Quivira Golf Club

The verdict

Quivira is the course visitors to Los Cabos talk about long after they leave, and the one Jack Nicklaus himself has called among the most spectacular pieces of land he has ever been given. Opened in 2014 as the centerpiece of the Pueblo Bonito Quivira resort, it sits on the far western edge of Cabo San Lucas where the desert meets the Pacific, and Nicklaus used every contour of it, sending holes up over granite headlands, along clifftop ridges and down through tumbling dunes to the shore.

It is a par 72 of about 7,085 yards, but the number on the card barely tells the story. The drama is in the elevation, the carries over canyons and the constant presence of the ocean, with four comfort stations along the way to keep a long, scenic round civilized. It is not the toughest test in Cabo from a pure architecture standpoint, but as an experience it is the headline act, and it ranks among the world's most photographed courses. For a once in a lifetime round in Mexico, this is the one.

The holes worth the trip

Quivira builds quickly toward its set pieces. The early holes lift you off the resort floor and out toward the coast, and by the par 4 sixth you are perched high on the cliffs with the Pacific crashing below and the green tucked among the rocks, the signature image of the whole course. From there the routing rides the headlands and dunes, and the cart paths themselves become an attraction as they wind along the clifftops between holes.

The par 3s are the kind you remember, played across canyons and gullies with the ocean as the backdrop and the wind as the variable, where club selection is a guess as much as a calculation. Nicklaus gave the greens enough movement to defend par, but the bigger challenge is committing to the shot with the sea filling your eyeline. The comfort stations, generously stocked, are part of the experience as much as the golf.

The closing holes drop back down toward the resort and the beach, and the round ends with the sense of having played somewhere genuinely rare. It is golf as spectacle, and on the right morning, with the whales breaching offshore in winter, there are few places in the game to match it.

Where to stay nearby

The natural base is the Pueblo Bonito Quivira resort complex on the estate itself, which unlocks the easiest tee time access along with beach, spa and dining, all a short shuttle from the first tee. Beyond it, Cabo San Lucas and the tourist corridor toward San Jose del Cabo offer the full spread of five star resorts and restaurants for a group or a couple.

Quivira anchors a strong Los Cabos golf trip and pairs well with the region's other marquee courses for a multi round stay, from the desert and ocean holes of Diamante Dunes to the Nicklaus test at El Dorado.

Looking for a base? See our recommended hotels and resorts in Los Cabos.