ESCENA IS BACK!! This fine course will reopen October 2009 according to an article in todays Desert Sun. Here is an excerpt....

PALM SPRINGS — It seems a fair question — in a golf marketplace hit hard by the economic downturn of the last year, why would anyone be thinking about opening a golf course?


But that's exactly what will happen in about five or six weeks when Escena Golf Club will re-open in Palm Springs after more than a year of being closed.
“It's an opportunity to set the bar, to turn the corner and realize that the golf industry is a good industry,” said Mark Tansey, president and chief executive officer of Sunrise Golf Group, the valley-based golf management firm that will manage Escena for new owners New Valley LLC.
Escena, a Nicklaus Design Group public-access course that was part of a 1,400-home planned Lennar development in Palm Springs east of Palm Springs International Airport, closed in November of 2007 as the housing development struggled to sell any homes during the start of the economic downturn.
Tansey, whose company also manages Desert Dunes Golf Club in Desert Hot Springs, said under the new management Escena will re-open in late October after a normal fall overseeding.

I live in Palm Springs and this was the longest I've ever driven to play a round of golf with a group of friends. The Poa Ana greens take some time getting used as I'm familiar with the Bermuda greens in the desert. Some unrepaired divots but overall the greens are in pretty good shape.

The layout isn't exceptional but it is solid and challenges come from doglegs, elevation changes and tree lines which can come into play if you hit an errant shot. You can hit driver on most holes because the fairways are generally wide open. We played from the blues which is supposed to be 6800 yards but most holes were 20-40 yards less than advertised. The "blues are probably closer to 6400-6500 yds. I was actually relieved because 6800 yds is more than I can comfortably handle.

Pace of play was very good for a Saturday afternoon and the Marshall stopped by quite often to offer us cold water (it was hot...even for a desert rat). The only real negative is the constant traffic noise and it seems that most of the holes run right up along the highway. It wasn't distracting but it sure wasn't a relaxing environment.

We had a good time and if I lived in the area I would play Diamond Bar again.

Our foursome played for $29 each early Sunday morning...what a great deal. The cart guy set us up with complementary water and the range balls are included in the price.

For this time of year, the course is in very good shape tee to green. We played from the blues is about 6400 yards. Most of the fairways have generous landing areas but the greens are well protected by bunkers and there is a lot of water on this course. If you don't land the fairway chances are you will have an awkward lie.

The green complexes can be tricky with many tiers and breaks. They ran true, however, and the speed was medium/fast.

The layout of this course is very good and challenging. Even though you have open fairways, most of the par 3's are very long and a few of the par 4's are well over 400 yds from the blues (one measured 455 yards). There are no easy holes but Shadow Hills plays very fair.

My only complaints are a jerk of a Marshall who kept harassing all the of the groups during the front 9 even though pace of play was good (under 4 hours on a Sunday morning) and no one was complaining. We were all grateful when he disappeared at the turn. I would have liked to see a cart girl instead, but unfortunately, she never showed.

Overall, Shadow Hills is in excellent course and a great value. I'm looking forward to playing here again soon. I just hope it is the day the cart girl is working and the Marshall has the day off.

7 of us took a buddy to play Oak Quarry to celebrate his 50th birthday. What an incredible experience. Without a doubt the most unique course I've ever played! Beautiful views and the "Quarry" is well integrated and provides an almost surreal backdrop agains the lush green fairways and water hazards.

This definately is not a grip it and rip it track. You must be accuarate off the tee to score well here. Greenskeeper in the process of aerating greens (small slices instead of large punches) as we played. Greens were medium speed and the aeration did hurt putting surface much.

Customer service is top notch and I will come back to play again. What a great experience!

I live in the area and played Indian Canyons South for the first time Sunday morning at 6:30am. The course is in great shape tee to green and every hole looks like a postcard. The surrounding San Jacinto Mountains, beautiful water hazards, and the many California Fan Palms trees make the course absolutely gorgeous. Indian Canyons South is without a doubt the most scenic course in the western Coachella Valley.

The layout is very forgiving for higher handicaps with mostly generous fairways and large greens. Greens are well guarded by sand traps and water comes into play on many holes which keep you honest. It is also relatively short at just under 6000 yds from the whites and 6300 from the blue tees.

I shot my all time low round of 75 today and Indian Canyons South is now my favorite course in the Palm Springs area. I highly recommend this course to those who visit the Palm Springs area.

I live in the Palm Springs area and played SilverRock for the 1st time this morning. Tee'd off before 7am to avoid the 114F heat later in the day.

SilverRock is one of the most beautiful courses in the entire Coachella Valley. Many of the holes run along the base of the spectacular Santa Rosa Mountains and the All American Canal comes into play on a few holes. The layout is difficult...especially the back 9 and the canal and mountains are well integrated hazards. You have blind shots, narrow fairways, and well protected greens. This course is also very long (almost 6700 yards from the blues). For those you usually play the blues I would recommend the combination tee's (whites/blues) which measure about 6300 yds.

I really enjoyed SilverRock and will be back soon.

Played in a tournament at Sierra Lakes on July 12. There were 3 tournaments scheduled that day and our group started more than 30 minutes behind schedule. Management gave each group a free pitcher of beer (after our rounds) because of the extra wait...free beer always smooths things over! The pace of play was very slow but it is expected in tournaments.

Sierra Lake is in great shape tee to green. The greens are medium/fast, on the soft side and roll very true. My only gripe is that there were quite a few unrepaired divots. Tee boxes are level, the fairways are lush, and the rough is thick enough to punish you a bit if you hit an errant shot.

The course layout is interesting with water coming into play on a few holes and most of the greens are guarded with traps. The traps have the softest sand I've ever seen and the quality of the sand is great. Sierra Lakes is not a difficult course and high/mid handicaps will enjoy the wide open fairways. From the whites, the longest par 4 is less than 485 yards and all of the par 3's are on the short side (longest is 153 yards).

The clubhouse and practice facilities are very nice and the customer service is excellent. An attractive cart girl stopped by at least 6 times during our round.

I highly recommend Sierra Lakes for all levels of golfers. The course is in great shape, the layout is interesting but doesn't beat you up, and the customer service is 1st rate.

Played 2 for 1 deal at 2pm with a friend in 112F heat and had the course to ourselves. This is an old course with a traditional layout but it is still fun to play. The whites play long at over 6500 yards and many of the par 4's are over 400 yards. Course is in decent shape for this time of the years but greens had been punched recently and were slow and bumpy. If you want to get a feel for the old Palm Springs vibe this is the place. The upperscale clubhouse has lots of photos of Sinatra, Hope and others during the 60's.

I live just a couple of miles away from Tahquitz Creek and the "Resort" course is one of my favorites in the Palm Springs area for the price. The layout is as good as many of the more expensive tracks and it has beautful views of the San Jacinto Mountains. This course is generally kept in good condition...the greens today were well below average because of recent punching/sanding.

If you want to play a well maintained course with an interesting layout that doesn't beat you up too badly and is reasonably priced, I recommend a round the "Resort" course.

Redhawk is a beautiful track which is kept in good condition tee to green. This is NOT a grip it and rip it course. You must play for position and be accurate off the tee, or your ball will find THICK rough, creeks, OOB, and water hazards.

This is my 1st time playing Palm Desert Country Club and I shot my all time low score (78) today.

PDCC was built in the early 60's (one of the oldest in the Palm Springs area) and was renovated in 2006. Most of the course is lined with old houses and the course is short....I played from the blues which was 6100 yards.

I'll start with the good: The medium speed greens were in very good shape with very little damage....they were firm and rolled true. The fairways were also in good shape and the sand traps had good quality sand and they played well (I was in 4 of them). The staff were friendly but no cart service and pace of play was very good.

And now the bad: The rough was just terrible and looked like a poorly maintained muni. Mix in the old/run down homes and it felt like I was playing a muni in the Inland Empire, not Palm Desert. The course layout is on the boring side and there is no driving range...only a practice cage.

PDCC doesn't stand up very well compared to most of the Palm Springs area courses and "Country Club" is a very generous title...more like a good muni with well maintained greens and decent sand traps. I will probably play this again because I scored well here but I can't give it a strong recommendation.

Played the Legend for a local rate of $35 which is a good deal for this time of year. Breakfast and lunch are included in the deal making it a great bargain. This is an old course with wide open fairways and is lined with old homes. The course is relatively long from the whites (over 6500 yards). Greens are in pretty good shape but bunkers are hard packed sand and many tee boxes are not level. Even though the course is wide open it is difficult for average players because 6 of the par 4's played over 400 yards and most of the rest were close to 400 yds. The Resort Course is much nicer and better maintained even though it is slightly more expensive to play. I'd recommend the Resort over the Legend for those who haven't played here before.