All you need to know about golf and what else there is to do in Mexico City, host of this week’s World Golf Championships event
This week the first of the four World Golf Championships events on the 2020 Race to Dubai takes place, the WGC-Mexico Championship.
Played at Chapultepec Golf Club for the fourth consecutive time, Dustin Johnson returns to defend after claiming his sixth World Golf Championship by five strokes last year with a final round 66.
He’s one of a field of 72 players, with 11 of the 37 European Tour members competing this week making their WGC-Mexico Championship debut.
Let’s take a closer a look at Mexico City.
Mexico City
The capital of Mexico is both the oldest and most populated city in North America, and forms one of the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico.
Founded in 1325 and known as ‘The city of Palaces’, the sprawling metropolis has become a popular urban destination for tourists, who can experience both a vibrant culture and a wealth of fascinating historical sites.
Mexico City Weather
The warm season (March to May) in Mexico City boasts the best weather, but it is also the busiest time for tourists, with temperatures tending to reach an average high of 27° C.
Autumn months (September to November) are also a pleasant time to plan a trip, while the summer months are the city’s rainy season, and temperatures drop considerably during winter months.
Three things to do in Mexico City
Chapultepec Park
Known locally as "Bosque de Chapultepec", Chapultepec Park is one of the oldest urban parks in the World, and at 1,600 acres, is also nearly double the size of Central Park in New York City.
With a theme park, zoo, recreational lake and a botanic garden there’s a plethora of things to keep you entertained, while history lovers can enjoy Chapultepec Castle, Montezuma’s Bath Houses and the National Museum of History, which is just one of the park’s many museums.
Museo Soumaya
Mexico City’s most visited museum is free to visit and has two separate locations: Plaza Loreto in the southern part of the city, and Plaza Carsa in Neuvo Polanco.
Distinctive due to both height and its avant-garde design, Plaza Carsa was designed by Meixcan architect Fernando Romero, and opened in 2011.
The six-story building houses the main collection, which includes iconic sculptures and paintings from some of the world’s most celebrated and recognisable artists. There is a permanent exhibit dedicated to Frenchman Auguste Rodin, making up a portion of some 66,000 pieces on display across Museo Soumaya, which also contains celebrated artists Salvador Dali, Pablo Picasso and Vincent van Gogh.
Teotihuacan
Located less than an hour from Mexico City lies the ancient archaeological site of Teotihuacan – ‘the city of the Gods’ – which was once home to one of the first Mesoamerican civilisations.
Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Teotihuacan is most famous for the Avenue of the Dead and several of its sizeable structures, including the Temple of Quetzalcoatl and both the Pyramid of the Sun and Pyramid of the Moon – both of which you can climb.
Golf in Mexico City
This week’s tournament is held at Chapultepec Golf Club, a private golf club located in the Naucalpan area of Mexico City, originally designed by Scottish brothers Willie and Alex Smith and later redesigned in 1971 by Peter Clifford.
One of the biggest factors about playing golf in Mexico City is the altitude. Played at nearly 7,800 feet above sea level, being able to account for the adjustment that elevation plays on the course is one of the key challenges players are presented with at the first World Golf Championships event of the year.
The course itself is 7,355 yards and is protected by tight tee shots and greens that slope towards the city, placing a premium on precision and calculating how much further the ball flies.
Defending champion Dustin Johnson said: “This golf course, it's difficult and you definitely have to focus on every single shot, just because with the elevation and calculating the numbers.”
A similar trial awaits golfers at the tight, tree-lined nearby Club de Golf Mexico, another former host of the Mexican Open and two-time site of the World Cup of Golf, where Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus teamed up for a USA triumph in 1967.
Both of these championship courses can be played by member-invite only, so you’ll have to travel further afield to popular golf districts such as Riviera Maya, Peurto Vallarta and Los Cabos to experience the likes of Diamonte Dunes, Cabo de Sol (Ocean) and El Camaleon Mayakoba.
How to get there
Mexico City International Airport is located around 5km east from the city centre and is serviced by numerous international airports
