Golfing in Dominican Republic
by BRUCE VITTNER

Usually the Boston Golf Show is pretty much the same — pass out a few
thousand copies of the Winter issue of Ocean State Golf at our booth, talk to people walking through the show, say “hi” to my advertisers and hopefully find a couple of new advertisers.

This February was different. “Is this your publication?” said Craig Bosio, executive vice president of Caribbean Residence Clubs, and a fellow exhibitor a couple of aisles over.

“Yes,” I said. “Well then you have to come to the Dominican Republic to write about the great golf,” he replied. It was February and it was snowing outside. Sounded like a pretty good idea.

Bosio was selling fractional ownerships in beautiful condominiums and townhouses in the Caribbean at his booth. “If we can get people to visit the properties and play the great golf courses in the Dominican, it is an easy sell, but we have to get them there,” said Bosio.

He wasn’t kidding. Playing Teeth of the Dog and Dye Fore in Casa de Campo and La Estancia five minutes up the road was a rare treat. Pete Dye had built Teeth of the Dog in 1971, and it is has remained one of the most photographed courses in the world, and also one of the top-rated. Currently it is number one in the Caribbean and number 34 in the world by Golf Digest. It has recently been renovated and extended to 7,471 yards.

Dye built another course called the Links Course in 1974 on the 7,000-acre Casa de Campo property that also includes world-class polo. I didn’t get to play it, but folks I interviewed said it was an excellent track with elevated greens and well placed bunkering.

Dye completed his trifecta when Dye Fore opened in 2003. What a great metaphor! While Teeth of the Dog has eight holes along the Caribbean Ocean, Dye Fore is played at a higher elevation that looks down on the ocean and the Chavon River that empties into the ocean. Both courses have spectacular views.

Hole number 5 at Teeth of the Dog. That's number 7 in the background. Two of the best par 3's in the world.

I’ve never played holes as spectacular as number 5, 7 and the signature 16th hole at Teeth of the Dog. All par 3’s and all look like the green was extended right into the ocean. Number 5 might be the best short par 3 in the world. You either hit the green, or the bunker short of the green or the two pot bunkers right of it, or you go in the ocean. With the wind typically howling off the ocean, club selection is key.

Holes 4 through 8 are as good a stretch of holes as you’ll ever find. Juan Camacho of Greenwich, Conn. said after his round, “It was the best course I’ve ever played.” You might agree. The paspalum greens and tees were perfect. Caddies are required, but are very reasonable and very helpful reading the tricky greens.

To get to Dye Fore you need to take a shuttle from Teeth of the Dog. It is only about five minutes, but you are gradually going uphill. The views down from Dye Fore to the mouth of the river and the Caribbean Ocean are truly marvelous. A few holes on the back nine follow the river about 200 feet below, so keep your ball away from that hazard or you might never be seen again.

Dye Fore is wide open for the most part. The expanse of fairways gives you a feeling that the drives will be easy, but you need to play your tee ball to the correct sides to get good shots to the tucked greens. Standing on the fourth tee and looking down at the sea and back right to houses that are bigger than any clubhouse I’ve seen will have you in awe.

As on Teeth of the Dog, the par 3’s on Dye Fore are excellent and difficult. There are steep runoffs from the elevated greens, so plan your shots accordingly. Some looked like what you’d find at Augusta National. You could play Dye Fore from the tips at 7,714 but don’t. You’ll long remember the walk up the 18th fairway to the green that sits 80 feet higher than the fairway. The hole looks like 18 at the Balsams in New Hampshire but it’s much warmer.

I played with a couple from Edmonton. He had won a week’s trip to Casa de Campo and six rounds of golf (two at each of the three courses) from his company. Can’t think of a much better gift anywhere.

Craig Bosio was right. You need to visit the Dominican Republic. The courses are amazing. Bosio’s company is selling fractional ownerships in spectacular town houses and condominiums. “We try to provide our owners with the best of everything including concierge, housekeeping and grocery shopping services,” he added.

We had a chance to tour some of the properties. Many are right next to the fairways of Dye Fore and some are being built on La Estancia Golf Resort (see adjoining story), and they also have properties in Punta Cana and Grand Cayman. “We realize that for fractional ownership to work, we need to have as many units as possible in great locations so that our owners are always satisfied,” said Bosio at an After-Hours affair at Waterplace Restaurant in Providence hosted by GBNL in April.

You can get to the Dominican Republic easier from Boston than Providence. We managed to get a return flight directly from Punta Cana to Boston in four hours. Driving is rather hazardous in the Dominican. It seems as if the only rules of the road is that there are no rules. Be careful if you rent a car as we did. You can contact Caribbean Residence Clubs at 1-888-264-1757 or visit their website at www.caribbeanresidenceclubs.com.  I am suprised at the number of people that I have talked to who have played Teeth of the Dog and stayed at Casa de Campo. If you can get there, you won’t be disappointed.

La Estancia Golf Resort—
A New Gem in the Dominican

I love the opportunity to play a course just before it is ready to open. No divot marks right? Spoiled? Probably! We had the opportunity to play La Estancia Golf Resort in La Romana, Dominican Republic, about five miles away from Casa de Campo and it’s famous Teeth of the Dog, Links and Dye Fore courses about a week before it officially opened.

 

The signature fifth hole at La Estancia

Golf Resort

Course architect P.B. Dye, son of Pete Dye who built the three Casa de Campo courses and lives in the Dominican, has definitely followed in his father’s footsteps. The course was truly excellent and adds another gem to the great golfing in the Dominican Republic. And we thought that the D.R. was just famous for Big Papi, Pedro and the birthplace of Manny!

The course sits on high ground with a deep valley serving as a definite hazard to avoid mostly on the right on the front nine and the left on the back nine. The greens are very large and undulating and there is quite a bit of bunkering both in the fairways and around the elevated greens.

You will long remember the par 5, second hole. The tee shot is hit over a chasm, and the more you dare to bite off, the better chance to get home in two. Don’t be short on the drive, or you might not be seen for days. Number 5, a short par 3 downhill with the Chavon River in the background is the signature hole with good reason. Go long and you might be fishing. Take less club than you think because of the downhill, but take into account the island trade winds that always seem to be blowing across the course and add to the difficulty. You can see Dye Fore Golf Course across the river as you stand on the fifth tee.

The course has a wonderful flow. The front nine travels counter-clockwise with a very difficult ninth hole. The 9th is 427 yards (from the Championship tees — they have five sets of tee markers on each hole). It goes downhill to a two-tiered fairway and then uphill to a well-protected green.

The back nine starts over a huge pile of rocks. Quite intimidating for the short hitter, but it’s shorter than it looks. Don’t go long over the green or you are back in that valley. Eleven is a beautiful par 3, but again that valley looms to the left, as it does on holes 12 and 14. The par 4 finishing hole has water all the way up the left and usually plays into the trade winds. It could be a short par 5, and if you par it, you certainly deserve a nice tropical fruit cocktail in the splendid clubhouse that still had much work to be done when we visited in March.

Southworth Golf Management Company with headquarters in Massachusetts is the management company for the course. Their attention to detail will make this a must play course if you make it down to the Dominican. We took a tour of the property and saw beautiful townhouses and condominiums. Folks who have a home there will have a wonderful place to golf right outside their doors. You can check out their website at www.legr.com.