Sandals Golf & Country Club

"I was a sandals resort guest who came to play. $50 for the cart fee & $75 to rent clubs. 1 sleeve of balls were included for the round. Overall conditions were fair, but not impressive. If you are looking to just play golf on your vacation, this is a decent option. If you are looking for “championship” conditions, I’d recommend playing somewhere else."

Cooper Grosteffon

"This is hopefully a more in depth review of Cap Estates after playing this course back to back over two days I have some observations and concerns. Some other reviews talk about the used golf balls you can buy on the course. And this really being the only course on the island you can play without being sponsored by a member at point hardy. So with that said, firstly I am reviewing this course coming from the public side, not as a Sandals resort guest. This means it will be measured as a $225 USD per round course.

Clubhouse - from first glance the clubhouse is very nice. There is a restaurant there but I did not have any food or drinks However upon further review, the main clubhouse bathrooms could be updated. Between running toilets, mismatched toilet seats the slide off and the years of wall mounted soap and toilet paper dispensers. I have seen better facilities at my local $75 a round courses in the states.

Customer Service - The folks that work there are great. Everyone was very friendly and accommodating. They do not pair you up with others...so you go out as a single you stay that way until the pace of play eventually forces you to merge with others. The pro shop did add a group at hole 5 directly behind us, which was weird and created a little log-jam, that I was right in the middle of.

Range and Warmup - There is a large grass range with a few mats under a sun cover for those who overheat quickly. The range balls are unlimited for $25 USD. It's nice to have both mat and grass options and was a perfect way to warmup. There is a practice green behind the clubhouse, which seemed very under utilized.

Layout and routing - I love the layout and routing of this course. Super interesting especially after the second round. Some holes do have very little visual interest, lacking or not having any bunkering. IMO bunkers add to the visual interests and shot selecting. Some holes were just not what they could be.

Course Conditions - This is likely my biggest concern. During big rain storms the night before the course fairways do not manage the water very well. You get very wet spots and on the second day had mud balls nearly every tee shot. Fairways look to be Bermuda grass, however noticing some very interesting mis-hits and ball flight, what I was seeing is a broad leaf weed taking over large sections of the fairway. The Bermuda grass began growing into a web of weeds that spiderweb out. This looks to be a lack of agronomy knowledge, pesticides, and overall management. Most if not all rough is a broad leaf weed and is nearly always a flyer lie situation. I have to say these two types of conditions really impact your game in a negative way. Some tee boxes could be leveled and flattened. The greens just went through aeration about 2 weeks prior so I hope they would be rebounding by time people are reading this review. Also, it rained nearly every day I was in St. Lucia and on the course most all players stop play to let the weather pass. I was not used to this, just something to be aware of.

Carts and Paths - Carts are older gas powered with no GPS. At this price point I would expect electric with scoring and GPS maps. Paths are nice and mostly continuous concrete around the course. This makes for a nice smoother experience. Signage and way-finding is good around the entire course.

Overall I am rating this as exactly what it is, a $225 USD course. I personally do not think this course is worth the money without seeing some needed upgrades as mentioned and improvement with grass knowledge. After my second round I watched others around me. Most all other folks looked to be from the Sandals resort, coming off the bus. This makes me think this course is more a checked box for the resort to say they have a golf course. As apposed to a championship golf course demanding high green fees for excellence in design and agronomy.

One part of me regretted playing the second day and shelling out the cash. But other part of me let me see where and how the course could improve."

Matthew Varley

"If you're into golf, they are good. If you attended for an event, they are also a good location."

Louis Lewis