Ernie Els To Design First Mexican Course in Cabo San Lucas
Four time major winner Ernie Els will design OLEADA Golf Links Los Cabos, located on a sandy, oceanfront site 15 minutes from Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
Joining a busy couple days for golf news, including Dream Golf’s Colorado Announcement, is OLEADA Golf Links, who has hired Ernie Els for his first golf course in Mexico and his 4th North American project, billed as the country’s first authentic links golf course. The property, located 15 minutes from Cabo San Lucas, is a golden sand site located situated on the shores of the Pacific Ocean. Golfers will have views of the Pacific, but it won’t come into play; instead, the desert landscape will fully engulf visitors, while the ocean will act as a backdrop for multiple holes and panoramic views.
Els, a two-time winner of The Open Championship, recognized the property as links-land with its windswept sand dunes and seaside site, insisting that “you cannot improve on what Mother Nature has created over the eons.” Shaping will be minimal and will blend into the landscape. He continued, stating minimal shaping is needed and the architecture firm will work with the land’s attributes to showcase their vision.
Our goal at OLEADA will be to build a core golf course that harmonizes with nature. We envision a compact design that drapes naturally on the land, steps lightly on nature’s toes and functions as an environmental steward of the site’s indigenous flora and fauna. With its rolling dunes, elevation changes and majestic desert-meets-ocean setting, I believe we can produce a versatile test that will rank among the best and most beautiful courses we’ve ever built.
Ernie Els
Alongside a slew of either active or former players, including Tiger Woods, Davis Love III, Jack Nicklaus, and now Justin Thomas, has transitioned into designing golf courses, with 17 courses credited to his firm. Notably, his work includes The Els Club in Dubai, a renovation of Harry Colt’s West course at Wentworth, and The Els Club in Malaysia with Vinjay Singh.
Outside of golf, OLEADA will feature oceanfront living, a resort component, a nursery, orchard, garden, fitness, hiking and biking, and more. The development broke ground on phase one, which includes the golf course and three luxury beachfront resorts, in January of this year. Expected to open in 2026, with the golf course allowing public play in its first year.
OLEADA joins a growing list of strong golf courses in the Cabo San Lucas area, including Davis Love III’s Diamante’s Dunes course, ranked 98th in the world and its sister course El Cardonal from Tiger Woods, Cabo Del Sol’s famed Cove Club course from Jack Nicklaus, Tom Fazio’s Querencia and Chileno Bay, Fred Couples and Rod Eckenrode’s Twin Dolphin, and Jack Nicklaus’s Quivira.
