Nestled in the hilly terrain just over the bridge and 15 minutes east of Panama City in a place called Cocoli, you’ll find the Tucan Golf Club. The course is situated in the gated community of the Tucan Country Club and Resort, 180 acres of luxurious condominiums and townhomes with a spectacular view of the skyline of Panama City, Panama.
The championship 18-hole, par 72 golf course measures 6,477 yards from the tips and was built in the 1940’s and redesigned in 2005 by Jeffrey Myers, a golf course architect who has designed courses in the United States, South America, Asia and the Middle East. It has Paspalum grass on the tee decks, greens and fairways. According to the course manager, it was designed in a way that would insure the integrity of the surrounding tropical flora and fauna. 
The course was originally named Horoko, an adaptation of the names of forts Howard, Rodman and Kobbe. With the advent of the country club and housing built nearby, the name was changed to Tucan, Spanish for the colorful toucan bird native to northern South America, Central America and Mexico. The greens fees are $80 plus cart rental and tax. The Pro Shop also offers club rental of Calloway, Nike, Ping, Cobra and TaylorMade sets for $40, $60 for VIP sets. Golf carts are equipped with GPS. Tucan is a very challenging track with an abundance of sand traps, water, lateral hazards and moderately sloped greens. It aligns with its designer’s philosophy of placing hazards to punish bad shots instead of good shots. Place your tee shot in the fairway and you can’t go wrong.
The course includes four sets of tees, enabling players with different levels of skills to compete. The greens are angled to create interesting and challenging pin placements as well as playing options. Upon starting the course, a marshall instructed me to pay particular attention to the views from tee boxes on the 3rd, 6th, and 10th holes. His advice was well worth taking. Tucan is situated between the locks of the Panama Canal Zone at Miraflores, a tropical rain forest and the nation’s capital. The best view is from the 10th tee. 
The 3rd tee box, pictured left, (444 yards from the blue tees) is an elevated deck looking down a hill with the green obscured by a dog leg left.
One has to be careful when approaching the green, as it is guarded by a bunker and runs away from you. 
The 4th hole is another challenge. 173 yards in length from the blues and protected by a large pond along the fairway, keeping your ball dry is of utmost importance. The same pond looms largely on the following hole, which requires you to fly the ball to the fairway for a remote chance of reaching the elevated 5th green in two. 
To the left of the tee box on hole number 6 you’ll find a stunning view of the golf course and the country club’s upscale housing development. This position at the top of a hill leaves you a blind, downhill tee shot obscured by a left turn to the green. As this visit occurred to during the rainy season, the fairway was fairly soft due to excess rainfall, a phenomenon that must be considered when booking your trip. During the rainy season (April-December), the greens may slow a bit and the fairways may allow your ball to plug. As promised, the panoramic view of Panama City and the Canal Zone from the 10th tee was breath-taking.
If you’re visiting Panama, you won’t want to miss an opportunity for an excellent round at one of the country’s finest golf locations, Tucan Golf Club.
Vince Robinson is an avid golfer and freelance writer based in Cleveland, Ohio.
