With halloween just a few days away, it’s a good time to let you know that golfers and caddies say Jamaica’s White Witch Golf Course isn’t just for birdies and bogeys—apparently there are a few “uninvited guests” who insist on joining the game. At dusk, when the breeze whispers through the palms and the sun dips low, some golfers swear they hear footsteps where no humans tread. Weird lights flicker between trees. Shadows slink across the greens as if trying to sneak in a putt of their own.
Located in Rose Hall, in St. James Parish near Montego Bay, on Jamaica’s scenic northwestern coast there are plenty of reasons why this course could get freaky. Built on land once part of the sprawling Rose Hall Plantation, the course combines modern golf design with a haunting historical backdrop that dates back to Jamaica’s colonial and slave era.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, Rose Hall was one of the island’s largest and most notorious sugar estates, worked by thousands of enslaved Africans under brutal and dehumanizing conditions. The plantation conducted horrendous acts against the enslaved men, women, and children, while working thousands of them to death.
Rose Hall became infamous for the legend of Annie Palmer, known as the “White Witch of Rose Hall.” According to folklore, Palmer was a cruel plantation mistress who practiced dark magic, tormented enslaved workers, and was responsible for the mysterious deaths of her three husbands. Her ghost is said to haunt the Rose Hall Great House and the surrounding property — including the very hills where the golf course now lies.
Designed by Robert von Hagge and Rick Baril, the course officially opened in August 2000 and stretches across 6,758 yards as a par-71 course. the course offers some of the island’s most breathtaking views, with 16 of its 18 holes facing the ocean. the course offers some of the island’s most breathtaking views, with 16 of its 18 holes facing the ocean.
On it’s signature 17th hole, and others, it’s claimed by many who have played here during dusk that game gets freaky, legends tell of phantom golfers who still roam the fairways, clubs in hand, eternally searching for the perfect shot. A whisper in the woods, a cold chill on the 18th hole, or a ball that rolls all by itself—caddies have stories, and they’re not always telling jokes.
So if you ever tee off at the White Witch golf course during dusk, somewhere where the wind carries a laugh (or maybe a ghostly cackle), and your golf ball takes aim for nowhere in particular—don’t blame the sand trap. You might just be sharing the course with someone from beyond the clubhouse.
