Is This The Ultimate Caribbean Golf Destination?

In 20 years of covering golf, I’ve played at, and visited, some of the most incredible golf facilities and destinations. From Canada to Singapore, from European classics to modern masterpieces of the Middle East. My wife will confirm that I’ve been on quite a number of “investigatory” trips. Sorry darling. I’m going to put my neck on the line and suggest that this September, I took the most surprising, most enjoyable and quite simply the best golfing trip of my career to date.

It’s been a busy 2023 and I’d almost forgotten that I’d been booked in to join a press trip at the end of summer to visit Apes Hill to play the Ron Kirby renovated course there. But I was very pleasantly reminded of it when I received an email confirming a rather exciting looking itinerary, including some golf and an awful lot more – As the UK was in the last days of summer… “Woh, I was going to Barbados,” (younger readers might want to substitute Ibiza in order to get the musical reference there.)

Barbados seems a distant tropical paradise but it’s closer than I’d realised. One of the more southerly and easterly Caribbean islands, the flight time from London is only eight hours, it’s just seven and a half on the way back. It doesn’t really even qualify as a long-haul flight and, after a couple of films, a bowl of pasta and the obligatory G&T (or two) we touched down in Bridgetown.

It may have been hot when we’d left London but, boy, did it feel hotter when we stepped off the plane – It certainly hit me – a bit like opening the dishwasher just after it’s finished running. Early September is about as hot as it gets in Barbados and they were enjoying a particularly hot one. The temperature there is very pleasant, year-round. And to be honest, even at its hottest (some 33 degrees centigrade), it isn’t prohibitive. I wouldn’t have wanted to be grafting on a building site but strolling round a golf course or sipping a rum punch was not a problem.

A 30-minute drive up the island (it’s only 22 miles long and 12 miles wide), we made it to Apes Hill. Situated some 1,000 feet above sea level, it’s the most elevated golf course and community in Barbados, in fact it’s just 3km from the highest point on the island – Mount Hillaby. The altitude means that Apes Hill offers superb views across the beautiful Scotland District and towards the sandy dunes of the east coast of Barbados.

We were staying in one of the newest properties to have been built at Apes Hill – a luxurious villa alongside the par-5 18th hole. The properties all through Apes Hill are incredibly stylish and opulent and there are more coming – the developments are set to be completed by 2025 and there are still opportunities for those lucky enough to have the necessary means to acquire a “bolt hole” in this rather unique and hugely appealing community.

The course at Apes Hill was redesigned by the late Ron Kirby. A huge amount of work has been done to create a par 72 championship layout of superb quality. Offering breath-taking views, the layout plays through lush forests, past incredible rock formations, over water hazards and sprawling bunkers. It’s a remarkable redesign and one that has clearly elevated this elevated course to a position where it must be regarded as one of the best in the Caribbean.

The greens are of exceptional quality – TifEagle super dwarf Bermuda grass – they are incredibly true and really quite fast. According to course superintendent Ed Paskins (a hugely knowledgeable and highly entertaining Kiwi – he took us on a tour through the jungle at one point which was amazing – like visiting a botanical garden… but natural!) they could be faster but for the Tradewinds that consistently blow freshly across the course. The fairways are drought-tolerant zorro zoysia grass which is tough to establish but, when it has been, it’s extremely resilient and good to play off. Sustainability is a big deal at Apes Hill and one of the things they’re rightly proud about is the fact that all the irrigation for the championship course, the par-3 course (Baby Apes – good name!) and the practice facilities comes from their own 58-million-gallon rainwater reservoir.

Back to the course – the front nine delivers a strong test with a selection of interesting holes, but the layout really shines on the back nine, particularly the section referred to as the "Apes Hill Amen Corner." The 12th is a stunning downhill par-3 of over 200 yards, then the 13th is a majestic par-4 on which you drive between towering Bearded Fig trees (from which Barbados gets its name – Portuguese for bearded ones) on the left and a jutting rock formation on the right. With the wind out of the left, it’s a daunting tee shot. On the 14th, the hole curves from right to left and is played between huge palm trees. At the green, the views are magnificent, as per the lead photo above.

The run for home is a tough one with a great challenge awaiting at the par-3 16th – there’s water short and a natural cave through the back. Spectacular stuff. The home hole, playing past our villa is a grand par-5 that sweeps down towards the clubhouse. It’s a hugely memorable track, one maintained in excellent condition. I think it could be a very good tournament venue, perhaps a Seniors event…

Speaking of that, our round at Apes Hill was made doubly enjoyable as we had a rather handy playing partner. We were joined by 1991 Masters champion and former World Number 1 Ian Woosnam. He has a house on Barbados and is a regular at Apes Hill. Woosie is one of the very nicest, funniest people in golf and his company during our stay was beyond excellent. Not only did he impress us with his prowess on the fairways (despite suffering tennis elbow he knocked it round in 69 from the back tees) but he also dished out tips, told numerous stories that we promised we wouldn’t print, and even had us back to his pad for a beer… What a guy!

Woosnam spends a fair bit of time at Apes Hill, not just for the course but also for the clear camaraderie there is between the members there – it’s a very relaxed place where people are friendly and sociable. He also goes there for the state-of-the art performance studio and brilliant practice facilities on site. Looked after by Scottish head professional Jody Addison, I’ve never seen such a spacious and impressive swing studio – Featuring Full Swing and Putt View camera technology with pressure pads and all sorts of custom fit options to play around with, it’s a golf nerd’s paradise… in paradise!

Apes Hill is pretty special but it’s by no means the only golfing option on Barbados. That’s what makes this small island such a great place for golfers – Just down the road you have Royal Westmoreland as well as Sandy Lane.

We had a chance to play at Royal Westmoreland and it’s another excellent layout. Designed by Robert Trent Jones Jnr, it’s more established than the recently renovated Apes Hill. It’s perhaps not as dramatic as its more elevated neighbour, but it still offers a highly enjoyable playing experience and there are some excellent holes to negotiate throughout the round, culminating in the fascinating downhill 18th. There, you must drive to the crest of a hill and hopefully just topple over it to gain an extra 30 or 40 yards. Then the approach is over a gully to a green overlooked by the clubhouse.

The golf in Barbados is of the highest quality you’ll find anywhere in the Caribbean but we also discovered the island offers a great deal more in terms of culture, history and sport. It’s a bustling place, with little or no crime and there’s just a truly friendly and chilled out vibe wherever you go.

A highlight of our visit was attending a Caribbean Premier League cricket match between the Barbados Royals and the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots at the Kensington Oval. I would say it goes down as one of the very best live sport watching experiences I’ve ever had. We were hosted by the Barbados Tourist Board and watched from their box. After standing next to Sir Gary Sobers as he ate his dinner (I could hardly believe my eyes), I then went out to see the giant Rakheem Cornwall blast 103 (nearly all sixes) to chase down an improbable 220 to win the match for the home side. The celebrations resembled a carnival. It was quite something to see.

At a more sedate pace, we also took a tour of the Scotland district with award winning guide and historian Ronnie Carrington. He showed us old plantations, described the lives of people on the island in the past and today, explained the distinctive chattel houses (basically made to be portable if the people in plantation days were forced to move on), and he took us to the odd rum shop to boot! It was a fascinating few hours and a pleasure to be in the company of such an articulate and passionate chap.

I think my takeaway from my time in Barbados was that there’s something for everybody who visits. Beach lovers and sun seekers will be in heaven, sports fans have a world of opportunity on the land and in the water, there’s culture, music, history and I haven’t even had time to start on the food – safe to say, it’s the best I’ve had in the Caribbean. Basically, Barbados has it all. It is indeed the ultimate Caribbean golf destination.