4 Palm Springs Publics

[Jason Topp]

I spent a long weekend in Palm Springs with a group of 16 with handicaps ranging from 0 to 25.  Here is my summary:

Golf Club at Terra Lago - North  (Doak 4)  - an Arnold Palmer public that, in 2 club winds, was demanding.  It is at a hilly location and, other than some hidden grass protecting a wide right opening tee shot is pretty tight tee to green.  Those who dislike desert golf should not play here.  Those who enjoy a desert course that follows the natural land and does not consist of a series of bowling alleys with bumpers to put the ball back in play should enjoy this course, particularly because I suspect it is one of the lower priced courses in the area.

Greg Norman Course at PGA West - (Doak 3) - slopes on both sides of the fairways funnel the ball back in play.  Most unique aspect of the course is the bunkering style.  The bunkers are pretty deep and scooped out in sort of a clamshell style reminiscent of Maxwell.  The depth of the bunkers was similar to those on Sand belt courses.  Of the zillion bunkers on the course, few of them really impacted how one played a hole.

Silverrock - (Doak 5) - This is a new course that will be used for the Bob Hope and it was the surprise of the trip for me.  The setting is terrific - flush against the rock of a mountainside but not on a severe sideslope and without housing.  The course was in terrific condition and I liked several of the holes, including a unique short par four that dogleged around some bushes and a closing stretch that uses one of those cement water canals as an ugly but interesting hazard.

PGA West Stadium - (Doak 6-7) - The course was pretty dried out and firm because overseeding will occur soon.  We played from pretty short tees because of the range of ability levels in our group.  From short tees, it was really an enjoyable, rather than a punishing experience.  Par fives were all reachable.  Par fours were a challenge with short irons and recovery shots are generally pretty fun.  I just hate all of those silly severe slopes which would never occur in a grassed over portion of nature.    

[Jon Spaulding]

Sounds like a nice trip. I've not played SilverRock but the others are ~ how I would put them.

Are you sure about TL North being a Palmer? I believe Silver Rock is a Palmer and both @ TL are Curley/Schmidt designs.

[Jason Topp]

Are you sure about TL North being a Palmer? I believe Silver Rock is a Palmer and both @ TL are Curley/Schmidt designs.

Looks like you are correct.  I misinterpreted Arnold Palmer management to mean Arnold Palmer design.  

This is a funny example of how the name of the designer impacts your impression of the course.  I enjoyed it, and I thought several times that I surprised that it was a Palmer course.  Now I know why.  

[rjsimper]

Jason,

I'm pretty surprised that you rate SilverRock ahead of Terra Lago North - I've played both within the past 2 years and thought that TL-N was by far the superior of the two layouts - more character, more variety, a couple nice short par 4s, and the scenery, though not as spectacular as the setting of SilverRock, was certainly no slouch.

I've not played any of the PGA West courses, but to me SilverRock was "just another Palm Desert course" with an impossible 16th hole (unless it doesn't normally play into the wind)

Is their clubhouse done yet?

[Wayne Freeman]

I didn't like Silver Rock that much but I think Escena near the Palm Springs airport is solid and quite reasonable.

[rjsimper]

I didn't like Silver Rock that much but I think Escena near the Palm Springs airport is solid and quite reasonable.

Agree 500% on this - Escena is excellent as far as the public's go.  Come to think of it, they were in the process of building their clubhouse as well as SilverRock.  Wonder if that ever got done.  

[Jason Topp]

Jason,

I'm pretty surprised that you rate SilverRock ahead of Terra Lago North - I've played both within the past 2 years and thought that TL-N was by far the superior of the two layouts - more character, more variety, a couple nice short par 4s, and the scenery, though not as spectacular as the setting of SilverRock, was certainly no slouch.

I've not played any of the PGA West courses, but to me SilverRock was "just another Palm Desert course" with an impossible 16th hole (unless it doesn't normally play into the wind)

Is their clubhouse done yet?

Ryan - I certainly can understand your perspective.  

Terra Lago beat the crap out of many players in our group, including one of my four-ball opponents who walked off the course after a Spaulding imitation on the 16th hole.  Perhaps all of the whining rubbed off on me. As I alluded in an earlier post, I also could have been influenced by thinking Palmer designed the course.  

I expected Silver Rock to be mediocre at best.  That could have also colored my reaction, like enjoying a mediocre movie because you expected it to stink.  Nonetheless, I gave it a 5 which hardly indicates a real noteworthy course.

No clubhouse at Silver Rock.  No real indication that they were building one.

[rjsimper]

Worth noting for the onlookers here that the Terra Lago courses are formerly the Landmark North and South courses, host of the Skins game.