Quivira GC- Hole 13 on the cliffs
Jack Nicklaus completed Quivira GC for play in 2014, but took 8 years to do so.
The site is located on the tip of the Baja Peninsula in Mexico jutting out into the Pacific Ocean. The course is the centrepiece of a luxury resort, and the golf club is private.
Quivira was an expensive build with huge infrastructure required to to access cliffside holes. After the first four opening holes play through relatively quiet terrain, the golfer undertakes quite a journey to reach the fifth tee. The cart path covers 3/4 of a mile, and winds it's way up the mountain, over impressive bridge spans over crevices and gullies, past a snack station to the fifth tee.
Quivira GC- the long winding road to the 5th tee
You are then faced with three ridiculously spectacular cliff top holes- 5, 6 & 7..
Each hole appears to cling to the cliffside, and is bordered by 300 foot cliff drops to the Pacific Ocean.
Hole 5 is a short par 4 with only a sliver of fairway to hit and what is there has a severe slope
And being elevated on the clifftops the site is unprotected from the wind. It's only 310 yards long, but rates as the hardest hole on the course..
It is an extreme golf hole!
Quivira GC- 5th tee & green
Hole 6 is a medium length par 3 to a narrow green perched again on the cliff tops
Again the wind is a big factor- and played into and across when we played, requiring a long accurate approach….
Quivira GC- hole 6
Hole 7 is a medium length par 4, but is not quite as dramatic as it's predecessors as the fairways are a little wider, a little more level, and not overhanging the cliffs quite as much.
The shorter par 3 thirteenthth hole runs in the opposite direction along the coast and is perhaps the most picturesque hole at Quivira, as the small green sits perched atop the dramatic granite clifftops. Playing downwind it is a hard target to hit and stop the ball. It's a fantastic golf hole!
Perhaps my favourite hole was the short par 4 14th hole which is driveable in calm condition for some. The green runs at right angles to the tee, only 231 yards away, but is protected by a large dune running across in front. Play sensibly up the left and leave yourself with a short iron flip to a lovely dell green in the dunes, or have a crack if you must…
Quivira GC- hole 14 green
Other good holes include the unique snaking downhill par 5 twelfth, and the long downhill par 4 sixteenth hole.
Quivira GC- hole 16
Quivira is a good course, but not a great one in my opinion.
But it is certainly spectacular and dramatic, and great fun to play.
And because it is so unique I think it is worth travelling to play if you can get access.
Green fees are not cheap, but it is a game of golf you will likely never forget.
For that reason it is a Travelling Golfer must play!
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