There are golf rounds, and then there are golf experiences that remain etched in the memory forever, a resort course leaving such an indelible impression that golfers cannot wait to share the story with their playing partners.
Quivira Los Cabos, a Jack Nicklaus signature design perched on the cliffs of Mexico, is such a place. Tackling the layout just once is not enough. Not because it is the most strategic track golfers will ever face (no offense to the Golden Bear), but because concentrating on golf feels somewhat secondary to the scenic beauty and hospitality.
The course on the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula opened in 2014 and features dozens of views of Pacific Ocean waves crashing into massive rock formations, along with three comfort stations featuring freshly grilled tacos, pork and beef sliders, and fully stocked bars.
It is also hard to forget the steep, 1-mile cart ride up the side of a mountain with views of an expansive beach and cruise ships off in the distance that leads to the fifth tee and arguably the most stunning view from a golf halfway house.
“Is Cypress Point any more spectacular? No,” says Chris Cochran, the lead architect on the project for Nicklaus. “Visually, it is the most spectacular golf course I know of on the planet.”
The layout is situated on a 2,000-acre site that offers an array of landscapes and hole varieties as part of the four Pueblo Bonito resorts in and around mountainous Cabo.
“I would say when golfers are on the first tee, they don’t expect what they end up playing,” says Quivira director of golf Antonio Reynante. “Golf is brilliantly achieved throughout three entirely different environments — which are the desert, high cliffs and rolling dunes. It is very dynamic and impressive with ocean views and an enriched environment on every single hole.”
Property owners and resort guests have access to the remarkable course with an all-inclusive rate ranging from $300 to $465.
The front-nine highlights — and there are many — include the fifth and sixth holes with greens on the edge of high cliffs above crashing waves 100 feet below. The back nine is no less stunning, featuring the postage-stamp 14th green — measuring just 1,200 square feet — perched on a spectacular granite pinnacle formation jutting out of the steep hillside.
Reynante recalled getting a request from an unnamed Irish golf photographer who wanted to shoot the 14th — the shortest hole on the course. Much to his surprise, the photographer spent dawn to dusk on that 108-yard par 3, executing hundreds of frames in various lighting throughout the day.
“He spent 12 hours, and when he left, he said it was one of the most special golf holes he had ever photographed in his life,” says Reynante, who noted that the Irish photographer wanted the shot for his private collection and never shared the finished product.
“There are a lot of optics behind that hole and Mr. Nicklaus, being the great golf designer that he is, does that a lot,” saidReynante. “It looks like a longer hole than it is because the green is so small.” Reynante noted that golfers often rely on visual memory to judge yardage based on target size, and after playing the dramatic hole a few times, they begin to understand how the design tricks the eye.
Cochran was given the assignment of building the course for Nicklaus after the Great Recession had shuttered the original project for a few years.
“My first impression was, ‘Is it physically possible to build a golf course on this property?’” Cochran recalls. “It was hands-down the most difficult site I’ve ever worked on. Every single hole had a major grade or engineering issue. So I am just thrilled that we were able to get a golf course on it.”
It is not just any golf course, but one of the top 100 in the world as ranked by Golf Digest.
Reynante has worked at the resort for 12 years and remembers the first time he made that trek up the mountain between the fourth green and fifth tee.
“It’s crazy because it’s such a long transition,” he says. “I loved it, but as an operator I didn’t know what the reactions of the golfers would be. But everybody loves it. It’s a very special feature of the course that showcases how expansive the property is.” Reynante added that the climb helps prepare golfers for the roller-coaster round ahead.
Even the practice complex is oceanfront, located less than 100 feet from the beach and ocean.
“And that’s got to be the most stunning driving range on the planet, too,” Cochran says.
The golf course also offers an expansive bird’s-eye view for whale watching from mid-December through mid-April.
For off-course excursions, Cabo Adventures offers water and land outings, including off-road camel exploration along the Pacific coastline—a memorable activity rarely found at golf destinations.
“Quivira may not be the greatest golf course in the world, but it just might be the greatest experience because there is nothing like it,” Cochran says. “Remember those calendars that used to feature all the wild, crazy golf holes? That’s Quivira.
“I would hope golfers are just blown away by the beauty and want to turn around and go back and play it again. There’s enough mystery there because it’s such a difficult site. Players finish and immediately say, ‘Now that I know how to play that hole, let’s go back and do it again.’”
