[Peter Ferlicca]

Mr. McBride,

I live in Rancho Mirage, I have played Desert Dunes probably 10 times, with about 7 of those times playing in howling wind.  One morning in May it was a consistent blow of 35 mph with gusts up to 55 mph. 

I have taken classes at COD on the wind patterns in the desert and when it comes through the banning pass that is the tightest part of the shoot, all the coastal breeze accumulates in the LA Basin and gets forced into the banning pass and really picks up speed there.  Once it goes through the banning pass, it is released out into San Jacinto range/ Palm Springs Valley (where all the windmills are at).  Pretty much in between the Morongo casino and whitewater river is where the wind reaches it maximum speed. 

[Kyle Henderson]

6th: 419 yards.

The 6th brings golfers deeper into the poisonous mists drifting in from the Los Angeles basin. A gaping channel along the fairway’s left flank will induce puckering for anyone fighting a hook.


From the tips, a 275-yard carry is required to ensure safe passage past the fairway traps. As at the 4th, the greenside bunker long and left provides a bit of a safety buffer from the precipitous drop beyond.


A small hump provides subtle protection for front pins, especially after drives placed well clear of the cliff.

[Kyle Henderson]

#7: 403 yards.
It seems that pleasing uphill holes are among the most difficult to craft for many architects. Here, the designer(s) chose to favor a drawing tee shot that will run with a slight right-to-left slope.


The green is a three-tiered affair, with a left-center bunker providing the dominant influence for this longish uphill approach.

[Kyle Henderson]

#8: 572 yards. Par 5.
The 8th hole presents one of the more demanding tee shots and an opportunity to shave off a bit of distance with an aggressive drive down the right side.


With a helping wind and playing downhill, many players will attempt to reach this green in two. The green is more receptive to a fade from the fairway’s semi-blind left side. The framing tree planting are poorly conceived – why interrupt that panoramic view?

[Bill Seitz]

Great thread, Kyle, and great pics.  I've only played it once, so some of the less dramatic holes have been driven from my memory.  This makes me want to get back there.

[Kyle Henderson]

#9: 440 yards.
The 9th tee shot involves decision-making, with the bolder play involving a drive down the left side.


This view back to the tee demonstrates the “fall away” nature of the tiered green.

[Kyle Henderson]

#10: 235 yards.
The 10th is a lengthy reverse redan. Only Hercules should try to fly one in at a right pin.

[Kyle Henderson]

#11: 416 yards.
The 11th is a dogleg to the right that forces players to be mindful not only of a tree (265 yards from the back tee) guarding the shortest route home but also a prominent bunker sliced into the prominent mounds straight ahead (285 yards away).


Recovery from the bunker will require an uphill midiron to a green well protected at its front/left. Bombers able to blast a big fade around the corner will have a simple wedge approach.

[Kyle Henderson]

#12: 575 yards.

Only those able to blast a 290 carry from the tips can take the fairway bunkers out of play. Everyone else should stay left, since the green is far from reach after the first shot.


An ideally-placed lay-up shot will skirt this dry pond to open up the approach angle for any pin on the left half of the green.

[Kyle Henderson]

#13: 429 yards.

Favor the left side of the fairway, as the approach angle is poor and the view is blocked by exposed rocks on the right.


Viewed from atop the rock outcropping, the approach to this day’s pin is complicated by a bunker flush with the green’s right edge.


Attacking any pin placed in the green’s aft half requires a high degree of bravery.

[Bill Seitz]

Kyle,

Was the course in as good of shape as it looks from your pictures?  It really looks better than I remember it.  Looking forward to the 14th.

[Kyle Henderson]

Kyle,

Was the course in as good of shape as it looks from your pictures?  It really looks better than I remember it.  Looking forward to the 14th.

I played it in April of 2012. Conditioning was pretty good. A few bare patches in the fairways maybe. I imagine it gets pretty badly burned in the summer.

[Kyle Henderson]

#14: 214 yards.

A challenging par that represents the bright side of “Signature Hole” architecture – as a running theme for the course, there is strategic substance to match the postcard-worthy views.

Reaching the green is tough from the tips, but there is plenty of bailout room.


From the forward tees, players can aim down the green’s longest axis but the closer view of the water may have greater psychological influence.


A push is generally the least penalized mistake, though the occasional ricochet will eat up strokes.

[Dominic Meese]

Already truly stunning photos, Kyle!

I don't like clubbing down SO much on the first hole of the day either, but I last played there with a friend of mine who drove the green and 3-putted for par while I happily went iron-wedge-birdie. For the space it occupies it is not a bad hole.

I like the hole well enough, but it may come at the wrong point in the round. Just food for thought.

Without having played the course, I like the idea of a driveable opener. I enjoy the challenge of having to immediately make a decision off the tee rather than just loosening up with a driver.

Like the majority of good short par 4s, if you choose driver, you need to be accurate.

I think there is two main schools of though when it comes to opening holes:

1. A short hole provides options and a thoughtful start to the round; and
2. A longer par 4 or par 5 with width gives the player a chance to loosen up and hit a driver without  finding too much trouble (hopefully).

At the end of the day it probably comes down to personal preference. I take an iron off the tee at the short 4 opener at my club and when I get to the par 5 second, I don't feel any more confident with the first drive of the day because I have warmed up for one hole.

There's always the option of hitting the range prior to the round!

[Matthew Petersen]

Kyle,

Great tour, thanks so much for the time you put in.

I've never played there so I'm interested in your opinion. I like the looks of 3, 5, and 14 as dramatic par 3 holes ... but they all three seem very similar (downhill, favoring a right-to-left short that can use the slopes in that direction as well, and left of the green is dead). Do they play that similarly?

[Kyle Henderson]

Kyle,

Great tour, thanks so much for the time you put in.

I've never played there so I'm interested in your opinion. I like the looks of 3, 5, and 14 as dramatic par 3 holes ... but they all three seem very similar (downhill, favoring a right-to-left short that can use the slopes in that direction as well, and left of the green is dead). Do they play that similarly?

#3 is a bit shorter. 5 and 14 are played with similar clubs, but 14 has the least margin for error if you plan to aim anywhere near the pin.

The quarry-centric hazards are also on the left side of 6 and 9, so the course is a bit unbalanced in that respect.

[Kyle Henderson]

#15: 346 yards.

Adventure lovers should consider an intentional duck hook, just to see how the cliff will treat their balls – friendly kicks to the fairway’s center are feasible.


A 240-yard carry will take the first bunker on the right out of play and another  40 yards will get you past the port-side sand.


Huge hitters must avoid a centerline bunker set 40 yards short of the green’s middle. This day’s front/right hole location is easily accessed.

[Kyle Henderson]

#16: 572 yards.

While much of the course feels somewhat removed from the hustle and bustle of modern civilization, the 16th runs along Sierra Avenue to Oak Quarry’s  main entrance.

Drives must fade between bunkers that pinch the fairway or stay short of them.


With the green most likely out of reach, the prudent lay-up is well away from the lake.


Viewed from starboard, the 16th green is an adventure at any speed.

[Bryan Izatt]

Seems to me that I recall hearing a story that the 16th was really supposed to be the 18th, and that 17 and 18 were intended to be 1 and 2 in the original routing.  Seems to me that that would have been a better routing.  Not sure why they changed.  The current routing is certainly a more awkward start, although I suppose it is closer to the driving range.

[Dave McCollum]

Thanks for the tour.  My first play there was very memorable, so your excellent photos bring back fond memories.  Personally, I prefer OQ over almost everything I’ve been able to play in the Coachella Valley.  We try to schedule our travel to Riverside and play here on our way to the desert.  The only problem with this is that we usually go in January when we haven’t swung a club for 3 months up in the frozen north.  It feels heavenly to be playing golf in shorts and shirtsleeves on a dramatic course, but not an easy course to break in a rusty game.

Another time we played here on a day trip from Indio.  Santa Anas were up and blowing so hard that you could hardly stand up.  Forget about wearing a cap.  We would have bagged the round when we got there if not for the steeply discounted green fees (something like 25 bucks with cart!).  About the most extreme wind I’ve ever played in with gusts over 50 to 60 mph (good thing it was warm).  We watched 2 groups tee off ahead of us on the so-called “short” first.  Directly into the breeze, nobody found the fairway and most didn’t make it over the 100 yard carry across the native.  We had fun playing match play, even if we had to purchase more ammo halfway through the round. OQ is very exposed high above Riverside and the wind swirls through all those dramatic rock formations and canyons.  Very extreme conditions that day.  Lots of laughs seeing someone’s 8 nip another’s 9 to win a hole.

[David Kelly]

Seems to me that I recall hearing a story that the 16th was really supposed to be the 18th, and that 17 and 18 were intended to be 1 and 2 in the original routing.  Seems to me that that would have been a better routing.  Not sure why they changed.  The current routing is certainly a more awkward start, although I suppose it is closer to the driving range.

If 16 was originally supposed to be the 18th it would make sense because it is like almost every other 18th hole that S&C have built.  Par 4 or par 5 with a green set at an angle next to a large pond.

[Kyle Henderson]

16 as the finisher does make a lot of sense, for the reasons cited above. It would also move many of the showpiece quarry holes deeper into the round. The present sequence seems to blow its proverbial wad a bit early.

I stole that last line from Mark Twain.

[Kyle Henderson]

#17: 391 yards.

A pair of longish iron shots will suffice at the penultimate hole, though aggressive players will likely opt to squeeze a long drive past the large left fairway bunker using the leftward slope of the neighboring terrain.


The approach is at least one full club uphill, with a short/right miss offering the simplest recovery.

[Kyle Henderson]

#18: 383 yards.

The closer is a bit anticlimactic – a soft fade down the left side will suffice. Slicers beware the starboard lake.


The smart play is a drive just short of this port side bunker, taking the water out of play and opening up a good line for a wedge approach  to sneak past the fronting greenside bunker.

[Jim Eder]

Kyle,

Thanks for the terrific write-up and pics. I forgot how dramatic the course is. I really need to get back there, it has been too long.  Thanks for the great piece.

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