The specialized media World Golf Awards ™ once again chose the Buenaventura golf course as the best in the country. A recognition that reaffirms the tremendous work that the team does to offer the national and international player the best of the best.
Troy Vincet, at the time a designer for the Nicklaus Design team, says that what impressed him the most during his first visit to Buenaventura -when the field planning process began- “was the amount of development that had already been carried out, particularly the wonderful houses … The vegetation was very lush with a number of tropical plants that I am familiar with, but I found the Corotú trees to be extraordinary. It is unusual for a site to be partially developed before creating a golf course, so from this perspective, there were several elements that needed to be considered, but we were excited to work with the site and felt there were a number of natural features that we could incorporate into the golf course ”.
Thirteen years have passed since that time and the result of the work is more than visible. For the fourth consecutive year, the specialized media World Golf Awards ™ once again chose the Buenaventura golf course as the best in the country.
This recognition is an extension of the work carried out today by a large group of collaborators led by Álvaro Venegas as general manager and by Remigio González and Edgardo Soto in maintenance, who take care of every detail so that the course is always ready for players to enjoy.
The details are what set it apart. As Álvaro Venegas, its director points out, “in terms of design, players will find a field where every little detail is important and they will enjoy the challenges created by an18 major tournaments champion. There are many sand traps strategically placed throughout the course, where if the ball falls in, the player will have to completely change his strategy to approach the green ”.
For the professional “the best thing about the Buenaventura GC is that you are playing on two different courses, when there is wind and when there is not. The first nine holes are less affected by the wind but the last nine are very exposed to the wind because they are closer to the beach. One of the most important things, with or without wind, is the shot to the green, given that we have such large and undulating greens, being on a two-shot green does not guarantee par at all ”.
The Buenaventura golf course has gained international prestige, even hosting international events for the PGA Tour Latin America that are played during the Lexus Panama Classic and the Buenaventura Classic (2014 to 2016 and 2019).
How can you play?
Foreigners residing in the country will be able to enjoy a membership made especially for them: Expats Membership. A membership of USD $265 per month (including tax) that allows you to:
- Unlimited access to the field from Sunday afternoon to Friday morning.
- Addition of a family member (wife or child under 25 years of age).
- Special rate for cart rental (USD $20).
- Global access to the courses in the Troon Golf network with a special rate.
“This membership is an invitation to all those foreign golf fans so that they can have a space to play, and why not, be able to access the hundreds of Troon Golf courses around the world,” said Venegas.
The Troon network features world-renowned courses where major PGA tour championships have been played. “If you are an executive who travels a lot, this can be a great opportunity to access not only the best courses in Panama – Santa María is also part of the network – but also the world,” the director concluded.
