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Esta página no está disponible en español. Ottawa Citizen The Ultimate 6 November 2004 According to Caribbean Travel & Life magazine, these are the best holes from the region's top clubs. Together, they form a fantasy course every snow-bound golfer will be dreaming of this winter. 1. White Witch No. 1 What: Par 5, 550 yards Where: Ritz-Carleton, Rose Hall in Montego Bay, Jamaica Why: Elevated tees, a drop into a deep swale then a steep climb to a luxuriant green accented by white sand with the indigo sea in the distance. 2. La Cana No. 7 What: Par 4, 326 yards Where: Punta Cana Seaside Resort in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic Why: Its architect calls it a Scottish hecklebirnie, otherwise known as a golfer's purgatory. There is a sharp left turn to the green and the awaiting danger - a patch of moguls, 21 pot bunkers and tall palms that impede a 'fly-in' approach. 3. Green Monkey No. 9 What: Par 5, 635 yards Where: Sandy Lane in St. James, Barbados Why: Playing in and out of an old quarry on a hillside overlooking the sea, this hole starts at the rim, drops to a fairway guarded by bunkers and ends at a huge double green. 4. Dye Fore No. 10 What: Par 5, 590 yards Where: Casa de Campo in La Romana, Dominican Republic Why: Tee boxes are set on 15-metre-high mounds at the edge of a 90-metre deep river gorge. The fairway follows the rim of the canyon to a green set on the brink. 5. Emerald Bay No. 12 What: Par 4, 418 yards Where: Four Seasons Emerald Bay at Great Exuma, Bahamas Why: This course emerges from a maze of inland stone outcroppings, lakes and wetlands to loop along the edge of a rocky peninsula. On the 12th hole, a crosswind blowing in from the ocean narrows the landing area. 6. Ocean Club No. 4 What: Par 4, 456 yards Where: Paradise Island, Bahamas Why: This hole challenges with length, wind and a thread-the-needle second shot. The green is on a promontory with the ocean behind and on the right, and sand on the left front. 7. Guavaberry Golf & Country Club No. 13 What: Par 3, 146 yards Where: Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Why: This inland location is peppered with deep sand bunkers, sprawling waste bunkers and coral rock formations. The 13th has water gushing from a greenside pool down a rock wall into a quarry pond. 8. Royal Westmoreland No. 6 What: Par 4, 327 yards Where: St. James, Barbados Why: This hole doglegs to an elevated, sloping green surrounded on three sides by high quarry walls. 9. Four Seasons Nevis No. 15 What: Par 5, 663 yards Where: Nevis Why: This hole snakes down the side of the long-dormant Mount Nevis volcano. From the championship tee, it's a 240-yard carry over a 45-metre-deep ravine. The right side of the green is shrouded in jungle and drops off 27 metres. 10. Teeth of the Dog No. 16 What: Par 3, 194 yards Where: Casa de Campo in La Romana, Dominican Republic Why: Dramatic hole demands a long carry over a coral-studded inlet which resembles the teeth of a dog. When the wind is onshore, salt spray drifts onto the tees and greens. 11. Costa Caribe Golf & Country Club No. 12 What: Par 3, 188 yards Where: Hilton Ponce & Casino in Ponce, Puerto Rico Why: It's a 188-yard carry over water to an island green, with the wind adding to the challenge. 12. Tryall Club No. 7 What: Par 4, 434 yards Where: Ocho Rios, Jamaica Why: From the back tees, you'll need a rifle-shot drive through the arches of an old aqueduct that once carried water to a sugar mill. (See photo above.) 13. River Course No. 10 What: Par 3, 177 yards Where: Westin Rio Mar in Palmer, Puerto Rico Why: A long carry across a lily pond from the back tees. This course is home to a colony of iguanas that like to sun themselves on the greens, including No. 10. 14. Cozumel Country Club No. 18 What: Par 4, 382 yards Where: Cozumel, Mexico Why: This hole demands a 205-yard carry upwind across a mangrove swamp to a landing area bordered by jungle on both sides. The approach leads over another mangrove forest to a two-tiered green. 15. Golf Club at Playacar No. 18 What: Par 5, 530 yards Where: Palace Hotels in Playa del Carmen, Mexico Why: The architect dodged 200 protected Mayan ruins to route this course through 900 acres of jungle. The 18th is a long dogleg that features several of the magnificent natural cenotes (deep, clear pools in solid rock) that are found throughout the course. 16. Trump International Golf Club No. 13 What: Par 5, 497 yards Where: Raffles Resort on Canouan Island in the Grenadines. Why: Perched at the highest point on Canouan, this hole drops precipitously to a tight, unforgiving fairway. Even decent golfers routinely lose 10 to 12 balls per round on this challenging course. 17. Hyatt Dorado Beach East Course No. 4 What: Par 5, 500 yards Where: Dorado, Puerto Rico Why: A double dogleg around two water hazards begs the question: Chance two long shots over water, or take the safe route and possibly be faced with a 150-yard third shot? 18. Blue Bay Curacao Golf & Beach Club No. 18 What: Par 4, 470 yards Where: Curacao Why: This finishing hole plays along a plateau edged by a sheer drop-off. An angry sea rages against the rocky cliff, flinging clouds of salty mist across the fairway and green.
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