Welcome to the British Isles, Mexico Style
La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico – Savvy golfers expect that an Arthur Hills-designed golf course will be bold, original and timeless. Scheduled to open in December, the links course that is the centerpiece of Paraiso del Mar, a new residential resort community on 1,700 acres of secluded peninsula that juts out into the Sea of Cortez, will not disappoint them.
This is the first Arthur Hills course in Mexico. It will open to member and resort play in December 2008.
Unfettered by trees and following the natural contour of the land, the course at Paraiso del Mar (“Paradise of the Sea”) is set on a sandy peninsula surrounded by the waters of the Sea of Cortez.
“Welcome to the British Isles, Mexico style,” says Brian Yoder, the partner at Arthur Hills/Steve Forrest and Associates (AHSF) who directed the Paraiso del Mar project. “Creating a course here was like throwing down a tablecloth. We used a minimalist approach to preserve the existing natural beauty and much of the existing terrain was dramatic enough the way we found it.”
The verdant fairways provide a stunning contrast to the desert landscape as the par-72, 7,100-yard course is seamlessly woven into the natural surroundings of the peninsula. Paraiso del Mar will be Mexico’s first Audubon International Signature Sanctuary development, golf’s highest environmental standard. Indeed, for those lush fairways, Yoder and AHSF chose the latest generation of Platinum TE Seashore Paspalum, a salt-tolerant turf grass strain that thrives on briny water.
“We’re proud to earn the Audubon distinction,” said John Fair, co-developer and CEO of Paraiso del Mar. “Preserving the local environment was of utmost importance to us. While the entire development occupies nearly 1,700 acres, more than 800 of those acres have been set aside for wildlife sanctuaries, mangrove preserves and a biological corridor.”
The 18-hole course at Paraiso is replete with ocotillo cacti, ocean views and, an ever-shifting, windswept sea of sand dunes. A striking line of “foredunes” separates the course from the beach itself. Yoder deftly weaves these scenic landforms into green settings at the par-3 6th and 14th holes. The 6th bumps right up against the foredunes and overlooks the beach. The putting surface is unique; surrounded by pot bunkers but flanked by a large, natural bowl that has been incorporated into the green itself. The 14th is similarly seaside but the putting surface “has been worked up like a potato chip because we contoured it right on the dunes that were there,” Yoder explains.
Sand of a different sort is featured in the layout’s distinctive bunkering and accents the look of Paraiso del Mar along its fairways. Many feature edges and faces pushed up to blend with the dune-dependent contour of the fairways and rough areas. Others are “dropped in,” Yoder says, “in the way you’d expect a pot bunker to be presented at Troon, but without the sod walls.”
Paraiso del Mar is accessible by car, or by a unique five-minute water taxi ride across the bay from La Paz, the capital of Baja California Sur. La Paz is situated on the Sea of Cortez, about a two hour drive from Cabo San Lucas. Unlike its resort-saturated neighbor to the south, La Paz remains a quaint Mexican town where homeowners and visitors can experience a sense of escape and proximity to the local culture.
Golf course memberships will be available to Paraiso del Mar homeowners. The first phase of the resort community consists of more than 294 two- and three-bedroom homes, and 400+ two, three and four-bedroom condominiums. In addition there are swimming pools, tennis courts, a planned marina and miles of hiking trails and beaches. Home and condominium prices range from the low $200,000’s to more than $1,000,000 USD.
For more information about the entire Paraiso del Mar development, please visit www.paradiseofthesea.com.
About Arthur Hills/Steve Forrest & Associates:
Toledo, Ohio-based AHSF is one of golf’s most active and cosmopolitan course design firms, with a portfolio including some 200 original designs and 130 renovations on four continents (www.arthurhills.com). In addition to its projects in the U.S. and Mexico, AHSF has flourished abroad with design projects currently underway in Sweden, Portugal, Norway, Morocco, Russia, Belize, Costa Rica, Canada and the Caribbean.
About Paraiso del Mar:
Overlooking the Sea of Cortez with five miles of beach frontage, Paraiso del Mar is a residential resort development situated on 1,700 acres of a secluded peninsula in the Bay of La Paz, just minutes by ferry from the peaceful seaside town of La Paz. Paraiso del Mar was designed as a collection of neighborhoods that simultaneously reflect the ideals of small-town USA and celebrate the spirit of Mexico. Development will take place on nearly 900 acres, while over 800 acres have been set aside for wildlife sanctuaries, mangrove preserves and a biological corridor. The project will be comprised of two, three and four-bedroom oceanfront villas, and two and three-bedroom casas with views of vast nature preserves and the area’s first golf course, designed by Arthur Hills/Steve Forrest. For more information, visit www.paradiseofthesea.com.
Contact:
Spencer Castillo
Murphy O’Brien Public Relations
310-453-2539
scastillo@murphyobrien.com
