, water sports, shopping, fiery cuisine, and hip towns such as the charming, beachy Playa del Carmen.\u00a0 While some visitors will prefer the action of Cancun, the Riviera Maya to the south, provides a slower-paced (and quieter) alternative to high-rise hotels and crowded bars.<\/p>\n

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Playa Mujeres.<\/p><\/div>\n

Just north of Cancun lies Playa Mujeres Golf Club.\u00a0 Although the name translates to \u201cWomen\u2019s Beach,\u201d men are equally welcome to hit into the bunkers of this new Greg Norman design that stretches 7,218 yards along lagoons and beside the gleaming Caribbean.\u00a0 If you visit Playa Mujeres for the area\u2019s watery attractions, ten holes on the golf course provide an opportunity for splashing.<\/p>\n

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The Hilton and Cancun Golf Club. The island tee is not available for overnight stays.<\/p><\/div>\n

Smack in the middle of Cancun\u2019s Hotel Zone, on the sandy spit threading between Nichupte Lagoon and the Caribbean, lie two more courses worth playing for their convenience.\u00a0 Robert Trent Jones, Jr.\u2019s Cancun Golf Club at Pok-ta-Pok proffers an older layout routed through lush vegetation, beside Mayan ruins, and offering watery views in all directions.\u00a0 The 6,750 yard course may seem as tired as some of the partyers you\u2019ll notice slumped over their morning coffee in local cafes, but Pok-ta-Pok still provides a fun, easygoing warm-up for some of the more challenging courses to the south.\u00a0 Close by, the Hilton Cancun Golf Club is Cancun\u2019s only resort with an on-site course.\u00a0 Designed by Pedro Guereca, this windy venue has recently undergone a huge renovation and promises some good, clean fun for less serious players.<\/p>\n

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Moon Palace Jungle hole.<\/p><\/div>\n

Heading south from Cancun, the Moon Spa and Golf Club is associated with the humongous all-inclusive Moon Palace Resort.\u00a0 Equally gigantic is the quality of 27 holes of Jack Nicklaus signature golf\u2014some of the strongest golf in the Yucatan.\u00a0 The Dunes, Lakes, and Jungle nines can play in eighteen-hole combos to as long as 7,200 yards.\u00a0 Highlights include number eight on the Lakes Course, a 133-yarder to an island green\u2014 or green island, if you prefer.\u00a0 Number three on the Dunes course may be the best on property; this 229-yard par three routes over a lake lined with limestone slabs to a green protected by perfect pot bunkers.\u00a0 In keeping with the all-inclusive theme of the resort, all food and beverage is included in green fees.<\/p>\n

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Iconic Iberostar.<\/p><\/div>\n

For a more architected\u2014some might even say over-designed\u2014course, try Iberostar Resort\u2019s Playa Paraiso Golf Club, a crisply run facility centered around a wildly dramatic layout designed by P.B. Dye.\u00a0 The holes boast beautifully carved features and swooping mounds, deep bunkers, large elevation changes, and non-traditional hazards such as rocky river beds. \u00a0Unique hand-laid stonework appears on several holes, a subtle tribute to the Mayans.\u00a0 The 6,800-yard track exudes an upscale, resorty feel.\u00a0 Number three presents a short risk\/reward par four of 312 yards full of such eye candy as curvy swales, splashes of pot bunkers, trees, and a fairway that winds canyonlike between high grassy mounds.\u00a0 Three lakes decorate Playa Paraiso, which will seem even more like paradise if you can hit high shots to the greens.<\/p>\n

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An aerial view at Mayakoba may help you plan your approaches. Or not.<\/p><\/div>\n

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In 2007, Mayakoba Resort\u2019s Greg Norman-designed El Camaleon golf course hosted the first-ever PGA Tour event in Mexico.\u00a0 This invitingly user-friendly venue plays to 7,200 yards.\u00a0 Much like it\u2019s namesake\u2014the chameleon\u2014 the golf course changes personality as it transitions between three landscapes: jungle, thick mangroves, and oceanside dunes.\u00a0 Many holes run alongside limestone canals filled with blue water.\u00a0 Two holes\u2014both par threes\u2014play to the edge of the Caribbean.\u00a0 While Norman did not create tremendous golfing excitement here, El Camaleon is an immaculately maintained and forgiving layout, with aesthetically pleasing greenside bunkering and wide, welcoming fairways.\u00a0 The associated Fairmont Mayakoba Hotel is possibly the best place in the area to lay your head between golf rounds.<\/p>\n

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The swoopy, shadowy 13th at Playacar.<\/p><\/div>\n

The southernmost of Riviera Maya\u2019s golf venues, Playacar Spa and Golf Club offers one of the toughest courses around\u2014and is also in the toughest shape.\u00a0 Narrow fairways, small greens, and a prodigious slope rating of 148 combine to make this a stiff test in spite of the free food and drink included with green fees.\u00a0 Robert von Hagge\u2019s design feels a bit like Myrtle Beach at times\u2014except for the thick jungle, archaeological vestiges, and iguanas the size of collies.\u00a0 At other moments the holes conjure nostalgia for Spain, Florida, California, and even a middle-eastern oasis.\u00a0 The front nine plays 450 yards longer than the back.\u00a0 Number thirteen is one of the most aesthetically pleasing, a short par four with a dry, grassed depression full of lounging lizards fronting the tiny, elevated green.<\/p>\n

Though some may consider this crazy talk, there\u2019s actually more to do in most foreign countries\u2014including Mexico\u2014than play golf.\u00a0 Those attracted to the confluence of sand and water known as \u201cbeaches\u201d will find an entire coast waiting to be discovered in Cancun and south along the Riviera Maya.\u00a0 Although many beaches are accessible only through resorts, explorations down some enticing dirt roads can turn up the perfect stretch of coastline, a few palms, and a simple palapa bar serving grilled fish and buckets of cold beer.\u00a0 Kayaking, scuba diving, snorkeling, fishing, and other sports are available in many locations along the extensive coral reef just offshore.\u00a0 Visitors can also immerse themselves in a number of cenotes\u2014naturally occurring sunken freshwater pools that punctuate much of the Yucatan Peninsula.<\/p>\n

Those looking for more bustle than isolated resorts offer but less spring break attitude should check out Playa del Carmen a charming small town full of restaurants, cafes, bars, galleries, and shops mostly gathered along one cobbled pedestrian street two blocks from the beach.\u00a0 You can buy everything from tee shirts to tequila, handcrafted artwork to huaraches.\u00a0 Small, intimate boutique hotels line the side streets and offer secret retreats with shady courtyards, private pools, and terraces proffering ocean views.<\/p>\n

No trip to the Yucatan is complete without an excursion to connect with ancient spirits\u2014no not the golf Gods, but the Mayans who erected stone cities in the jungle and created one of history\u2019s most sophisticated calendars.\u00a0 A bit further down the coast lies Tulum, the only Mayan site ever erected beside the ocean.\u00a0 This walled cliff-top city was constructed in the sixth century and some buildings still display remnants of brightly colored paintings inside.\u00a0 Try visiting early in the morning or at dusk, when the crowds have dispersed and the mood is subdued and reverential.\u00a0 A small village near the ruins\u2014with hotels and other services\u2014 makes a nice base of operations for those looking to escape the invading hordes.<\/p>\n

About two hours inland from the Riviera Maya stands one of the grandest examples of ancient Mayan architecture anywhere in the region. Chichen Itza, a stone city from the eighth century, creates a mood of mystery, power, and puzzlement.\u00a0 The site was abandoned in the ninth century then resettled by the Toltecs, only to be abandoned again.\u00a0 Upwards of 100,000 people lived in thatched palapas over 25 square kilometers surrounding the palaces and temples here.\u00a0 At the Castle of Kukulcan, built according to principles of the Mayan calendar, sunlight creates the image of a serpent moving up and down the exterior steps of the stone pyramid on the days of the equinoxes.\u00a0 The site is also home to one of the largest ball courts ever built, with warlike symbols and perfect acoustics.\u00a0 No ancient driving ranges have been discovered thus far.<\/p>\n

Further Info<\/p>\n

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