If you love golf, you’re going to love Puerto Rico, the golf capital of the Caribbean.  You don’t need to be a world champ to appreciate the beauty and variety of our courses. Most have been designed by golf luminaries such as Robert Trent Jones, his son Rees Jones, Greg Norman, George and Tom Fazio, Jack Nicklaus, Arthur Hills, and Puerto Rico’s own Chi Chi Rodríguez. The courses are feats of landscape architecture that impress golfers and non-players alike.

All of Puerto Rico’s courses share the island’s year-round summer weather, tempered by the cool, gentle breezes of the trade winds. You are almost guaranteed a brilliant tropical sky and glimpses of sparkling white sand beaches backed by the blue Atlantic or the turquoise Caribbean. The greens are truly green, planted with strains of Bermuda grass adapted for our climate, including Tiff Dwarf and GN1, a new hybrid, developed in Florida by Greg Norman.

Many of our golf courses are part of world-class resorts, so after you have played to your heart’s content, you can relax in the pool and recharge your batteries in the spa before getting back to breaking par. You don’t have to be a hotel guest, however. All courses – except those on military installations, which are limited to authorized personnel – are open to the general public

Your Villas Caribe concierge will be happy to assist you in arranging your Tee time.

Villas Caribe Puerto Rico Golf Selections

Aficionados may know that Puerto Rico is the birthplace of golf legend Chi Chi Rodríguez -- and he had to hone his craft somewhere. Currently, you can find nearly 20 courses on the island, including many championship links. Be sure to call ahead for tee times; hours vary, and several hotel courses give preference to guests. Greens fees start at about $20 and go up as high as $150. The Puerto Rican Golf Association (58 Calle Caribe, San Juan, Puerto Rico. PHONE: 787/721-7742, www.prga.com) is a good source for information on courses and tournaments.

Willowbend Golf Management manages three properties with reciprocity privileges on the island, including the 27-hole course set among sugarcane fields at the Costa Caribe Golf & Country Club (1150 Ave. Caribe, Ponce, Puerto Rico. PHONE: 787/848-1000) and the two inspirational 18-hole courses designed by Greg Norman and George and Tom Fazio at the Westin Río Mar Beach Resort (6000 Río Mar Blvd., Río Grande, Puerto Rico. PHONE: 787/888-6000) that use El Yunque as a backdrop.
Developed on what was once a coconut plantation, the public, 18-hole course at the Bahía Beach Plantation (Rte. 187, Km 4.2, Río Grande, Puerto Rico. PHONE: 787/256-5600, www.golfbahia.com) is an old-time favorite that skirts a slice of the east coast.

The 7,100-yard course at Dorado Del Mar (Rte. 693, Dorado, Puerto Rico. PHONE: 787/796-3065) is a Chi Chi Rodríguez signature course with narrow fairways that can be a challenge to hit when the wind picks up.

Four world-class Robert Trent Jones-designed 18-hole courses are renowned classics at the Hyatt Dorado Beach & Country Club (Rte. 693, Km 11.8, Dorado, Puerto Rico. PHONE: 787/796-1234 Ext. 3238).

Palmas del Mar Resort (Rte. 906, Humacao, Puerto Rico. PHONE: 787/285-2256) features the Rees Jones-designed Flamboyán course, named for the flamboyant trees that pepper its fairway and the Gary Player-designed course that has a challenging par 5 that scoots around wetlands.

Prices are hard to beat at oceanfront Punta Borinquen Golf Club (Golf St., Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. PHONE: 787/890-2987) where the daily fee is $20 and equipment rental goes for $10.

The 18-hole Arthur Hills-designed course at El Conquistador Resort & Golden Door Spa (1000 Av. El Conquistador, Fajardo, Puerto Rico. PHONE: 787/863-6784) is famous for its 200-foot changes in elevation. The trade winds make every shot challenging.