El Cardonal at Diamante
Tiger Woods' first course design and the host venue of the PGA Tour's World Wide Technology Championship.
El Cardonal holds a singular place in golf history: it is the first course Tiger Woods ever designed, and the first finished project from his design firm. It opened at Diamante in December 2014, taking its name from the ranch that once occupied the land, and it has since become the stage for the PGA TOUR in Los Cabos.
Woods drew on the older courses of Southern California he played as a boy, and the influence shows. Landing areas are generous, greens are open at the front, and each hole presents more than one way to play it, with the angle of approach shaping the next decision. The idea is a course that stretches the best players in the world while remaining genuinely enjoyable for higher handicaps, with five sets of tees and a back-tee length of 7,363 yards at opening.
That balance is why it belongs on this list. It is a thinking golfer’s course set against long views of the Pacific, the Sierra de la Laguna and the El Faro lighthouse, and since 2023 it has hosted the World Wide Technology Championship, a full FedExCup event.
What to expect
Expect wide, strategic golf rather than target golf. Native dunes, natural arroyos and mature desert vegetation frame the holes, and the flash-faced bunkering recalls the courses of Woods’ youth. On-course comfort stations keep the round moving. In tournament week the course takes on a different energy: the 2026 championship runs November 2 to 8, with official competition from November 5 and a pro-am the day before.
Good to know
- Diamante is a private resort and residential community; contact the club directly about who may play and how rounds are arranged.
- Members of Diamante’s new Legacy Golf Club are set to have access to El Cardonal along with the Dunes Course.
- According to Diamante’s course page, El Cardonal is closed on Saturdays.
- Plan around tournament week in early November, when the course is given over to the PGA TOUR.