A New Era of Golf in Mexico
Golf in Mexico changed gear in February 2023. That month LIV Golf, the league that has shaken up the professional game, opened its season at El Camaleón, the Greg Norman course at Mayakoba in the Riviera Maya. It was the first LIV Golf event ever held in Latin America, and the Mexican Caribbean hosted it twice, in 2023 and again in 2024. The coast now sits firmly on the map of world golf, and Costa Mujeres, just north of Cancún, is one of the best places to base yourself if you want to come and play it.
Why Costa Mujeres?
Costa Mujeres puts together what a golf trip needs: a course worth the flight, resorts that take care of everything else, and the sea a few steps away. Its main draw for golfers is Playa Mujeres Golf Club, an 18-hole layout designed by Greg Norman that opened in 2006 and winds between mangroves and dunes, with several holes facing the Caribbean. In 2024 the club added a nine-hole short course, also by Norman’s firm, built for quick rounds, beginners and families.
Getting here is simple, too. Cancún International Airport has direct flights from major cities in the Americas and Europe, and the all-inclusive resorts of Costa Mujeres are a short drive away. Play in the morning, spend the afternoon on the beach.
LIV Golf’s Format in Mexico
LIV Golf does not look like a traditional tournament, and that was obvious at El Camaleón. Instead of four days and 72 holes, the Mayakoba events were played over three days and 54 holes, with a shotgun start (every group tees off at the same time from a different hole) and no cut, so every player was still in it on Sunday. Since the 2026 season the league has moved to 72 holes over four days, but the shotgun start and the no-cut rule remain.
The other difference is the team competition. Each player fights for the individual title and, at the same time, for a team of four, so a birdie on the last hole can decide two trophies at once. In 2023 Charles Howell III won at Mayakoba by four strokes. In 2024 Joaquín Niemann beat Sergio García in a playoff that finished in near darkness on the 18th green.
The fields brought the big names. Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson and Brooks Koepka all teed it up at El Camaleón, as did Jon Rahm, who made his LIV Golf debut there in 2024. (Koepka has since returned to the PGA TOUR; Johnson and Mickelson remain team captains in the league.)
Costa Mujeres: More Than Just Golf
LIV Golf put the region on the golf calendar, but the destination offers plenty beyond the fairways. Costa Mujeres is known for its luxury all-inclusive resorts, and a golf trip here is easy to stretch: calm, shallow beaches, Isla Mujeres across the water, and the restaurants and nightlife of Cancún a few minutes to the south.
A Festival Atmosphere
LIV Golf events are built like festivals: music, fan zones, food and activities that bring spectators closer to the players. The idea is to fill the galleries with casual fans, families and people who have never followed a tournament, and to make the whole experience fun and easy to get into.
Mexico’s Growing Role in Global Golf
El Camaleón was already a landmark before LIV arrived. In 2007 it hosted the Mayakoba Golf Classic, the first PGA TOUR event ever played in Mexico, and it kept a PGA TOUR date every year through 2022. Add the LIV Golf editions of 2023 and 2024 and an LPGA Tour event in 2025, and few courses anywhere can match that record.
Since 2025 LIV Golf’s Mexican stop has moved to Club de Golf Chapultepec in Mexico City, with editions in April 2025 and April 2026. Mexico now has a fixed place on the league’s calendar, and it all started on the Caribbean coast.
The Future of Golf in Mexico with LIV Golf
The two Mayakoba editions showed that Mexico can host the biggest names in the game and put on a show around them. Whether or not the league comes back to the Caribbean, the courses are here: El Camaleón in the Riviera Maya, Playa Mujeres in Costa Mujeres, and many more along the coast between Cancún and Tulum.
If you want to watch professional golf in Mexico, check LIV Golf’s schedule for dates. If you want to play it, Costa Mujeres is a good place to start: a Norman course, resorts built around it, and the Caribbean right there.
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