Cove Club Golf Course

The Cove Club is where Los Cabos golf began. Jack Nicklaus was handed a stretch of oceanfront at Cabo del Sol for the development’s first course, and the layout, then known as the Ocean Course, opened in 1994. Nicklaus called it the best golf property he had ever seen, and for years it was a fixture on world top-100 lists.

Today the course plays as a Jack Nicklaus Signature Design under the Cove Club name, and it is reserved for members and their guests. A phased renovation carried out under Nicklaus’ supervision brought new playing surfaces, new bunkering and several new holes, so the course that put the destination on the map has been refreshed rather than left to rest on its history. Golf Digest placed it at No. 70 on its World’s 100 Greatest Golf Courses list in 2018.

It earns its place here for the coastline itself. Four holes engage directly with the rocky edge of the Sea of Cortez, and the routing moves between desert, mountain backdrop and open water in a way few courses on the peninsula can match.

What to expect

Expect a full 18 holes that shift in character as they go, from desert ground to the shoreline holes that most players remember long after the round. The setting at the southern tip of the Baja Peninsula gives the course its light and its views across the sea. Because play is limited to members and their guests, rounds tend to feel unhurried and private, more club than resort. Cabo del Sol’s instruction facility and golf shop sit within the wider development.

Good to know

• Access is exclusively for Cove Club members and their guests; there is no public tee sheet.
• The course was formerly called the Ocean Course, which is how many older rankings and guides refer to it.
• It is part of Cabo del Sol on the Tourist Corridor between Cabo San Lucas and San José del Cabo; the public-facing Cabo del Sol Course is next door.
• A scorecard is published on the Cabo del Sol website for planning purposes.