PUNTA ESPADA RANKS AGAIN AS THE #1 COURSE IN THE CARIBBEAN & MEXICO!
Source: Golfweek
Welcome to Golfweek’s annual Best. Each spring, we publish the three lists that are the foundation of our course-ratings program: Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses, Golfweek’s Best Modern Courses, Golfweek’s Best Courses You Can Play and our Top 50 Mexico & Caribbean Courses (below).
The 850-plus members of our course-ratings panel continually evaluate courses and rate them based on our 10 criteria. They also file a single, overall rating on each course.
Those overall ratings on each course are averaged together to produce a final rating for each course. Then each course is ranked against other courses in its category to produce the final rankings.
Each course is listed here with its 2019 ranking, location, architect(s), year opened and the average ranking from all the Golfweek Raters who reviewed it.
Top 50 Mexico & Caribbean Courses
Rank | Course | Location | Architect(s) | Year opened | Avg. rating |
1 | Cap Cana (Punta Espada) | Cap Cana, D.R. | Jack Nicklaus | 2008 | 7.69 |
2 | Dunes Course at Diamante | Cabo San Lucas, Mexico | Davis Love III | 2009 | 7.67 |
3 | Casa de Campo (Teeth of the Dog) | La Romana, D.R. | Pete Dye | 1970 | 7.58 |
4 | Sandy Lane (Green Monkey) | St. James, Barbados | Tom Fazio | 2004 | 7.55 |
5 | Four Seasons Golf Club – Punta Mita (Bahia) | Punta Mita, Mexico, | Jack Nicklaus | 2008 | 7.46 |
6 | Apes Hill Club | St. James, Barbados | Chris Cole, Jeff Potts | 2009 | 7.39 |
7 | Mid Ocean Club | Tucker’s Town, Bermuda | Charles Blair Macdonald and Seth Raynor | 1923 | 7.26 |
8 | Chileno Bay | Cabo San Lucas, Mexico | Tom Fazio | 2015 | 7.25 |
9 | Querencia | San Jose del Cabo, Mexico | Tom Fazio | 2000 | 7.23 |
10 | Corales | Punta Cana, D.R. | Tom Fazio | 2008 | 7.13 |
11 | Royal Westmoreland | St. James, Barbados | Robert Trent Jones Jr. | 1994 | 7.12 |
12 | Playa Grande | Rio San Juan, D.R. | Robert Trent Jones Sr., and Rees Jones | 1995 | 7.11 |
13 | Cabo del Sol (Ocean) | Cabo San Lucas, Mexico | Jack Nicklaus | 1994 | 7.05 |
14 | Four Seasons Punta Mita (Pacifico) | Punta Mita, Mexico | Jack Nicklaus | 1999 | 7.04 |
15 | Baker’s Bay Club | Great Guana Cay, Bahamas | Tom Fazio | 2010 | 7.03 |
16 | Vista Vallarta (Nicklaus) | Vista Vallarta, Mexico | Jack Nicklaus | 2001 | 6.71 |
17 | The Nicklaus Course at Vidanta Puerto | Penasco, Mexico | Jack Nicklaus and Jack Nicklaus II | 2009 | 6.64 |
18 | Abaco Club on Winding Bay | Abaco, Bahamas | Donald Steel | 2006 | 6.64 |
19 | El Dorado Golf & Beach Club | San Jose del Cabo, Mexico | Jack Nicklaus | 1999 | 6.63 |
20 | Mayakoba (El Camaleon) | Maya Riviera, Mexico | Greg Norman | 2006 | 6.60 |
21 | Albany | New Providence, Bahamas | Ernie Els | 2010 | 6.55 |
22 | Quivira | Cabo San Lucas, Mexico | Jack Nicklaus | 2015 | 6.51 |
23 | Royal Isabela | Isabela, P.R. | David Pfaff | 2011 | 6.44 |
24 | Palmas del Mar (Flamboyan) | Humacao, P.R. | Rees Jones | 1998 | 6.40 |
25 | Port Royal | Southampton, Bermuda | Robert Trent Jones Sr. | 1970 | 6.39 |
26 | El Cardonal at Diamante | Cabo San Lucas, Mexico | Tiger Woods | 2015 | 6.38 |
27 | Casa de Campo (Dye Fore) | La Romana, D.R. | Pete Dye | 2008 | 6.37 |
28 | Vista Vallarta (Weiskopf) | Vista Vallarta, Mexico | Tom Weiskopf | 2001 | 6.35 |
29 | Royal Blue | Nassau, Bermuda | Jack Nicklaus | 2015 | 6.33 |
30 | Reserva Conchal | Guanacaste, Costa Rica | Robert Trent Jones Jr. | 1996 | 6.27 |
31 | White Witch | St. James, Jamaica | Robert von Hagge | 2000 | 6.27 |
32 | Ocean Course at Peninsula Papagayo | Guanacaste, Costa Rica | Arnold Palmer | 2004 | 6.27 |
33 | Iberostar Playa Paraiso | Maya Riviera, Mexico | P.B. Dye | 2002 | 6.19 |
34 | Tryall Golf & Beach Club | Montego Bay, Jamaica | Ralph Plummer | 1958 | 6.17 |
35 | Puerto Los Cabos (Norman & Nicklaus) | San Jose del Cabo, Mexico | Jack Nicklaus and Greg Norman | 2008 | 6.13 |
36 | Iberostar Bavaro | Bavaro, D.R. | P.B. Dye | 2009 | 6.12 |
37 | CuisinArt GC | Rendezvous Bay, Anguilla | Greg Norman | 2008 | 6.11 |
38 | TPC Dorado Beach (East) | Dorado Beach, P.R. | Robert Trent Jones Sr. | 1961 | 6.10 |
39 | Royal St. Kitts | Basseterre, St Kitts & Nevis | Thomas McBroom | 2004 | 6.05 |
40 | Ocean Club | Paradise Island, Bahamas | Tom Weiskopf | 2000 | 6.04 |
41 | Palmas del Mar (Palm) | Humacao, P.R. | Gary Player | 1974 | 6.03 |
42 | Cabo del Sol (Desert) | Cabo San Lucas, Mexico | Tom Weiskopf | 1998 | 6.01 |
43 | Lyford Cay Club | New Providence, Bahamas | Rees Jones and Dick Wilson | 1958 | 6.00 |
44 | Casa de Campo (La Romana) | La Romana, D.R. | Pete Dye | 1985 | 5.98 |
45 | Bahia Beach Resort & GC | San Juan, Puerto Rico | Robert Trent Jones Jr. | 2007 | 5.96 |
46 | Sandy Lane (The Country Club) | St. James, Barbados | Tom Fazio | 2004 | 5.95 |
47 | Coco Beach Golf Resort (Championship) | Rio Grande, Puerto Rico | Tom Kite | 2007 | 5.92 |
48 | Puntacana Resort – La Cana (Hacienda/Arrecife) | Punta Cana, D.R. | P.B. Dye | 2001 | 5.91 |
49 | Cabo Real | Cabo San Lucas, Mexico | Robert Trent Jones Jr. | 1994 | 5.89 |
50 | Hacienda Pinilla G&CC | Guanacaste, Costa Rica | Mike Young | 2004 | 5.87 |