South of Cancun, twenty kilometers north of Playa del Carmen and a few meters from the turquoise waters of the Caribbean Sea, is one of the great courses of the Riviera Maya: Iberostar Playa Paraiso Golf Club. The tropical climate this area enjoys makes playing golf here a delight at any time of the year.
Paul Burke (P.B.) Dye, son of the great golf course designers Pete and Alice Dye, could not have chosen a better location to conceive Playa Paraiso Golf Club. Imagine a beautiful postcard landscape surrounded by nature, exotic wildlife and archaeological remains. Playa Paraiso is an extraordinary place where you will find a gentle sea breeze, warm sunlight, lush jungle vegetation and some of the world’s most famous archaeological sites.
For more than a decade, Iberostar Playa Paraíso Golf Club has left its mark on major international sporting events. It has hosted prestigious tournaments such as the World Amateur Team Championships, Big Break Mexico, Iberostar Riviera Maya Open and Bupa Match Play – PGA Tour Latinoamérica, and on nine occasions it has hosted the qualifying round for the PGA Tour OHL Classic at Mayakoba.
Iberostar Playa Paraíso Golf Club demonstrates its high level, being a course of preference for the most demanding golfers. P. B. Dye designed this magnificent layout, making it one of his best creations. The majestic undulating fairways or the perfectly cut Paspalum grass extend as far as the eye can see and the incredible natural environment highlights the beauty of the greens that look like tapestries.
This fantastic course features memorable holes, fine sand bunkers and deep pits, cleverly bunkered greens and narrow fairways, making it challenging yet flowing. Multiple tees allow players of all levels to enjoy the challenge.
The characteristic hospitality of Iberostar, a Spanish chain with five luxury hotels in the vicinity of the golf course, is extended to the players of Playa Paraíso Golf Club. The green fee includes buggy, unlimited food and beverages (beer, wine, liquor, bottled water and soft drinks) during the round, distance book and scorecard. Also in this golfing paradise you can enjoy a great driving range, a first class clubhouse with changing rooms, showers and lockers, a bar, a terrace overlooking the course, private golf lessons and a well-stocked pro shop. The transfer to and from the hotel to the golf course is provided by electric cars and a small train.
With a course of 6,217 meters, this spectacular par 72 has received numerous prizes and awards for its quality and beauty. The course stands out from the relatively flat landscape that surrounds it and sits on a terrain molded with a lot of movement. The golf course was carefully carved out of the Mayan jungle, which can cause balls to lose their way on erratic trajectories. Iguanas and other animals may become curious spectators of our game along the course.
P.B. Dye incorporated some of the distinctive features of his designs, including pronounced terrain movements and non-traditional obstacles such as a rocky riverbed. With its narrow fairways and undulating greens bordered by deep bunkers, the course is demanding but fair if you play a game without too many mistakes.
The Director of Operations of Iberostar Golf Resorts, which includes Playa Paraíso Golf Club and Cancún Golf Club, Greg Bond, speaks of the first of the aforementioned courses, for which he spares no praise.
-In your opinion, what are the characteristics that best define Playa Paraíso Golf Club?
-Playa Paraiso Gofl Club is defined by its design. It is a world-class course designed by P.B. Dye that invites the player to have a unique experience, with the beauty of its environment and surrounded by nature characteristic of the Riviera Maya, where they will find perfection in its undulating greens, deep traps, narrow fairways and attention to the smallest details, which makes it a course of preference for the most demanding golfers.
It also has a first-class staff, which focuses mainly on customer service, who will feel a unique and special treatment and warm hospitality.
We also have a pro shop where the golfer can find a wide range of accessories and a variety of clothes with the best quality.
Another of its defining characteristics is its privileged location, just 30 minutes from Cancun and 15 minutes from Playa del Carmen, making it quick and easy to reach.
-Which hole or holes would stand out from the course and why?
-It is a course of 18 holes that are unique and different. I would highlight them all because each one of them has its challenge, its landscapes, and each one is exceptional.
-Any peculiarities that distinguish it from other camps in the Riviera Maya?
-For more than a decade, Playa Paraiso has made its mark in the history books of international golf. Playa Paraiso Golf Club has hosted the World Amateur Team Championships, Big Break Mexico, the Canadian Tour, the PGA Tour Latinoamerica and has hosted the Qualifying round of the OHL Classic at Mayakoba nine times, all of which have demonstrated our impeccable service and, needless to say, the unparalleled condition of our golf course.
-Could you give us some generic recommendations to get through the round with a decent result?
-It is a course with slopes, drops, deep traps, which make it unique. The recommendation: plan your game, take your time, enjoy it and play it safe,
-What are the keys to such a spectacular presentation of the course, with such perfect fairways and greens?
-Undoubtedly to our maintenance team. We have a highly professional superintendent and a team of workers completely dedicated to what they do, who take care of the details, value perfection and enjoy what they do, with a great vocation for golf.
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THE SPIRIT OF P.B. DYE
A free spirit who doesn’t wear a watch or look at a calendar. That’s P.B. (Paul Burke) Dye, the designer of Paradise Beach. Following his family’s example, the youngest son of famed golf architects Pete and Alice Dye and brother of fellow designer Perry, has been “moving dirt” for as long as he can remember. P.B. was riding with his father on a bulldozer at age 9 learning the art of shaping golf courses at Crooked Stick in Carmel, Indiana, and at 16 he helped his father on Teeth of the Dog, the Dominican Republic’s famous Teeth of the Dog.
P.B. graduated from the University of Tampa in 1980, where he studied Spanish, a subject that would come in handy while in the Dominican Republic. P.B. embraces what he calls “The Dye Way,” a personal commitment to “rolling up his sleeves” with hard work and quality. He has no office, no staff and no overhead, and often lives on the sites where he does his work, designing and building the fields himself.
P.B. has been called a natural-born wizard on a tractor, and he has been known to point a bulldozer into the woods to start his fields. A storyteller and tireless conversationalist, P.B. has built more than 30 fields, which are located primarily in the eastern United States. He has two residences: in summer, after the golf season, he lives in Ohio, in winter he resides in Florida, with frequent visits to the family compound in the Dominican Republic. He has suffered from colon and rectal cancer, from which he has completely recovered. His acclaimed designs include, apart from Playa Paraiso, the P.B. Dye Golf Club in Maryland, The Honors Course in Tennessee, Fisher Island in Florida, and the Legends Club Moorland Course in South Carolina.
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IN SHORT
Golf, beach, circus
Unfortunately, you can’t play golf 24 hours a day, so to make the wait for the next round more pleasant, nothing better than a swim at a Caribbean beach or, why not, enjoy a circus show out of the ordinary: the Cirque du Soleil Theater, less than 500 meters from the golf course.
Competitive rates
The prices to play at this Mexican golf course are not excessive considering its extraordinary quality. In low season (June 1 to October 31), the green fee costs 179 dollars, while in high season (rest of the year) it costs 209 dollars.
Five star accommodation
To enjoy In addition to the golf course and the Caribbean Sea, iberostar has five hotels in a privileged enclave between the golf course and the fantastic Playa Paraiso. All of them are five-star and their prices, on an all-inclusive basis, range from 189 to 405 euros per room per night.
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