It’s not uncommon to see elk wandering around in Estes Park, Colorado, this time of year.

It is the fall mating season, after all. And elk are huge creatures that pretty much do what they want, even if it means taking a break on a golf course.

Some elk were seen at Lake Estes Golf Course in Estes Park, Colorado, this week. They mostly wandered around and grazed. They also rested for a bit and of course, used their bugling call to attract a mate. If you’ve heard the sound, there’s no mistaking it.

It’s called the elk rut, and as the Colorado Springs Gazette reports, the season coincides with the arrival of the fall colors, “making it one of the busiest times of year at Rocky Mountain National Park.” People from all over the area will head to Estes Park this month to witness Mother Nature in action.

Elk are frequently seen around downtown Estes Park as well as the golf courses and a walking trail that goes around town.

In this age of selfies, though, wildlife officials recommend people stay at least 75 feet away from the elk.

Golf, in all its forms, continues to grow, and there’s a new player on the scene.

Holey Moley, a mini-golf experience from an Australian-based company is the latest to join the likes of Topgolf, Popstroke and more in the U.S.

Holey Moley’s first American outlet is in Denver, just blocks from Coors Field, home of the Colorado Rockies.

To celebrate the grand opening, mini-golfers can get 2-for-1 deals for the rest of the month of September.

Holey Moley offers what it describes as “the craziest, most Insta-worthy putt-putt rounds in the U.S.” There are 27 holes featuring pop-culture themes and unique cocktail names such as Sugar Caddy, Pop Till You Drop, Partee Punch and Rub A Dub In The Tub.

The food offerings include burgers, club melts, beet drop salad, Oaxaca French Fries, grilled elote corn ribs, braised birria pizza and Nashville hot chicken sliders.

Holey Moley has announced future locations that include San Francisco, Austin and Houston. Those locations are scheduled to come online early in 2024.

Funlab, the company behind the golf, also runs arcades and bowling alleys.

Check out some photos of Holey Moley Denver.

Of all of California’s wine regions, Sonoma may be the easiest with which to fall in love.

After all, this is the epicurean capital of the United States, and the restaurants, wineries and tasting rooms rival anything Europe has to offer.

With its Mediterranean-style climate, Sonoma County is the most diverse wine-growing region in the country as well as the largest producer of wine in Northern California with more than 40 grape varietals and 400 wineries. 

Napa Valley is 20 minutes away, Russian River Valley is a half hour away, Dry Creek and Alexander Creek about 40 minutes away, and San Francisco 45 minutes.

Here are four more things to know about Sonoma and a Wine Country getaway with a side of golf.

Exclusive: Check out the new Golfweek Wine Club

Jimmy Buffett died Friday from Merkel cell skin cancer, an affliction he had been battling for four years, according to a statement on his official website. He was 76.

And while he was best known for spending time on the beach, Buffett also had been bitten by the golf bug in a big way.

He was known for dropping in golf course visits in the middle of his rigorous concert tours. For example, while playing a gig in Dublin, Buffett snuck in a round at Portmarnock Golf Club, and while headlining in Paris he posted pictures from St. Cloud Country Club.

Also, the musician was on hand for a 2018 U.S. Senior Women’s Open practice round, serving as a caddie for competitor Patricia Ehrhart. That tournament was contested at Chicago Golf Club yet he performed at Wrigley Field later that week.

According to a story from USA Today, the singer died “peacefully … surrounded by his family, friends, music and dogs.”

Buffett struggled with an undisclosed health issue starting in 2022, when he was hospitalized and forced to cancel several shows. In May and June 2023, he canceled more concerts after revealing he was “back in the hospital to address some issues that needed immediate attention.”

Along with his 1977 breakthrough “Margaritaville,” the languid ode to relaxation with a buzzy bent that was submitted to the National Recording Registry in 2023, Buffett penned a bonanza of pop culture staples in the 1970s and 1980s.

“Come Monday,” “Cheeseburger in Paradise,” “Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes,” “A Pirate Looks at Forty” and “Pencil Thin Mustache” were alternately contemplative and silly. But all bore Buffett’s signature sound that became known as “trop rock,” or, as Buffett called it, “Gulf and Western,” with acoustic guitar, steel drums and pedal steel guitar injected into their backbone.

Born on Christmas Day 1946 in Pascagoula, Mississippi, Buffett grew up in nearby Mobile, Alabama, where he developed a love of sailing from his grandfather.

Here’s a look at some of Buffett’s documented golf excursions, including a look at a post that proclaimed he had a hole-in-one.

CABO SAN LUCAS, Mexico — Booming.

That might be the word used to describe your drive on the downhill – and downwind if you’re lucky – par-5 16th hole at Cove Club that races from the tee box toward the Sea of Cortez.

Booming is also the best word to describe the sheer growth of the game of golf on the tip of the Baja California peninsula.

Los Cabos, “the two capes,” is the area book-ended by the twin cities of Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo, neighboring towns situated at opposite ends of a 20-mile corridor. This Mexican golf mecca has only been a golf destination for about 30 years. But what’s there now combined with what’s coming guarantees this hotspot will remain a popular locale for years to come. Tourism was up double digits in 2022, a trend that continued the first part of 2023, and several new golf courses are either planned or under construction.

Cabo had but one course in 1987 and there’s 18 now. By 2030, there’s likely to be as many as 25. Almost all are top-shelf venues catering to those looking at golf as a complement to an upscale resort lifestyle.

It’s almost a chicken-or-the-egg discussion: Are golfers flocking to Cabo because of the array of great courses? Or are great courses continuing to sprout up as people seek a home-away-from-home destination with a country club lifestyle replete with all the modern amenities?

That’s most likely a question you’ll have to answer for yourself. When you plan your trip, though, you may want to leave your departure date open-ended. It’s not uncommon for a six-day Cabo trip to become nine days, 12 days, even more. You’ll see what we mean when you get there.

Ease of access

Arrival into the Los Cabos International Airport in San Jose del Cabo on a recent trip for this Golfweek staffer was a breeze. The direct flight from Phoenix was a little more than two hours. At the taxi stand, where dozens of vacationers waited for their turn to get whisked away, music was blaring and bartenders were pouring.

Yep, it was now Cabo time.

Photos: Tiger Woods, Davis Love III golf courses at Diamante Cabo San Lucas

After finding a ride, a white Chevy Tahoe with dark-tinted windows, a tall, cold slender can of Pacifico beer became the refreshment of choice. The first stop: Diamante Cabo San Lucas. 

The Tiger Woods-designed El Cardonal Golf Course at Diamante Cabo San Lucas (Photo: Diamante)

Our driver, Jose, made a good call taking the Los Cabos Toll Road, which cuts across the desert a few miles north of the corridor. The toll is fairly new and makes for a quicker route to the ever-growing Pacific Ocean side of the cape.

Downtown Cabo, in the middle of the corridor, is the heart of the action with restaurants, bars, shops and the pier. This nightlife hotspot is on the agenda but reaching home base for the first part of this trip is the task at hand, with the SUV making a beeline to Diamante. About 45 minutes later, the second-floor, double sliding-glass door was opened, bringing in the cool desert air and providing an amazing view to the west, the sun beginning to set over the horizon. 

The ninth green of the Davis Love III-designed Dunes course was just to the right off the patio. Looking that direction, it’s impossible not to notice the Lagoon, Diamante’s 10-acre saltwater pool, its stunning blue water contrasted against the desert terrain. For those with family in tow, the Lagoon, complete with a kids water park, is a centerpiece to your stay.

The Tiger Woods-designed El Cardonal Golf Course at Diamante Cabo San Lucas (Photo: Diamante)

Farther up the landscape is El Cardonal, the second of what will soon be three 18-hole championship courses. Better known as the first golf course designed by Tiger Woods, El Cardonal will get its proper introduction to the world in November when it joins the roster of PGA Tour stops as host of the World Wide Technology Championship. 

Like in so many other aspects of their golfing lives, Tiger is following in the footsteps of Jack Nicklaus, who has six courses in Cabo. The two legendary golfers are linked again here on the peninsula.

Exploding on the scene

As with many coastal Mexican locales, Los Cabos was once a sleepy fishing community. It’s also long been a renowned scuba and whale-watching spot. Situated about 1,000 miles south of San Diego, the area is Instagram-famous for El Arco de Cabo San Lucas, better known as Land’s End, the stunning natural arch that dips into the water, a must-have photo opp for all visitors to the area.

Cabo is now just as well-known for its golf but it’s a bit stunning to realize that just a generation ago, there was but one course on the peninsula. Constructed in 1987 and just a nine-holer, Vidanta Golf Los Cabos was built by the government and is still in operation. It would be another five years until the next one came online, but that course, called Palmilla, was Jack Nicklaus’ introduction to the area and signaled the beginnings of a subtropical golf destination.

“There was nothing here,” said Brian McCallen, who knows Cabo better than most. He handled golf public relations for the Los Cabos Tourism Board for eight years. Prior to that, he was the travel editor for Golf magazine for 16 years.

“There were five hotels, probably more donkeys than people.”

The private Cove Club Golf Course at Cabo Del Sol in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico (Photo: Cabo Del Sol)

It was the second course Nicklaus built in Cabo that really got the ball rolling. Originally called the Ocean Course at Cabo Del Sol, Cove Club is now a private golf and beach club. It transitioned into a private residence club after operating as a public/resort facility for 25 years. Nicklaus once said it was “the best golf property I’ve seen.”

“I don’t call him a Golden Bear. I call him the Golden Amigo,” said McCallen. “He’s the dude, he’s the guy that really put this place on the map.”

Photos: Check out the golf courses at Cabo Del Sol in Cabo San Lucas

The Ocean course eventually earned its accolades, but there was a time when the idea of flying to Cabo for golf only raised some eyebrows.

“Hey, you guys, you gotta be down, you gotta come down to Mexico and see this Jack Nicklaus course,” McCallen recalled telling his fellow golf course rating panelists at Golf magazine. “They said ‘We’re not going to Mexico to play golf. What are you talking about?’” So I said, ‘Look, if you don’t think it’s the best course you’ve seen, the margaritas are on me.’”

After convincing some golfers to make the trek, the course won them over. Nicklaus was right. The Ocean course was a huge hit.

“It was the game changer,” McCallen said. “That was the course that established Los Cabos as a primo international golf destination.”

To be a primo destination, you need to have primo amenities and Cove Club offers exactly that. Cove Club, now a private golf course, was redesigned in 2023, with the original 17th and 18th holes removed to make room for the Cabo Del Sol Beach Club. The 17th was a par 3 that played up the coast, but as it turns out the land along that hole was more ideal as a sandy beach area. The 17th green is now a negative-edge pool and the Beach Club has a fantastic outdoor restaurant and bar. It just made too much sense to maximize the land.

The new 18 is where the old 16 used to be, and it’s a great way to finish your round. In fact, all three of the closing holes are what’s going to make your round here memorable. You start that closing stretch at one of the highest points at Cove Club at the 16th tee box and make your way toward the ocean, each shot downhill, drawing you closer to the salty sea air.

The 18th hole at the private Cove Club Golf Course at Cabo Del Sol in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico (Photo: Cabo Del Sol)

Along the way, make sure you pull into the comfort stations for a quick break, a delicious bite, maybe even a shot of Casamigos or Codigo tequila.

Cove Club Golf Course is tied for 12th on Golfweek’s Best 2023: Top 50 courses in Mexico, Caribbean, Atlantic islands and Central America list. One trip around this place will make you a believer. 

Cabo Del Sol has a second 18-hole course, designed by Tom Weiskopf, called the Cabo Del Sol Course. Called the Desert Course when it opened in 2001, it ranks 42nd on the Golfweek list and it’s no slouch. 

Sitting higher up on the terrain, the golf is farther away from the ocean but there are views of the deep blue water on most of the holes. Currently under a months-long renovation by the team of Dana Fry and Jason Straka, the Desert course is a great complement to Jack’s course down the hill. 

Pacific views

On the western edge of Los Cabos, with the vast Pacific Ocean dominating the views in the distance, is Diamante, and once you’re here, it’s really difficult to leave. Fine dining, a sports bar, a great breakfast spot for coffee and smoothies. A workout center with basketball, tennis and pickleball. Hiking trails. Even a private yacht providing members sunset cruises two nights a week. And of course, golf, golf and more golf.

Diamante, which opened in 2009, features two 18-hole championship courses: the Dunes by Davis Love III and Tiger’s El Cardonal. Tiger also did The Oasis, a 12-hole short course that loops around a lake. A 15-hole putting course is mere steps from the clubhouse. Each day the routing is reversed, providing a different challenge from just 24 hours prior. And coming soon: the Legacy, an ultra-private course and also a Tiger Woods design.

As people around Diamante like to say: “We’re in the Tiger Woods business.”

The pro shop at the Tiger Woods-designed El Cardonal at Diamante Cabo San Lucas (Photo: Golfweek)

Woods’ Legacy will take things next level and further entrench his influence at Diamante. Slated to open late in 2024, The Legacy will be the eventual home of the World Wide Technology Championship. It’ll also perhaps be the most visually stunning golf course at Diamante, with Shadow Creek in Las Vegas likely to have heavy influence on the design.

While Davis Love III’s Dunes course and Tiger’s El Cardonal layout ebb and flow with the terrain, the Legacy is proving to be a major engineering feat.

It’s estimated that more than 2½ million cubic yards of dirt will be moved to create The Legacy. That compares to roughly a couple hundred thousand for El Cardonal and the Dunes.

There will be dozens of different species of plants and trees used in the landscaping, with several lakes, creeks and waterfalls meandering throughout. Like Shadow Creek, golfers will probably forget they’re even in the desert.

Membership will be exclusive and will be capped at 250. Homesites on the Legacy are extremely limited, with just 14 lots. Diamante founder and CEO Ken Jowdy has one of them. Tiger has one picked out, too.

Where the Legacy course ultimately lands in the rankings is TBD, but it’ll have some competition right there at Diamante.

The Dunes course is No. 3 on the 2023 Golfweek’s Best courses 2023: Mexico, Caribbean, Atlantic islands and Central America list; El Cardonal checks in at No. 26, up six spots from 2022.

The Davis Love III-designed Dunes Golf Course at Diamante Cabo San Lucas (Photo: Diamante)

Simply called the “Tiger course” by most at Diamante, it opened in 2014. Tiger was there to hit the ceremonial first tee shot and his ball ended up in a fairway bunker down the right side. His name graces numerous plaques commemorating famous shots he hit around the world and there’s a plaque here, too, right there in the sand. Not his shining moment, perhaps, but a historical first nonetheless: the first shot Tiger hit on his first course.

“I’m very excited about the opening of El Cardonal,” Woods said in December of 2014. “This is a culmination of a dream for me and my team. I’ve always wanted to be involved in golf course design.”

The second course built at Diamante was the first one on the docket on this trip. The opening hole is inviting, a downhill race track with a wide fairway, allowing golfers to ease into their rounds. Nobody’s tee shot found Tiger’s bunker, and after putting out for par, we were off and running.

The fourth hole, a par 4 that can play as long as 483 yards, features a steeply elevated green, adding to the challenge of finding the putting surface in two. You may consider two extra clubs for this approach shot.

The first comfort station is located just beyond the fifth hole, but the pre-golf smoothies were doing their jobs so it was on to the sixth. The short par-3 ninth takes you right back to the clubhouse, and while it still wasn’t quite time for lunch, it was indeed time for a snack: egg and bacon tacos. 

The 10th hole plays uphill, setting the stage for many of the back-nine holes, as the course climbs the terrain. The layout is graced by countless cardons, which are similar to the saguaro cactus that dot the landscape across Arizona. Anyone who’s played desert golf in the Grand Canyon state knows the saguaro. The cardon, however, is a bigger species. And no, El Cardonal is not a play on the Cardinal mascot of Stanford, where Tiger played his college golf. The name is paying homage to this majestic desert plant, native to the Baja peninsula.

The key hole on the back nine is likely the 15th, with its severe right-to-left sloping green. The prevailing green is right to left as well so a sharp mid-iron will be required to find the proper part of the putting surface.

Whatever your score on that 15th hole, rest easy because the second of two comfort stations awaits. This one has a thatched-roof cabana and what you can’t miss is a white donkey statue wearing a colorful Mexican blanket. It’s a must-have photo opp for sure.

A comfort station near the 15th hole at the Tiger Woods-designed El Cardonal Golf Course at Diamante Cabo San Lucas (Photo: Golfweek)

The 16th is an interesting par 3 with a huge three-tiered green. The length is manageable, about 150 yards, but there is nowhere to miss left, right or deep. Steep slopes into gnarly desert scrub await on all sides, with the location of the pin and hint of wind likely to lead you to rethink your club selection.

Coming soon to El Cardonal, on the back side of the 16th hole, is a bakery. You read that right. A bakery. Imagine the smell of fresh-baked bread as you near the finish of your round.

The 17th tee box is near the main entrance to Diamante and you get big, sweeping views of the entire place with the Pacific off in the distance. If you’re wondering about all the green grass on these courses here, technology and gravity team up to deliver water to the Platinum paspalum turf. 

Diamante’s desalination plant – a requirement for the newer developments – first pulls the salt out of the ocean water. Pumps then bring that water to the highest elevation on the property at the 17th tee box, where a gravity-fed system feeds desalinated water across the land.

Like the first hole, No. 18 is a wide, downhill par 5, which could make for exciting bookend scoring holes for the PGA Tour pros.

When golfers come off the 18th hole, they’ll soon be able to walk off Tiger’s course and into Tiger’s restaurant. The Woods Cabo will be the second in The Woods brand to come online, and it’s highly anticipated. Slated for a September opening, The Woods Cabo will likely be a hot spot for the area, and you won’t have to be a member of Diamante to enjoy it.

The restaurant features a stunning four-sided marble bar that dominates the room. There are about 30 big screen TVs in the venue and large high-backed round booths offering privacy. Large windows along three walls offer views of the course and the ocean. 

The Woods Cabo at the Tiger Woods-designed El Cardonal at Diamante Cabo San Lucas (Photo: Golfweek)

Diamante hired Larbi Dahrouch as head chef, and he’s joined by sushi chef Jesus Humberto Villalobos Aviles whose team will prepare sushi on a daily basis. A key feature of The Woods Cabo will be the large butcher counter, where members can hand-pick steaks to take home and grill for themselves.

Where the desert, mountains, ocean meet

The landscape and climate of Los Cabos is unique. It’s considered a tropical desert, where the desert meets the mountains and together they run downhill into the ocean. If you’re playing golf, you can be poking around the desert scrub looking for a Pro V1 and then 20 minutes later have your toes dipping in the water.

Officially, there are two bodies of water that meet at the marina in the town of Cabo San Lucas, about in the middle of the corridor, with the massive Pacific Ocean is to the west, stretching on to infinity. The Sea of Cortez, meanwhile, runs up the east side of the peninsula, all the way to Puerto Penasco, aka Rocky Point, another popular Mexican beach town that’s an easy drive from various spots in the American southwest.

The vast majority of U.S. citizens visiting Cabo are coming from the western states. Direct flights –  from Phoenix (two hours away), Los Angeles and San Diego (about the same), Dallas (about three hours) – make it easy. But more East Coast cities are coming online with directs, including Charlotte, New York, even Toronto. Heck, you can fly direct from Spain and soon London.

There’s already talk of a second Cabo airport, near the Pacific side of the Cape, another indication of this fast-growing area.

Love leads the way with Dunes

There are 11 golf courses in Cabo on Golfweek’s Best courses 2023: Mexico, Caribbean, Atlantic islands and Central America. Considering there are 18 courses in all of Cabo, that’s a strong field to contend with.

The Davis Love III-designed Dunes Golf Course at Diamante Cabo San Lucas (Photo: Diamante)

The best of the lot is the Dunes course at Diamante. Designed by Davis Love III and opened in 2009, it’s the closest to the ocean, with its holes winding up and back down, over and through natural dunes, created after thousands of years of wind whipping through the area. The course deserves its accolades.

Like El Cardonal, the Dunes has two comfort stations, but these are strategically placed.

Playing the Dunes on our second day of golf at Diamante had us paired with a couple of members who were keen on pointing out the tamales. Their recommendation: Get one red and one green and wash them down with a cold Pacifico.

The flow of your round at Diamante is perfect, as you’re not rushed playing your next shot nor are you quickly eating those delicious tamales. Remember you’re on Cabo time.

The tamales and beer at the Dunes Course at Diamante Cabo San Lucas in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico (Photo: Golfweek)

But don’t take your focus off your game. Take the 12th hole at the Dunes, a par 3 that was playing 180 yards. Beware because danger is lurking. You will probably need one or maybe two clubs more than you think here because of the elevated green. Don’t miss left or you’ll be neck-deep in a bunker.

Your reward for reaching the green is more than the chance to use the flatstick; it’s the views. From this lofty perch you can see the ocean waves crashing – and they often do crash, loudly – onto the beach to your left.

Two holes later, as you’re standing on the 14th tee, your swing commitment here is going to be key. The hole plays 380 yards from the tips, 358 yards from the more reasonable tee box. It’s a blind tee shot with more room to the left than you might think. An odd obelisk in the fairway does give you a sense of direction but it still feels like a hit-and-hope kinda shot. More than likely, though, you’ll find your ball in the fairway. One of the members pounded his drive here and thanks to a healthy wind at our backs, found that his tee shot came to rest on the green before settling for a two-putt birdie.

The course is a fair test, but if it’s windy it kicks things up a notch. The course was recently reworked and the original 18th hole is gone, but the current 18th hole will get your attention. Mostly straight away, your approach to the green needs to get up, up, up in the air because of a severely elevated putting surface. Get home in two here and you’re going to feel good about how your round ended.

Home stretch for the PGA Tour

Of the two courses at Diamante, the Dunes gets about 55 percent of play, but El Cardonal is closing the gap. That’ll likely continue but for now, there will be no rounds played at El Cardonal. The course closed July 15 for home-stretch preparation for the PGA Tour and all the necessary infrastructure that hosting requires.

The World Wide Technology Championship, a staple on the PGA Tour’s fall schedule since 2007, was previously held on a different Mexican coast, at El Camaleon Golf Club south of Cancun in Riviera Maya. But Mayakoba flipped to the LIV Golf League and created an opportunity for Diamante, and Tiger Woods, to fill the void.

The Tiger Woods-designed El Cardonal Golf Course at Diamante Cabo San Lucas (Photo: Diamante)

Will Mazzeo was the tournament director at Mayakoba and has moved to Cabo to stay on in that role. His full team joined him in August in the walk-up to the tournament. Diamante generally closes for about a week in September anyway as the Cabo area gets 90 percent of its annual rainfall in that month, and that’s a good time to get some “rehab” work done. Some fresh paint here, a little clean up and fix up there. This extended closure of El Cardonal started July 15 with a scheduled reopen date of Monday, Oct. 30, just in time for the first of two pro-ams. 

The golf course will be ready. The Woods Cabo will be rocking. The eyes of the golf world will be trained on the cape. We’ll just have to wait on that 16th hole bakery.

Closing in style

Cove Club director of instruction Carly Schneider frequently plays the two courses at Cabo Del Sol, often with students but many times with members. A former college golfer who was later a coach at Loyola University in her hometown of Chicago, Schneider grew up “on my grandfather’s golf course that he built.” She was first drawn to Cabo, at least the idea of Cabo, through Instagram, specifically Christian Hafe, a golf photographer. She found a magnetism to this subtropical locale through his images. She says she knew she wanted to find a landing spot at a private club, and Cabo Del Sol sure fit the bill.

The private Cove Club Golf Course at Cabo Del Sol in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico (Photo: Cabo Del Sol)

“The weather is great 10 months out of the year,” she said. “Even in August and September [Cabo’s rainy season], I enjoy those off-season months. The surf is so good, the water is so warm. It really goes through these beautiful, magical seasons. We’ve got whales for three months and then the water warms and then everything turns green after the storms. Then in the winter we’ve got cool desert nights and 80-degree days.”

Casual golf, even barefoot, is encouraged, especially when you find yourself playing the consecutive par 3s along the ocean. 

On this May visit, it was high 80s, windy but warm and dry. Coming down the stretch at Cove Club, Schneider showed off some of her golf skills. The 16th hole, which starts off on a tee box offering stunning views of the course, is the final par 5 on the course. With a little luck, there’s wind to your back on this hole and on this day, we had just that luck. Two strong shots later, Schneider found herself over the green but no worries there. She calmly holed out a wedge for eagle from a big swale behind the putting surface.

The par-3 17th is a treat, with a large green on the other side of a deep arroyo. A short iron is all you need, but be mindful of the two-tiered green.

And then there’s 18, the Cove Club’s original 16th hole. Talk about your great closing holes, as this beaut is a stunning downhill par 4 that ends at the edge of the Sea of Cortez. When you reach the putting surface, and as you wait for your group to putt out, you marvel at the views of the ocean. This spot provides one last on-course photo opp before you meander off the green and head next door for snacks and perhaps some drinks.

At the Beach Club, there’s a tremendous outdoor bar and restaurant, with views of the waves crashing against craggy rocks. Head indoors and you can see the large kitchen staff at work, preparing the day’s selections.

There’s also a private room with floor-to-ceiling windows all around for that next large gathering of family and friends.

The tequila flight at Cove Club at Cabo Del Sol in Cabo San Lucas (Photo: Golfweek)

The five-flight tequila tasting is a must-have experience, with each of the agave flavors paired with the perfect bite-sized snack. Sipping the extra anejo while noshing on the chocolate dessert is the ultimate finisher here.

It’s only going to get bigger, better

“When I first came down it felt, it really felt like a cowboy town,” said Erik Evans, PGA director of golf at the Cove Club. “It was a very small town, everybody knew everybody. You go into a restaurant or a bar, everyone knew your name. We didn’t have a lot of golf courses back then.”

Evans first arrived in 2009, and one of his early stints was at Diamante. He knows the scene about as well as anyone. “You can buy good wine down here now, which wasn’t the case here 10 years ago,” he says, a subtle yet noticeable difference.

Before 2010 there were a dozen courses in Cabo. There are 18 now and “I see us by 2030 getting to 25, 26 golf courses,” he said.

The growth of golf matches the increase in popularity of the entire area. There was a surge in the number of visitors to close out the 2022 calendar year, according to the Los Cabos Tourism Board, which called double-digit growth in tourism “unprecedented”. That hasn’t subsided, with similar numbers arriving so far in 2023.

Nicklaus got the ball rolling and many of the other big-name designers have a stake in the ground. Tom Weiskopf built the Cabo Del Sol (originally called the Desert Course), which is now in the hands of the Fry/Straka Design Group. The entire course is being redone, with six holes of the new-look layout already completed.

The Cabo Del Sol Course at Cabo Del Sol in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico (Photo: Cabo Del Sol)

Greg Norman has two courses in Cabo with two more being designed. Fred Couples was involved with the Twin Dolphin Club. Tom Fazio has a project in the works. Ernie Els recently signed on to build Oleada, not far from Diamante near the Pacific.

Big brand names are indeed selling this big destination.

All this high-end golf comes with high-end resorts and residences, which makes for all-inclusive experiences for those vacationing in the area. If private, high-end golf is what you desire, there’s plenty of that. In fact, the area is becoming increasingly that, with multiple properties offering all-inclusive memberships with exclusive perks that’ll make you extend your stay or perhaps find that next cheap flight for a quick last-minute visit. 

So if it’s fun in the sun with plenty of not-so-serious rounds of golf you seek, put Cabo on your to-do list. 

“We have created an experience around golf you really don’t wanna leave,” said Evans.

A taco station at the private Cove Club Golf Course at Cabo Del Sol in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico (Photo: Golfweek)Whenever you do stick your tee in the ground at Diamante or Cove Club or any of the other courses, remember to make the most of your time there.

“Set the pencil aside and take it all in, enjoy the whole experience,” McCallen said. “Don’t worry so much about your score. Take a couple of deep breaths.

“I would say it takes great land to create great golf and we have great land. There’s elevation change, there’s really beautiful desert vegetation.

“I will definitely say that the people are very welcoming and very warm and they always have a warm welcome here. The people make the place.”

CABO SAN LUCAS, Mexico — Jack Nicklaus, designer and builder of golf courses around the world, once declared it “the best golf property I’ve seen.”

He was referring to his golf course, originally called the Ocean Course at Cabo Del Sol, now dubbed Cove Club – the centerpiece to this seaside community on the tip of the Baja California Peninsula.

Cove Club, now fully private, underwent a recent design change which rerouted a few holes and features a spectacular finish at edge of the Sea of Cortez. The club also opened some magnificent beachfront area for the entire membership to enjoy at the Cove Club.

A second 18-hole course, originally called the Desert Course and designed by Tom Weiskopf, runs higher up the hillside and offers views of the blue waters from just about every hole. That course is now called Cabo Del Sol Course and is undergoing a renovation by the team of Dana Fry and Jason Straka.

Check out some photos of the courses at Cabo Del Sol.

The area at Diamante is vast and host to four offerings to scratch your golf itch. One of those is a 15-hole putting course that changes its routing daily. Another is the 12-hole Oasis short course. The main draws, however, are the Dunes course designed by Davis Love III and ranked third on Golfweek’s Best: Top 50 courses in Mexico, Caribbean, Atlantic islands and Central America, and El Cardonal, the first golf course designed by Tiger Woods, which ranks 26th on that list.

Coming soon: the Legacy, set to be an ultra-private experience for the membership.

Golf fans will get good, long looks at El Cardonal in November 2023 when it hosts the PGA Tour’s World Wide Technology Championship.

Take a look at some of the best photos of the golf at Diamante Cabo San Lucas.

PALM DESERT, Calif. — No time is a good time for a tropical storm to dump a year’s worth of rain on the Coachella Valley in just 48 hours. But August might be the least-disruptive time for such a weather disaster to hit desert golf courses. Still, golf course operators face plenty of work in the coming weeks to recover from the rare tropical storm.

“If we have a foursome on the tee sheet right now, it’s a busy day for us,” Brett Draper said Tuesday. He is general manager and COO of Thunderbird Country Club in Rancho Mirage. “This is a quiet time of year, a time of year where we do a lot of our construction work not only on the golf course but throughout the club. So the impact to us, it’s as close to zero as possible with regard to play.”

While most of the snowbird membership at Thunderbird did not see the damage from flooding and debris at their private course in Rancho Mirage, it is evident to anyone driving past the course. Thunderbird is one of dozens of desert courses impacted by flooding in various desert washes or runoff from the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains because of Tropical Storm Hilary.

From layouts with a few downed trees to courses with mud and water damage that will take months to repair, Hilary’s impact on desert courses was felt throughout the entire Coachella Valley. But at Thunderbird and other private clubs, it could have been worse.

“I think we had like six golfers,” said Chris Gilley, head pro at La Quinta Country Club which was open for play Tuesday. “So of all the months to do it, this is less effective of the membership. And to be honest, there is no cool-season grass left right now, so the Bermuda grass can probably handle (the weather) better than what we get in the winter.”

Floodwater from Tropical Storm Hilary rushes across Country Club Drive in Rancho Mirage, California. (Photo: Andy Abeyta/The Desert Sun)

The Whitewater Wash, turned into a roaring river of water, mud, tree limbs and palm fronds by Hilary, cuts through four holes at Thunderbird, the fourth, ninth, 10th and 18th. The course also saw mud and debris flow on the course from a spillway at the third hole just off Highway 111.

“It’s a part of having a golf course in the wash,” Draper said. “We will get it cleaned up as quickly as we can and we hope to have everything ready by the end of September, the first of October so we can start the overseed process with the eventual opening of the second Saturday in November.”

Draper said he is not concerned that a soggy golf course will delay overseeding, the transition from summertime Bermuda grass to a cool-weather grass like rye. Overseeding is generally done when a golf course is relatively dry.

“This is the desert. It’s all Bermuda and blow sand. So things dry up pretty quick,” Draper said. “The wash right now, we still have a little bit of a trickle in it, so it’s starting to dry out. We will start moving some of that material that came on the property.”

Cleaning up after the tropical storms is the biggest problem for many courses.

“We probably get hit harder than other golf courses,” said Randy Duncan, general manager of SilverRock Resort, the 18-hole golf course at the base of the Santa Rosa Mountains in La Quinta. “We do get a lot of the watershed that comes off the mountain and gets up into our bunkers and our cart paths.”

Duncan said SilverRock was fortunate to be closed for yearly course maintenance when Hilary hit, but a scheduled opening for this Sunday has been moved to Sept. 1. Duncan said such maintenance is scheduled for August because July and August see little play on the public-access course.

Cleanup work begins

“We’ve got quite a bit of cleanup here to do. Just labor intensive work, clearing up bunkers, cleaning off cart paths,” Duncan said. “We lost close to 30 trees out here, some of them are blocking cart paths. Rain doesn’t do well here in the valley.”

Duncan added that some cart paths were washed out entirely by the flood waters and some of the maintenance work done in the last few weeks was wiped out.

“We just went through and had all the bunker perfectly dialed in,” Duncan said. “Now we have to go back and re-do them all.”

Just a few miles from SilverRock is La Quinta Country Club, which is separated from the base of the mountains by two courses at La Quinta Resort. While the resort’s Mountain and Dunes course still had extensive standing water Wednesday, La Quinta Country Club escaped much damage.

“The biggest damage from a superintendent’s standpoint was a beautiful eucalyptus that was planted five years ago in a nice place in the left rough on No. 1 that was beautiful and doing great,” Gilley said. “It uprooted. It’s not like it was heavy, it was just one that got taken out by the wind.”

Gilley said a project to renovate the course’s greens on the front nine before The American Express PGA Tour event in January has not been impacted by the tropical storm. Forty trees recently planted on the course all withstood the wind. One older large palm tree did come down next to the 17th tee, he said.

Not every golf course in the desert was hammered by Hilary. The Lights at Indio Golf Course actually suffered more structural damage from a monsoonal thunderstorm last Friday night than it did from the tropical storm Sunday, head professional Dave Ruvolo said. The thunderstorm tore the roof off a patio area Friday, but the golf course was ready for play Monday just after the tropical storm.

“We opened up in the morning just to check it out, but we had standing water on the greens,” Ruvolo said. “But my course drains really, really well. First of all, we are away from the mountains. Second of all, the course just really dries like crazy. It’s just beautiful. It’s awesome.”

At Sunrise Country Club, which borders Thunderbird to the east but does not have a wash cutting through it, damage was far less that at the neighboring course.

“We had a little bit of washout from the edge of our roads, but really nothing bad,” General Manager Hale Kelly said. “We actually fared pretty well. We had a couple of washouts along the wash, our perimeter wall there. Just a little bit of roof damage from some falling palm trees. Other than that, nothing.”

Like other private clubs, Kelly said his club only gets about 20 to 30 rounds a day in the hot summer months.

“It’s like everywhere in the valley. It’s done by 9 o’clock as far as the tee sheet is concerned,” Kelly said.

Like Draper, Duncan said there isn’t much for a golf course in a wash or at the base of the mountains to do when a big rain storm hits the desert.

“It’s beautiful to watch the watershed come down the mountain,” Duncan said. “It’s beautiful until it gets to the golf course.”

Making a hole-in-one is pretty cool.

Getting two of them in the same round is crazy.

Having them come in a span of four holes is totally wild.

That’s just what happened to Blade Kurilich. Yep, Blade, that’s his real name. His club of choice for his pair of aces was a 9-iron.

“That club will be getting framed once I get a new set,” he joked after his round.

Kurilich was playing Sterling Grove Golf & Country Club in the Phoenix suburb of Surprise, Arizona, earlier this week with his regular crew. His first hole-in-one came on the third hole, where he did his best Michael Block PGA Championship impression.

“I hit just a stock 9-iron and actually dunked it straight in the hole on the fly,” he said. “I didn’t know it at the time but heard the pin rattle from the tee box. When I got up there I saw where the ball actually took a chunk out of the cup before I saw the ball in the hole.”

Four holes later, Kurilich was on the seventh tee box, again holding his 9-iron. The hole measured 172 yards but it was downwind.

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“I couldn’t see that one in either over the ridge. So for both hole-in-ones I had to check the cup to be certain,” he said.

The National Hole-in-One Registry reports that the odds of an average golfer making an ace are 12,000-to-1. Kurilich says he’s a +2.4 so the odds for a golfer like him is 5,000-to-1. But this two ace thing is the real longshot, as the odds of a player making two holes-in-one in the same round are 67 million to 1.

A former baseball player who only started playing about five years ago, Kurilich had never had a hole-in-one before he got these two.

The scorecard for Blade Kurilich, who had two holes-in-one in a four-hole stretch at Sterling Grove Golf Club in Surprise, Arizona. (Photo: Blade Kurilich)

“After my second hole-in-one I had promised my buddy driving up to the green that if that one was in too, I’d dive in the lake,” he said. “Well I had to keep up on that promise and dove right in. My game went completely in the tank after that second one.”

Kurilich worked in finance in Denver but moved to Scottsdale recently with his fiancee to chase his dream of professional golf.

Thirty minutes outside of Boston sits a pair of golf courses – one ball, one disc – owned and operated by a brewery, the first of its kind in Massachusetts. As they say, craft beer and golf are paired beautifully here.

Let the good times flow.

Tree House, a Charlton, Massachusetts-based brewer, acquired the 25-year-old Tewksbury Country Club about a year ago and started offering tee times earlier this summer.

The course is just nine holes but the beer theme is strong on this property. And if disc golf is your thing, you may want to give Spencer Austin Oakholm Brewing Company’s 18-hole disc course a stroll. You can pay $10 for a round or $15 for the day.

Spencer Austin designed the course, with work starting after the brewery opened in 2019.

“We figured it would take us six or eight months to throw in a course,”” he told the Worcester Telegram & Gazette. “Three and a half years later we finally finished it.”

The Tree House clubhouse has more than 40 beers on tap but you don’t have to wait till your round is over to find some cold suds.

A sign on the golf course at Tree House Brewing Co.’s Tree House Tewksbury in Tewksbury, Massachusetts. (Photo: Matthew Tota/Worcester Telegram)

After the fourth hole, there’s a sign that guides golfers to a beer trailer.

Tee times on the golf course are only available on weekdays for now and they only want you to play nine holes. The course operators at the Tree House indicated they want to get a full season managing a golf course under their belts before opening up the tee sheet.

The clubhouse at Tree House Brewing Co.’s Tree House Tewksbury golf course in Tewksbury, Massachusetts. (Photo: Matthew Tota/Worcester Telegram)