Course #9: Quivira Los Cabos
Nothing like saving the best for last—except we didn’t know it until we got there. Quivira is an epic residential resort community. The golf course was designed by Jack Nicklaus. Kevin and I both agreed it was our favorite. Considering Kevin plays off a low single digit handicap, and I’m way north of that, it is quite a feat for an architect to create a course that is fun and challenging for golfers of such different skill levels. Nicklaus wasn’t always known for doing that; but thankfully he has evolved over the decades of doing golf design, and has arrived at this new awareness.
The course itself is a marvel of engineering, cut into and weaving around a mountain. The drama builds as you leave the 4th green and you are riding higher and higher in your cart, wondering if you’ve strayed onto the wrong cart path. Nope. Just keep going for what seems like 10 minutes and you finally reach Hole #5.
Not only is there a great comfort station, where the drink of the day was an amazing rum punch, the fifth hole is so unique, there is someone on hand to give you guidance on how to play it. You have to see it to believe it. It’s a par-4 blind shot to a green that is so far below you, it is magical and scary at the same time.
I chose the right line and my driver sent the ball down, down, down to within a short pitch shot to the small undulating green. Overshoot it and you’re in the ocean. To make par there was a thrill. With four more pars on the back nine, I had the most fun and best score of my entire Cabo experience.
After our round, we had committed to doing a site visit. Figuring it would be a letdown after all the euphoria Kevin and I felt from playing the intense course, we were treated to a big surprise instead. I had heard about Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach from a fellow member of Troon Country Club. She said, “We have a timeshare there,” so I figured it would be nice. Nice? Ha! It was extraordinary.
The gated luxury community at Quivira Los Cabos is situated on 1,850 acres. One of the newer offerings, Coronado, atop a bluff overlooking the ocean and hole No. 17 of the Nicklaus course gives buyers the chance to choose from floorplans ranging from 3,700 to 4,000 square feet, with prices starting at $1.8 million. Features include kitchens with granite islands, Viking appliances, marble flooring and a two-car garage. More highlights are patios, pools, fire-pits and pergolas for your outdoor entertaining. You can even have your own family crest adorn your personal hacienda.
I have to say, after being shown around the massive “all-inclusive” property, I was duly impressed with every luxurious design element, but when we got to the Towers at Pacifica, I realized this adults-only “resort within a resort” set a new bar for me. To cap off this perfect day, we dined at El Huerto Farm to Table Restaurant, indulging in delicious organic food from their four and a half acres of gardens, orchards and fruit trees.
Golf, whale-watching, golf, fabulous food, golf, strolling on the beach, golf, sport fishing, golf, floating in a refreshing pool with a swim-up bar, and just enjoying the laid-back splendor of Cabo, there’s something for everyone — but especially golf lovers.
P.S. A note about timeshares: If you don’t already have one, or even if you do, it’s a safe bet that, at some point during your visit you’ll be invited to a presentation on buying Cabo timeshares.