Imagine a heat map of golf course development right now.
It would glow in the Sandhills of the Carolinas, home to a fireworks display of structures; the highlands outside Denver (see: Rodeo Dunes); and the piney expanse of East Texas, where Wild Spring Dunes is beginning to take shape.
But widen the lens and you still see a bright spot.
Mexico.
Or more specifically, Cabo San Lucas, where the airport continues to expand, the direct flights continue to multiply, and the flow of money and real estate has become so constant that the destination sometimes feels like an outbuilding of LA
In recent years, the desert-meets-sea region has spawned new jobs from the likes of Greg Norman and Fred Couples, along with a wave of high-profile renovations. Tom Fazio has a biggie in the works with a second course at Querencia. And don’t forget Tiger Woods, whose exclusive Legacy Golf Club in Diamanté – located on the rugged Pacific coast – will open at the end of this year.
That same windswept coastline, which also claims SolMar and Quivira among its tenants, is about to get a little busier. Announced last year, Oleada Golf Links, the first design in Mexico from four-time major champion Ernie Els, now comes into clearer focus, with new renderings just released.
Oleada, a Spanish word for “golf,” will be located approximately 15 minutes from downtown Cabo San Lucas and serve as the centerpiece of Oleada Pacific Living & Golf, an 860-acre resort community spread over a mile of oceanfront.
Els describes the location as one of the best natural features he has worked with: a sandy canvas marked by ridges, dunes and rumpled ground that lends itself to a rough, lefty style of golf (even if the course won’t be true links in the traditional sense). The setting, he told GOLF.com, is the kind that architects dream of: dramatic but not manufactured, offering natural movement that requires little earthmoving.
Working with design partner Greg Letsche, Els plans to lay the course so that it starts on higher desert terrain dotted with cacti before tumbling toward the ocean, where most holes are closer to the water. As with other Cabo runways, wind will be a factor, and the design takes that into account, with wide landing areas, multiple angles of attack and a premium placed on creativity along the ground.
The larger development calls for three luxury resorts, along with wellness and fitness centers, hiking and biking trails, orchards and daycare centers, and other lifestyle amenities. But real estate and other infrastructure will be far away from the gaming corridors.
Tee times will be available to resort guests and homeowners, with limited additional play opportunities expected through select remote stay and play packages. Preview play will begin in July, with a grand opening planned for mid-November. You can put that on your calendar even as you mark the location on your map.
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