INDIAN WELLS GOLF RESORT PLAYERS COURSE (760-346-4653)
Palm Springs Golf Course Review
Indian Wells - home of the LG Skins Game (featuring Zach Johnson, Stephen Ames, Fred Couples and Brett Wetterich in 2007) is a world class golf property situated in the beautiful resort community near Palm Springs. The immediate area features 4 luxurious, full service hotel properties, (Hyatt Grand Champions Resort Villas & Spa, Indian Wells Resort Hotel, Miramonte Resort & Spa and Renaissance Esmeralda resort & Spa) 3 superb spas, exceptional dining and shopping plus the Indian Wells Tennis Garden - home to the prestigious Pacific Life Open Tennis Tournament.
The two championship courses at Indian Wells feature 36 holes of outstanding golf - on tracks that are immaculately landscaped and impeccably conditioned, with some of the most spectacular vistas in the area. The combination of mountain views framed around the lush palm trees, enticing water features and flowering plants, make the experience at Indian Wells one of the most aesthetically pleasing in Southern California!
The Celebrity Course played host to the 2007 LG Skins Game, with the Players layout being theTournament venue in 2008. Both courses are designed along an undulating topography with white sand bunkers, towering pines and azure ponds and streams providing contrast to colorful flower beds and lush green fairways, which often are framed by native trees and dividing slopes.
The amenities at Indian Wells include a practice range, short area and beautiful natural turf nine hole putting course (lit for night play) . The luxurious 53,000 sq. ft. clubhouse features an extensive pro shop, fine and casual dining and provides guests with 360 degrees of golf course and spectacular mountain views. Complete banquet facilities, a spacious lawn with croquet courts, and the Callaway Performance Center combine to make this one of the most upscale golf resort experiences in the Palm Springs area.
The images in this review are of the Players Course - which opened just prior to the 2007 LG Skins Game over Thanksgiving weekend. Like its sister course, the Players features strategic fairway and greenside bunkering (60 sand traps total), with sparkling water hazards also in play on 6 holes. From the tips golfers will encounter some daunting carries, but the average player can experience an enjoyable resort golf experience from the white (and red for the ladies) tee boxes.
There are 5 sets of tee boxes that afford golfers of all skill levels with an opportunity to choose a set that fits their game. The back tees measure a whopping 7376 yards (slope/rating 139/75.3, while remaining tees feature distances measuring 6913 yards (134/73.3) from the blues, 6316 (126/70.6) yards from the white tees, 5636 from the platinum(113/67.7 men 127/74 women) and 5108 yards (122/71.3) from the player friendly forward tee boxes.
Each golf cart (on both courses) come equipped with coolers and ball & club washers, plus an UpLink GPS unit that provides accurate yardages from tee to pin, as well as hole diagrams and other useful information. On course the sprinkler heads are also measured to the center of the sloping, medium size green complexes, which are often raised.
Though longer than the Celebrity Course, the Players layout presents significant landing zones along its rolling terrain, with ample recovery room greenside on most holes. Portions of the course are tightly sculpted with trees or native brush lining the fairways, but there is generally ample room off the tee. The great variety in the course design includes various holes that welcome a grip it and rip it mentality - but a common thread presents itself in the form of the strategic fairway bunkering that can make golfers scramble to achieve par. This is a highly recommended golf experience. For more info, visit our page fro the course, with direct link to the Indian Wells website by clicking here.
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