DOMINICAN
REPUBLIC
Casa
de Campo : the bite of the "Teeth of the Dog"
by René
Bourone
"The Teeth of the dog" at Casa de
Campo in the Dominican Republic is one of the hundred best golf courses in the world and
if there would be a classification of the best resorts in the world, Casa de Campo would
certainly stay in a very good rank. And Santo Domingo is one of those islands in the world
where dream is near to reality.
 Where to play ?
Where to stay ?
What to see ?
Informations
Already Christopher Colombo, who discovered
"Hispaniola" during his first trip in 1492, fall in love with the island and
wrote on the ship's log that he wanted to be buried there. As usually beauty and richness
kindled cupidity and Spanish, French and British invaders fought over the island during
centuries bringing in conflicts and political troubles. Nowadays the gracious and smiling
character of the Dominican people opens out the country to foreigners. Of course sugar
remains the main source of exports but tourism is developing year by year. Hotels and
resorts are growing up like mushrooms all around the coasts as well as golf courses. But
for the time being and probably still for a long time, Casa de Campo will be the
"Caribbean most complete resort" with one the best golf course in the world
"the Teeth of the Dog".
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Casa de
Campo is located on the southeastern coasts of the Dominican Republic in the town of La
Romana at about two hours drive from the capital Santo Domingo where the main flights are
landing. But commuters flights coming for Miami or Puerto Rico can land on La Romana
airport which runway goes across the… golf course, players being averted by signals
to stop and wait for driving over. Casa de Campo
(the house in the country) is deeply linked to the Dominican history. The time when it was
only a sugar cane land is not so far since it goes back to 1911 when the South Puerto Rica
Sugar Company purchased 20.000 acres nearby La Romana to plant sugar cane.
The property expanded and was sold to Gulf + Western who
created Casa de Campo resort as an executive retreat and charged in 1969 Peter Dye to
transform the overgrown, jagged coral reef coastline into a golf course. It took two years
to Peter Dye, his wife Alice and 300 labourers to clear the site, to bring down from the
mountains topsoil of sand, dirt and cachaza, organic residue from the sugar refining
process and lay down seedlings of Bermuda grass in fairways and greens. At the end it
became what is now the famous "Teeth of the Dog".
Now the resort has three golf courses (one being private
for the permanent residents) and a fourth one will open at the end of the year. In the
same time, accommodations have been developed and improved yearly to be able to host about
2000 people at the peak times.
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Dominican Pepublic
The Caribbean's Most Complete Resort
At #5, from one tooth to another
Dreamland
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