The players of the PGA Tour are super human on the golf course but a lot like you and I off of it: they like to travel to and play in locations that are fun and fabulous and have things to do when the work day is done – places where we vacation, and they go to compete and then enjoy their down time.
That’s why the World Wide Technology Championship of Mayakoba, the Tour’s Fall Series stop in Mexico’s Riviera Maya, has become a favorite for players and fans alike. Played in the area located on the southeast side of the Yucatan Peninsula to the south of Cancun and across the bay from Cozumel, this is a stop where the pros can let it all hang out once golf is complete.
This year’s tournament will be played Nov. 3-6 at El Camaleon Golf Club at Mayakoba in Playa del Carmen, a coastal resort town along a strip of Caribbean shoreline known for its palm-lined beaches, coral reefs and opulent resorts.
El Camaleon Golf Club
A Norman track
El Camaleon Golf Club, a stunning Greg Norman-designed course considered the best of the facilities in the region, will host the event for the 16th consecutive season. Viktor Hovland of Norway has won the past two renditions of the event, last year capturing the title by four strokes while producing a tournament scoring record of 23 under for the four rounds.
Norman’s course is considered one of the best in Mexico and blends the diverse ecosystems of the lush Mayakoba resort. The Caribbean Sea coastline side of the routing is part of a vast system of mangrove wetlands with minimal undulation. Upper area holes are rolling and rocky as they play through tropical Mayan jungle.
Breaking down El Camaleon GC
El Camaleon Golf Club’s features are dramatic, and its cenotes (which are natural pits, or sinkholes) create unique hazards. One of those cenotes can be found in the middle of the seventh fairway, with several more scattered throughout the course. These natural water pools are surrounded by bright green vegetation and the frequently observed iguanas.
Like the chameleon, from which it takes its name, El Camaleon Golf Club offers constantly changing views as it winds through three diverse ecosystems. The 7,039-yard layout plays as a par-71 and also has exotic blue water, alligators and Seashore paspalum greens.
El Camaleon Golf Club’s mix of par-4s and par-5s are the highlights of the round.
The sixth plays at 416 yards and demands an approach over water. The line to the putting surface on the two-shotter is guarded by a long, thin sand bunker but a bailout area is offered to the left. The green is huge with a cenote to the front right.
On the aforementioned par-5 seventh (as the course is played for the PGA Tour event) the entire hole is visible from the tee, but the player’s eye is immediately drawn to the cenote in the middle of the fairway. Norman routed the hole so that the cenote falls between the first and second landing areas for the average player and at the end of the first-shot landing areas for the pros.
The par-4 12th appears straight and benign with a natural rock wall to the right and rough left, but on close inspection the hole is designed so that a tee shot too far left will leave an approach blocked by a stand of trees.
The 13th hole is carded at 532 yards and is a fine risk/reward par-5 if the player has some gumption. With a mangrove to the right, the play is to take on the large bunker on the left side that appears to sneak further into the fairway than it actually does. By choosing the bolder route and executing your shot well, the green is open from that angle.
No. 14 is both a monster and a beauty. At 452 yards it’s a slight dogleg-left with a water canal crossing the fairway that should not be in play for even the longest drives. The approach is to an elevated green protected by a large bunker on the left. Don’t get fooled by the bunker on the right that is well short of the green.
The short par-4 17th allows for the layup option off the tee with a nicely placed lateral hazard lurking near the landing area. A wayward shot with the driver can end up either in the canal left or rough on the right. Although right might be safe, the second shot from that angle is to a green that tilts slightly towards the canal that is lurking.
Winding under a forest canopy and through the tropical landscape, El Camaleon Golf Club is rather open and forgiving off the tee. As with many Norman-designed courses, there are a lot of challenging run-offs around the greens. And things can get tricky if the winds don’t cooperate.
El Camaleon Golf Club is part of the Mayakoba Resort complex along with four luxurious hotels – Rosewood, Banyan Tree, Fairmont and Andaz, respectively – as well as expansive private residential homes.
Gran Coyote
Other golf options in Riviera Maya
There are more than a dozen 18-hole courses in the Cancun/Cozumel/Riviera Maya region, where golf is always first in our hearts, but the beaches and the clear waters of the Gulf of Mexico and the pool scene run a close second and third. We’ve focused on the courses in the Riviera Maya area for our recommendations below:
Hard Rock Golf Club, Playa del Carmen
Best to tackle this course before the drinks and partying time of your vacation sets in. Designed by the late Robert von Hagge, Hard Rock Golf Club (formerly the Golf Club at Playacar) was hacked out of the dense jungle. Mostly narrow fairways, some with sharp doglegs finish at demanding greens complexes. It certainly is not a “run-of-the-mill” resort course.
Gran Coyote Golf, Playa del Carmen
Designed by Nick Price and opened in 2011, this course (which was originally named Grand Coral Riviera Maya Golf Club) is the opposite side of the coin from the two courses above. This is a true resort facility that’s very fair and playable. Price’s routing made sure to have the least amount of environmental impact to the land it is set on and the golf can be challenging as the course winds its way around the expansive Grand Coral complex.
Iberostar Playa Paraiso Golf Club, Playa Paraiso
If you like the challenge of hilly terrain, with dramatic drops and elevations, then the Iberostar Playa Paraiso golf course is the one for you. Located between the two beach towns Puerto Morelos and Playa del Carmen, this golf course was designed by P.B. Dye and has lots of the famous golf architecture family’s design elements: narrow fairways, testing water hazards, rock walls and deep bunkers. There are cenotes here, too.
PGA Riviera Maya, Tulum
Born as Bahia Principe Riviera Maya Golf Club, PGA Riviera Maya is the southern-most golf course on the Maya Trail. Designed by Robert Trent Jones II opened in 2010 and features elevation changes that are not typical in this part of Mexico. The course is carved out of dense jungle with natural flora and, yes, cenotes all part of the routing design. The facility housed Jones’ 18-hole par-72 championship layout as well as a nine-hole par-3 course with plenty of natural lakes so you can decide how much of the day you want to play.