For the first time in its history, the Women’s Amateur Latin America championship will come to Guatemala, with one of the country’s most outstanding golf developments set to provide the stage. From 19–22 November, El Pulté Golf will welcome 60 of the leading amateur golfers from South America, Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean for the sixth edition of the championship, presented by The R&A and the ANNIKA Foundation.
The WALA’s arrival in Guatemala represents an opportunity to showcase the country’s ability to host major sporting events to an international audience, while highlighting a destination that brings together golf, nature, facilities and hospitality. For El Pulté Golf, hosting one of the region’s leading women’s amateur championships holds special significance. The project began to take shape just over a decade ago and has since established itself as a leading name in Guatemalan golf.
The story of El Pulté Golf began in 2014, when an ambitious project was launched, built around golf and a close connection with the natural environment, in the heart of a country of striking contrasts: a land of volcanoes, spectacular lakes and a fascinating Mayan heritage.
Four years later, in 2018, El Pulté Golf opened as a residential community built around an 18-hole, par-72 course, set among the hills on the eastern side of Guatemala City. For the WALA, the course will play to 5,838 yards.
From the outset, the vision was to make golf much more than the sporting centrepiece of the community. The development incorporated spaces for social life, sport and outdoor activities, with architecture designed to blend into Guatemala’s distinctive landscape, in an area surrounded by mountains and forests and shaped by its unique topography.
For El Pulté Golf, hosting the WALA also represents the culmination of a project that, from its inception, set out to become a leading golf destination in Central America. Edgar Castillo, Director of El Pulté Golf, said, “This will be a special moment for the club and for Guatemala. Our club was established twelve years ago, and when we first started developing the idea and the vision, we wanted to create a family-oriented community built around the values of the game of golf.”
The development was planned by Darcon/Rodolfo Cabrera in partnership with Dye Designs, while the golf course was designed by Pete Dye and his company. Construction was carried out by Construgolf, with specialists in irrigation, landscaping and architecture contributing to a project designed to make the most of the natural features of the terrain.
The connection between architecture, nature and sport is also reflected in the modern Clubhouse, designed to serve as the heart of the community. Its facilities include a restaurant, social lounges, a gym, spa, tennis and squash courts, a swimming pool, walking trails and other areas dedicated to sport and social gatherings.
The main attraction at El Pulté Golf is undoubtedly its course, which bears the signature of world-renowned designer Dye. His vision went far beyond simply laying out a series of holes: each one was carefully shaped to bring together strategy, movement and landscape.
The process began with extensive earthworks, working directly with the steep, wooded mountain terrain to avoid creating an artificial-looking course. Then, through a technique known as shaping, the land gradually took form, with curves, rises and drops that give the course its distinctive character.
One of the hallmarks of Dye Designs is the use of hard lines: straight edges along lakes and bunkers that contrast with the natural contours of the landscape. The course features elevated tees, fairways that follow the shape of the terrain and green complexes that will demand precision throughout. The undulations and bunkers were also designed to create shadows that bring out the contours of the land in the early morning and late afternoon. Among its standout holes are the 12th, which demands accuracy from the tee to find the fairway, and the 17th, a par-3 with an island green inspired by the iconic TPC Sawgrass.
Alice Dye also played an important role in the design philosophy, paying particular attention to the forward tees and their distances. Her aim was to ensure that the course would not only challenge professionals but also be enjoyable for golfers of all abilities. At El Pulté Golf, every curve, elevation and detail has a purpose.
Castillo shared an interesting insight into the contribution of Alice , Pete Dye’s wife, who suggested changes to ensure the course would also offer suitable playing conditions for women. “Whenever she reviewed the plans, she would always come back with a change or a suggestion about how the course should play, so that women golfers would also be represented in the design,” he said “That is why hosting the Women’s Amateur Latin America championship means so much to the entire club and its board.”
For the WALA competitors, the course will present a challenge that rewards strategy as much as execution. There will be no single way to play each hole: reading the terrain, choosing the right positions from which to attack the greens and controlling the ball in different situations will all be key throughout the week.
Mark Lawrie, Regional Managing Director for Latin America and the Caribbean at The R&A, feels the course will provide a significant test and an opportunity for the talented field to showcase its skills. “El Pulté Golf is a very special place,” he said “Those who haven’t been here will discover a truly first-class venue, with a very demanding course designed by Dye Designs. I think what makes this course different is that we are used to seeing Pete Dye courses in relatively flat locations. This layout is set right in the mountains, which makes it even more appealing because it is quite different from what we are used to.”
The WALA champion will receive invitations to compete in three of the five women’s majors in 2027: the AIG Women’s Open at Royal St George’s, England; The Chevron Championship at Memorial Park Golf Course, United States of America; and The Amundi Evian Championship at Evian Resort Golf Club, France, as well as further opportunities within the international amateur calendar.
The Women’s Amateur Latin America championship’s arrival at El Pulté Golf therefore brings together two stories with a shared vision for the future: that of a championship continuing to expand its reach and create new opportunities for the region’s leading amateur golfers, and that of a venue committed to using sport as a way to showcase Guatemala on the international stage.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
