There are golf courses around the world with stirring names that became part of cultural lore. Hear of Royal St. Andrews, Augusta National, Pebble Beach and Whistling Straits, and thoughts turn to twittering birds, lush fairways and manicured greens.
Meanwhile, if I named any number of world famous kitchen appliance brands, none of them would be likely to trigger similar imagery. But, one should — because there’s a pretty, friendly golf course on the laid back Caribbean Island of Anguilla that shares its name with a maker food processors, blenders and coffee makers.
When Leandro Rizzuto – the self-made entrepreneur behind the successful CuisinArt name — wanted to get into the Caribbean resort business, he put the monicker of his successful appliance brand on his new joint. As the resort grew, Rizzuto purchased a nearby development of homes and villas to add elbow room. A neighboring $35 million, 18-hole golf course came with the deal.
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Now renovated and polished, the course bringing players to CuisinArt Golf Resort and Spa is a friendly, resort-style course that takes advantage of the lush island environment. Originally designed by Greg Norman, the course holds off on the blind tee shots and dog legs, while also keeping the bunkers and on-course water hazards at a manageable tally.
From the stately, but friendly clubhouse and restaurant to the practice area, there’s no pretentiousness. The course runs on island time, and the staff isn’t there to put pressure on you to maintain a certain pace before, during or after a round.
The grounds are in good condition and hold up well under the unique island weather of sun, wind and the occasional passing squall. The surrounding island environment blends in well with the course, so the player can interact with the local iguanas and birds between shots.
If there are any complaints to be made after a pleasant afternoon of CuisinArt golf, the player might sometimes wish for a signature hole with a wide open ocean view. The course seems primed for one masterful, classic hole teeing down into the bay with a clean view of teal water. But, the layout of the original resort Norman had to work with pre-CuisinArt stepped in between the course and the water. Fortunately, there are still multiple holes that overlook the distant sea.
Just as Anguilla is one of the Caribbean’s more hidden gems, its only golf track is a great resort golf experience that keeps to all of the finest sea and sand traditions of island play.
