Bermuda's Port Royal Golf Club: A Complete Course Guide

Every November, the world's best golfers descend upon Bermuda to compete in the PGA TOUR's Butterfield Bermuda Championship at Port Royal Golf Course, a dramatic Robert Trent Jones Sr. masterpiece where strategic brilliance meets oceanic grandeur. The stars of the PGA TOUR chase birdies across the same fairways that any visitor can play, a rare convergence of championship pedigree and democratic access that makes Port Royal one of golf's most compelling destinations.

When Robert Trent Jones Sr. arrived in Southampton Parish in the late 1960s, he created what would become his Bermudian masterwork. Completed in 1970, the course stretched 6,842 yards across dramatic coastal terrain. As a government-owned public facility, it offered world-class golf to anyone who wanted to play.

Jones's design showcased his signature philosophy: strategic architecture that rewards the thinking player. He incorporated more water hazards than any other course on the island and created demanding doglegs, elevated greens, and cavernous bunkers. Multiple tee boxes ensured accessibility for all skill levels.

Nearly four decades later, Port Royal underwent a transformation. From 2007 to 2009, the Bermuda Government invested $14.5 million in a comprehensive renovation led by Roger Rulewich, who had worked alongside Jones on the original design. Rulewich enhanced the greens, improved drainage systems, and refined the bunkering while preserving Jones's strategic DNA. When Port Royal officially reopened on July 21, 2009, it emerged ready for golf's biggest stages.

That championship readiness was immediately tested. In 2009 and 2010, Port Royal hosted the PGA Grand Slam of Golf. But the course's true arrival came in October 2019, when it became home to the PGA TOUR's Butterfield Bermuda Championship.

The tournament debuted as part of the 2020 PGA TOUR season with a $3 million purse, initially positioned as an alternate event. Brendon Todd claimed that inaugural title with a stunning 24-under-par 260, setting a tournament record. When COVID-19 disrupted the golf calendar in 2020, the Butterfield Bermuda Championship was elevated to full FedEx Cup status, with winners from 2020 through 2022 earning coveted invitations to the Masters Tournament.

The tournament has since established itself as a November fixture, with the purse growing to between $6.5 and $6.9 million. In 2021, Butterfield Bank joined the Bermuda Tourism Board as co-title sponsor. The champion's roster reads like a testament to Port Royal's challenge: Brian Gay (2020), Lucas Herbert (2021), Séamus Power (2022), Camilo Villegas (2023), and Rafael Campos (2024). Villegas matched Todd's tournament record of 260 (-24) in 2023, while Campos claimed the 2024 title at 19-under-par, demonstrating how wind and conditions can dramatically alter Port Royal's defenses.

For golf fans, the Butterfield Bermuda Championship represents something profound: the opportunity to walk the same fairways, face the same challenges, and putt the same greens as PGA TOUR professionals. This isn't a course that retreats behind velvet ropes after hosting a tournament.

Jones's design philosophy permeates every hole at Port Royal. Strategic doglegs demand precise placement off the tee. Elevated greens test approach shot trajectory. Deep bunkers lurk at decision points. Water hazards appear more frequently here than on any other Bermudian course. The prevailing Atlantic winds further complicate matters, turning club selection into a moving target. Yet multiple tee boxes ensure recreational players can enjoy the strategic elements without facing impossible carries.

If Port Royal has a signature moment, it arrives at the 16th hole, one of the most photographed par 3s in world golf. During the original design, a landowner refused to sell crucial property, forcing Jones to rethink his routing. His solution was inspired: a 235-yard par 3 where both tee and green perch on cliffs above the Atlantic Ocean, separated by a chasm where waves crash against ancient rock.

Four teeing areas accommodate different skill levels, but the fundamental challenge remains: execute a solid shot across the ocean to reach a green sitting high on its own peninsula. Prevailing winds make club selection a moving target. Miss left and the Atlantic claims your ball. Bail out right and you'll face bunkers guarding that side of the green. It's simultaneously spectacular and intimidating, beautiful and brutal.

The 16th captures Port Royal's essence: strategic architecture amplified by a dramatic natural setting. When PGA TOUR professionals stand on that tee in November, they face the same visual intimidation and consequences as every recreational player who follows.

While the 16th commands attention, Port Royal offers oceanic drama throughout. The closing stretch from the 14th through 18th provides a visual and strategic crescendo where tournaments are won and lost.

Port Royal represents something increasingly rare: a genuine championship venue accessible to all. As one of only two public courses in Bermuda at 6,842 yards, it offers recreational players the opportunity to test themselves against a layout that challenges PGA TOUR professionals every November. The fact that you can walk the same fairways as Brendon Todd, Camilo Villegas, and Rafael Campos makes Port Royal not just a great golf course, but a democratic celebration of the game itself.