Best Golf Courses in South America
Prestige courses, passionate players
South America's golf tradition is older and more distinguished than most visitors expect. Golf in Brazil dates back to 1901, Argentina and Brazil have hosted international professional events for decades, and the private clubs carry genuine prestige. The continent's courses tend toward the formal and private, but for those with access, the quality of design and the cultural richness of a Buenos Aires or São Paulo round are well worth the effort of arranging it.
— Top 10 Rankings
Top 10 Best Golf Courses in South America
Updated
About Golf Courses in South America
Prestige courses, passionate players. South America's golfing tradition runs deep — from the tree-lined private clubs of Buenos Aires to the Olympic course built for Rio 2016. The continent combines Old World formality with New World landscapes.
Golf took root in South America through British and European immigrant communities in the early 20th century. Argentina's golf culture centers on Buenos Aires, where the private clubs of San Isidro and Bella Vista have hosted the Argentine Open and the World Cup of Golf. Brazil followed a different path: its first club was founded in São Paulo in 1901 by British and Scottish railway workers, and the course built at Barra da Tijuca for the 2016 Olympics is open to the public. Chile's private clubs sit in Santiago's eastern districts with the Andes rising behind them, and Argentina's Lake District at Bariloche pairs golf with glacial lakes and Patagonian forest. Lima's older private clubs carry genuine historical character, and Colombia's clubs run from the coast at Cartagena to the high plateau around Bogotá. The continent's geography ranges from sea-level tropical courses to high-altitude Andean ones around Bogotá and Quito. Seasonality in South America is the inverse of the northern hemisphere — the best golf weather in Patagonia and around Santiago runs roughly from October through April, while Buenos Aires and Montevideo are most comfortable in spring and autumn. Brazil's golf regions are warmer, with year-round playability but wet-season caution through the southern summer in Rio and São Paulo. Private club access is the main logistical challenge; most of the continent's ranked courses are private clubs, and reciprocal arrangements or formal introductions are typically required for visiting play.
- Ranked courses
- 23
- Course styles
- parkland 19 · coastal 3 · mountain 1
- Access
- private 15 · resort 5 · semi-private 2
- Opened
- 1901–2016
- Playable without membership
- 8 of 23
— By Country
Golf Courses in South America by Country
— Also in South America