A massive ravine fronts the 15th green at Vista Vallarta's Weiskopf Course.

Sadly, many people only know Puerto Vallarta for being the port-of-call for television’s The Love Boat, but it has recently become a fantastic choice for a Mexico golf vacation.

Thanks to the 2002 EMC World Cup tournament, the first course everyone wants to play in Puerto Vallarta is the Nicklaus Course at Vista Vallarta Golf Club. While the Nicklaus Course is outstanding, Vista Vallarta’s Weiskopf Course is our favorite in Puerto Vallarta. Architect Tom Weiskopf calls the setting one of the most dramatic inland properties he has ever seen, and we agree.

After the opening holes, the routing settles into a jungle valley and the combination of lush vegetation, gorgeous trees and the distant Sierra Madre mountain range packs a powerful aesthetic punch. And, compared to the Nicklaus layout, Weiskopf’s, whose green complexes are subtly contoured and open in front, gives the average golfer a much better chance to shoot a good score.

The back nine features two brilliant par threes — one of which, the 15^th hole, is all carry over a deep ravine — and a Weiskopf trademark short-par-four finishing hole, which entices long hitters to drive the green amid a minefield of fairway bunkers.

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