Ruitoque

The course at Ruitoque Golf & Country Club is situated to the south of Bucaramanga – the "Ciudad de los Parques" (City of the Parks) – and it lies within a massive 1,250-acre gated community, high atop a plateau that overlooks the surrounding area.

Back in the mid-1990s, this was Nicklaus Design’s first Colombian golf project and the Golden Bear assigned architect Chett Williams to route the holes (with Jerry Pierman actually constructing the fairways) around a substantial number of residential properties.

Chosen to co-host a Tour de Las Americas event in 2009 and host to the 2014 Colombian Open, the course offers a particularly strong set of five short holes, the most challenging of which is undoubtedly the 196-yard 13th, where the green is one of only a few that are set behind water on the course.

Visitors should be aware that caddies are mandatory at Ruitoque. There’s also an executive 9-hole floodlit course available for golfers who wish to continue to play after the sun goes down.