Teeing Off in Puerto Rico

The U.S. offers many outstanding golf destinations in places such as California, Florida, Arizona, Hawaii, the Carolinas and more. Yet one domestic spot sometimes overlooked for golf vacations is Puerto Rico.

This U.S. territory in the Caribbean enjoys year-round temperatures in the 80s and boasts many great golf courses and resorts.

"Golf is a huge niche audience for us. Puerto Rico has 18 golf courses on a 100-mile-long island—that’s a huge concentration of golf courses," said Jean-Paul Polo, director of creative strategy and production at Discover Puerto Rico. "They’re all top-quality courses designed by Greg Norman, Tom Kite, Robert Trent Jones Jr., and Rees Jones."

Wyndham Grand Rio Mar

One property that deserves consideration for golf vacations is the Wyndham Grand Rio Mar Puerto Rico Golf & Beach Resort, located in the Rio Grande area on the island’s east coast near the El Yunque National Forest, and about 20 miles from Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport.

At press time, the resort was temporarily closed but was accepting reservations for arrivals starting June 1, 2020.

Two Championship Courses

The resort, with 400 rooms and suites, has two championship golf courses managed by Troon Golf. The 18-hole Ocean and River courses are very different, yet complementary.

The 6,716-yard Ocean Course, designed by Tom and George Fazio, meanders between lakes, the El Yunque mountains and the ocean. The signature hole, the 238-yard, par-three 16th, finishes near the beach.

The River Course, designed by Greg Norman, runs along the Mameyes River. The 6,945-yard course features open greens, wide fairways, light rough, shallow bunkers—and big iguanas.

The resort closed after Hurricane Maria hit the island on Sept. 20, 2017, but quickly reopened to house and feed first-response and private electricity workers. The Puerto Rico House of Representatives later honored General Manager Nils Stolzlechner for his efforts.

New Restaurants

The property officially reopened the following March after a major renovation. Upgrade efforts continued, and later in 2018, two new restaurants opened.

Roots Coastal Kitchen, a farm-to-table concept overseen by Executive Chef Ramón Carrillo in collaboration with "Top Chef" alums Jeff McInnis and Janine Booth of Root & Bone. The menu blends traditional Southern comfort food with a Caribbean flair.

Iguanas Cocina Puertorriqueña offers local cuisine, including Puerto Rican favorites as arroz con pollo, mofongo and Caribbean lobster.

The resort’s guestrooms and suites include private balconies overlooking the grounds, the rainforest, or the pool and ocean. Wi-Fi and bottled water are complimentary.

The Accessibility Factor

"I think there’s a lack of knowledge that Puerto Rico is so accessible, and that we’ve got the golf product that we’ve got," said Discover Puerto Rico’s Jean-Paul Polo, adding that many people are unaware of the fact that the destination is part of the U.S.

"It’s a three- or four-hour plane ride from anywhere in the Northeast part of the U.S., and there are direct flights from most of the main cities into San Juan’s international airport," Polo said in an interview during the 2020 PGA Puerto Rico Open.

Also, U.S. travelers don’t need passports. "It’s a U.S.-dollar-based economy, and your cell phones are going to have bars here," he said.

For information on the resort and golf, visit Wyndham GrandRioMar.com and discover puertorico.com. Visit discoverpuertorico.com/info/travel-advisory for updates on the island’s Covid-19 management plan.