Cabo del Sol Ocean Course

The verdict

When Jack Nicklaus walked the ground at Cabo del Sol he reckoned he had three of the best finishing holes and three of the best closing holes in golf to work with, and the Ocean Course he opened in 1994 made good on the boast. For most of the next three decades it was the round everyone wanted in Los Cabos, a desert layout that kept finding its way back to the Sea of Cortez, where the surf, the dark volcanic rock and the cactus all crowded the same holes. It was the course that helped turn the southern tip of Baja into one of the great resort golf destinations.

The Ocean has since entered a new chapter. A phased renovation overseen by Nicklaus reworked the playing surfaces, rebuilt bunkers and added new holes, and the course relaunched as the Cove Club, a private members and guests operation rather than the daily fee resort course it once was. The golf is, if anything, sharper than before, but the way you experience it has changed: this is now an access question as much as a green fee one. For the traveling golfer it remains one of the defining names of Cabo, best understood alongside its still bookable neighbours.

The holes worth the trip

The Ocean Course is two distinct experiences stitched together. Much of the routing plays through the arroyos and granite of the high desert, with elevated tees, generous corridors and Nicklaus green complexes that defend par with contour rather than length. Then, at intervals, the course drops down to the water and the whole mood changes. The signature stretch on the front nine delivers back to back par 3s played right along the beach, two of the most photographed short holes in Mexico, where the carry is part sand, part surf and entirely intimidating in the afternoon breeze.

The closing holes return to the coast for a finish that hugs the Sea of Cortez, the kind of dramatic, sea sprayed run that made the course famous and that the renovation was careful to protect and enhance. In between, the desert holes ask for position and a steady head, because the greens are quick and the wrong side of the pin leaves a testing putt. It rewards the player who can flight the ball low under the wind and resists the temptation to take on every ocean carry just because it is there.

Set against its Cabo del Sol stablemate, the still accessible Desert Course, the Ocean is the more scenic and celebrated of the pair, while neighbours like Quivira and Palmilla carry the load for visitors who want a guaranteed tee time. Understanding where the Ocean sits in that pecking order is the key to planning a Los Cabos golf week.

Where to stay nearby

Los Cabos is built for golf travel, with a corridor of resorts running between Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo that put you within a short drive of a dozen big name courses. Around Cabo del Sol the lodging skews to the upper end, and a base here keeps you central for the whole corridor whether or not you secure access to the Ocean.

Because the Ocean is now private, most visiting golfers build their week around the bookable Cabo names, the Desert Course at Cabo del Sol, Quivira, Palmilla and Cabo Real, and treat the Cove Club as the round to chase if a connection or membership allows. That makes Los Cabos a flexible, sun sure golf destination almost any time outside the peak of summer.

Looking for a base? See our recommended hotels and resorts along the Los Cabos corridor.