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MEXICO : Americas' History & Golf

The Death avenue before the Sun pyramid at Teotihuacan and a view of the Banderas bay from Punta Mita golf course.

Mexico has surpassed its target of 20 million visitors and US$ 10 billion in international tourism revenues. 90% of the visitors are coming from the US by direct flights to where to find along the Mexican beaches a growing number of American style all-inclusive resorts with golf courses. Los Cabos and Cancun are already their favourite… and the new Mexican target is to become the first tourist destination for American golfers …!

Mexico, December 2007 - It is said that the wealth of a nation is to be found in its history and culture. Then, Mexico is very, very rich as, like Egypt or China , it goes back to the man's arrival on Earth. At a time when there was beyond the Atlantic ocean a continent which was called West Indies, lack of knowing the exact geography of the World. It was only after Christopher Columbus's and Amerigo Vespucci's trips and the end of the Spanish occupation that it became America.

 Before 1492, the Indies were inhabited by millions of Indians. They died by thousands killed by swords or by smallpox (unknown disease for the natives). The conquistadores hided that genocide by telling that Indians were wild people with all the more so since they were pillaging their immense treasures for the profit of the Spanish Crown (and for their own!). In lieu of, they introduced Catholicism and Spanish architecture in cathedrals and palaces (which are now part of the Mexican heritage)! But we had to wait till the 19th and 20th centuries to bring up to date the buried splendours (temples and pyra
mids) of those first human civilizations, Olmec, Astec or Maya.

The American scientific writer Charles Mann describes that bloody tragedy in his " 1491: New revelation of the Americas before Columbus ". After a fortuitous visit to Chichen Itza , he decided to cover Mexico and the full American continent to restore the truth and prove that it was " a cradle of brilliant and broad minded civilizations, careful of their environment. And not at all the virgin and undeveloped continent as official History wanted to tell us" .


After 1836 came up the conflict with the newborn United States of America which colonial appetite ate up 55% of the Mexican territory (from Texas to California ) in 1848 (see map). And in 2006 they have imposed along the border a 1120 kms wall of shame! How to be surprised by the daily attempts of Mexican to jump over it? Wasn't it their native country on both sides? Aren't they 27 million of Americans who admit a Mexican lineage and 12 million of Mexicans who are living in the States?

Nevertheless during the 19 th Mexico has attracted Europeans investors some being British : naturally they created the first golf course, Cuernavaca which is still known for its "Scottish style" rough terrain and abundance of trees. But the great majority of the 150 courses existing today have been constructed during the last decade as the result of a national strategy: exploit the passion of Americans for golf.


Leading designers have participated in the planning of golf courses in recent years, and nowadays golf courses can be found virtually all over Mexico. Mexican golf courses have the advantage to be set in spectacular scenery, whether they are located in private clubs in Nuevo León, Jalisco or Mexico City or in luxurious beach resorts. Cancún, Acapulco, Ixtapa, Puerto Vallarta , Punta Mita, Manzanillo, Los Cabos... all boast superb golf courses. Together they have made Mexico one of the best places in the world for golf. But as writes WorldGolf: " golf trip to Mexico is more than just golf. It is a culturally rewarding, educationally enriching adventure that you just aren't going to get in Myrtle Beach , Orlando , or Scottsdale "!

In fact Mexico is not just a golf-golf-golf destination! It is much more!

Therefore our purpose is to present the two aspects: the golf but also the cultural tourism as the country is a privileged part of the human story................ R. Bourne


Evolution of Mexican territory

MesoAmerican human presence goes back to 40,000 years ago but the Aztec, Maya, Olmec civilizations only to the last millenium BC.
They were invaded by Spain in 1519 and New Spain Vice Royalty ended in 1810 with the Mexican Independence.
Texas which was Mexican asked for Independence; but its annexation in 1836 to the USA was origin of the war ending in 1848 with the Treaty of Guadalupe: partial cession of the modern-day U.S. states of Colorado Arizona, New Mexico, Wyoming, as well as California, Nevada and Utah

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