Signature Holes · Punta Espada
The Ocean Holes
Eight holes on the Caribbean Sea and one of the most photographed par-3s in golf — here is what makes Punta Espada unforgettable.
Eight holes on the Caribbean Sea and one of the most photographed par-3s in golf — here is what makes Punta Espada unforgettable.
Most great seaside courses give you two or three holes on the ocean and call it a day. Punta Espada gives you eight. The Caribbean is in play — as a hazard, a backdrop, or a forced carry — across nearly half the round, and the remaining holes still hand you ocean views from the tee or green. It is the defining feature of the course and the reason GolfWeek ranks it first in the region.
The routing keeps the water from feeling repetitive. One hole hugs a cliff edge down the right; the next plays toward a green set against open sea; another asks you to carry an inlet to reach the fairway. The wind off the Caribbean is the constant variable, turning a wedge into a knockdown and a mid-iron into a long, committed swing.
The 13th is the hole that ends up on every postcard and magazine cover. It is a par-3 that plays roughly 250 yards from the back tee, with the entire shot carrying over an inlet of the Caribbean Sea to a green pinned against the water. From the forward tees the carry is far more manageable, but the visual intimidation is the same from every box: nothing but ocean between you and the putting surface.
It is the kind of hole you remember for years — equal parts terrifying and thrilling, and a genuine bucket-list shot in Caribbean golf. Most players are happy to walk off with a par, and many are happy just to clear the water. Bring a camera; the group behind you will wait while you take the photo, because they did the same on the tee before.
While the 13th gets the headlines, regulars often point to the closing stretch and the cliffside holes on the front as the real test. The greens are subtly contoured and run true and quick, so position off the tee matters more than length. Approach the wrong section of a green and the putt back can be treacherous; find the right tier and birdie is genuinely in reach.
Playing the course from a villa on the fairway changes how you experience these holes. With two golf carts and member tee times arranged by your butler, you can play early before the wind builds, replay the 13th in the afternoon light, and walk the oceanfront holes at sunset — the parts of Punta Espada that a single rushed resort round never lets you see.
Few courses reward a camera like Punta Espada. The combination of turquoise water, dark coral rock, and emerald paspalum fairways produces images that look almost manufactured, and the morning light off the Caribbean is especially kind to the oceanfront holes. Many guests plan one round purely for golf and a second pass — on foot or by cart in the late-day light — purely for the photographs.
That is the quiet advantage of basing your trip on the course rather than visiting it once. A single resort tee time gives you eighteen holes and a hurried lunch. Staying on Fairway 5 gives you the course at sunrise, at midday, and at golden hour, on your own schedule, for as many days as your trip runs. The signature holes stop being a one-time bucket-list stop and become the backdrop to the whole week.
The signature hole is the par-3 13th, which plays roughly 250 yards from the back tee entirely over an inlet of the Caribbean Sea to a green set against the water. It is one of the most photographed holes in Caribbean golf.
The 13th plays about 250 yards from the championship tee, all of it carrying over the sea. Forward tees shorten the carry considerably, but the ocean is in play from every tee box.
Eight of the eighteen holes play directly along, over, or beside the Caribbean Sea, and nearly every other hole offers an ocean view from the tee or green.
The ocean carries look intimidating, but multiple tee boxes make the course fair for resort golfers and higher handicaps. The strategic challenge is around the greens; the forward tees keep the forced carries manageable.
Staying at a villa on the course — such as Villa Espada on Fairway 5 — lets you play early before the wind builds, replay the 13th in better light, and use two golf carts with member tee times arranged for you.
The only private villa on the course. Member rates, two carts, full staff — your butler arranges every tee time.