Golf Business Community

“Cuba is an ideal location for golf tournaments and has a bright future with regard to courses,” Jacklin said during a visit to the island earlier this year. “Where else can you light up a cigar and strike the ball?”

The design commission is evidence that development is progressing at Carbonera, which will take shape on 425 acres of government-owned property just outside Varadero, about an hour’s drive east of Havana. Besides Jacklin’s 18-hole, championship-length course, the community will include 100 villas, 800 condos, a 120-room hotel, a spa, a marina, a beach club, and a Jacklin-branded golf academy.

Carbonera is being developed by Esencia Hotels & Resorts, an affiliate of London-based Havana Holdings. Esencia’s obligatory Cuban partner is Palmares, a government-controlled entity that’s developed more than 1,000 hotels, restaurants, entertainment venues, and other business establishments in Cuba. Palmares’ contribution to golf consists of what is still, despite much bluster and hype, the nation’s only 18-hole golf course, the Les Furber-designed track at Varadero Golf Course in Varadero.

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