Rode the Blues (6522/72.2/134) in slightly over 3H mid day using Forelinx. The weather was sunny, breezy and around 105. Nicklaus Tournament is one of the toughest chipping courses I have ever playe... Continue »

Rode the Blues (6522/72.2/134) in slightly over 3H mid day using Forelinx. The weather was sunny, breezy and around 105. Nicklaus Tournament is one of the toughest chipping courses I have ever played because of the firm raised greens that are surrounded by steep banks on 2 or more sides on almost every hole. The layout features mounds along the side of fairways, large/deep bunkers, several split fairways and some expansive sand waste bunkers. Not in as good condition overall as Stadium, but still quite playable for late summer. The Bermuda tees were mostly lush and decent to play from. The Bermuda fairways were mostly lush and nice to play from. A few hardpan areas along the perimeter on some holes. The Bermuda rough was lush and mowed low but still thick. The large sand traps are plentiful here. Many have decent size lips and need to be avoided in most cases because of the raised greens. Mostly in good condition, decently maintained. The Bermuda greens putted medium speed & were firm and somewhat bumpy. The cart gal was out making the rounds numerous times. Excellent customer service from everyone involved with the golf. Plenty of water stations on the course. Good GPS on the carts. Nice all grass range that was unfortunately closed today. Definitely recommended.

Played with a buddy on Sunday morning (6/24), paired with another two-some from San Diego. Pace of play was just fine all day long - which is to be expected with a 6:45 tee time and a rather humid mo... Continue »

Played with a buddy on Sunday morning (6/24), paired with another two-some from San Diego. Pace of play was just fine all day long - which is to be expected with a 6:45 tee time and a rather humid morning. We played the whites, while the other two-some played from the blues.

Course was in excellent shape for this time of year, with flat tee boxes, nice fairways, speedy greens (but not blazing fast), and decent sand in bunkers. I was reminded, yet again, of how sadistic Jack is a course designer. The fairways are ample, but that gift is quickly off-set by Jack's incessant use of plateau greens surrounded by 15-foot deep bunkers. Missing the green is almost an automatic bogey (or worse). We didnt have time to hit balls before starting, so the front nine was a bit uglier than it necessarily needed to be. Was able to rally a bit on the back - including my first birdie on number 15 (Par 5 with the island green).

An average shot on this course can get you into a real mess pretty quickly... it rewards great shots, but punishes anything off of the mark. Pins were tucked on edges on quite a few holes which REALLY brought the plateaus into play. I dont recommend pin-chasing at NTC... shoot for the middle of the green and live with the results. Good scores can be had, but you better have your A-game.

One of the best club houses and pro shops (although pricey) around. Breakfast sandwich was pricey (but tasty), and cart girl came around several times (especially on the back nine). Stadium Course is definitely the trophy to be had at PGA West, but NTC has plenty of teeth and is equal parts frustrating and enjoyable to play.

Played my favorite track in the desert for maybe the 5-6th time in the last 12 months Sunday, 4/15. We were the 5th group out and played in 3.5 hours (2some) and the course was in fantastic condition... Continue »

Played my favorite track in the desert for maybe the 5-6th time in the last 12 months Sunday, 4/15. We were the 5th group out and played in 3.5 hours (2some) and the course was in fantastic conditioning. The dormat rough is starting to green up a bit so the contrast from the fairways to rough was nothing like back in Dec-Feb but I want to say the course was in about as good of shape as I've ever seen it. The fairways were excellent and great to hit from. Tee boxes were great. Sand was a mixed bag but most green side bunkers were solid. The greens were superb. Firm & med/fast. You had to be careful when above the hole as they were rolling out fairly quick. I though the greens were in perfect condition considering you could see that summer bermuda starting to creep in. All in all, I expected maybe a slight drop off from when I played on the heels of the career builders event but not in any way was there a drop off in conditions. Can't wait to get back!

It's always fun to play where the pros just played. Having only played a few course where the PGA and LPGA play, I can see why they post so many low scores here at Nick T (as the locals call it). Con... Continue »

It's always fun to play where the pros just played. Having only played a few course where the PGA and LPGA play, I can see why they post so many low scores here at Nick T (as the locals call it). Condition wise the fairways and greens are perfect. Not that I found many fairways today mind you (but that's a different story).

The greens are decent size, hold approach shots, roll true and have the perfect balance between fun and challenging breaks. Compared to some of the other treacherous greens the professionals play, these are very manageable.

The rest of the course is top notch as expected. Track has numerous lakes to keep things fun and interesting with two (semi) island greens. One on a par 3 and one on a shorter par 5.

There are houses boarding most holes which is a drawback for some people. I'm not sure if walking is allowed here or not. I can tell you this, it would be a tough course to walk as there are numerous looooong transfers.

It's a tough course but then you'd expect it to be if the pro's are playing it.

Played the Combo tees (6224/70.8/130) with Judy, Tim and Alex326 in 4.5H. Fun group to play with and a beautiful setting for Alex & I to play our GK Cup match. The weather was sunny, fairly calm and i... Continue »

Played the Combo tees (6224/70.8/130) with Judy, Tim and Alex326 in 4.5H. Fun group to play with and a beautiful setting for Alex & I to play our GK Cup match. The weather was sunny, fairly calm and in the 90's.

The tees were immaculate. Lush and well maintained.

The fairways were very lush and beautifully maintained. Would be tough for any course to improve on the tees and fairways here.

The secondary rough is dormant Bermuda where you may get fluffy lies or the ball could settle down. The over seeded primary rough was lush and thick with the ball usually settling.

Many of the large sand traps have decent sized lips and need to be avoided in most cases because of the raised greens. Mostly in good condition, decently maintained.

The greens were firm, smooth and putted medium fast.

Excellent customer service from everyone. The cart gal was out making the rounds numerous times. Very tough course in excellent condition. Recommended.

Played the Blues (6522/72.2/134) with Bill, Dave & David in 4H, 40M, barely beating darkness. The weather was sunny, fairly calm and in the high 80's. Unique features of this layout include large mo... Continue »

Played the Blues (6522/72.2/134) with Bill, Dave & David in 4H, 40M, barely beating darkness. The weather was sunny, fairly calm and in the high 80's. Unique features of this layout include large mounds along the side of many fairways, large/deep bunkers, several split fairways, some expansive sand waste bunkers and a huge double green that is shared by holes 9/18. The tees were immaculate. Many of the par 4/5's had no divots at all. Only a few par 3's had divot damages that were well maintained. The fairways were very lush and nice to play from. The primary rough was lush and while not real long, it is thick. The secondary rough is currently dormant Bermuda. One of the toughest chipping courses I have ever played because the rough around the firm/quick raised greens is thick. That combination plus often having a downhill or side hill lie with the green 10-15' above you makes chipping a nightmare here. Many of the large sand traps have decent sized lips and need to be avoided in most cases because of the raised greens. Mostly in good condition, decently maintained. Green side bunker shots are about as difficult here as any course I have ever played. Very easy to have a green side bunker shot where you cannot even see the top of the pin because many of the bunkers are so far below the raised greens surface. The greens putted medium fast & were firm and smooth. The cart gal was out making the rounds numerous times. Excellent customer service from everyone involved with the golf. The course looks nice with the majority over seeded emerald green framed by the not over seeded dormant Bermuda secondary rough. Great course in very good to excellent condition. Definitely recommended.

Played 18 holes at the Nick Sunday & Monday (12/17 & 12/18). From a pure golf standpoint this is my favorite course in Palm Springs. Although, visually the homes can detract from the experience. The c... Continue »

Played 18 holes at the Nick Sunday & Monday (12/17 & 12/18). From a pure golf standpoint this is my favorite course in Palm Springs. Although, visually the homes can detract from the experience. The course was in spectacular shape. From tee to green everything was perfectly manicured. The dormant rough was a light "gold" color and created very dramatic visuals from the tee boxes. Kudos to the maintenance crew at PGA West. The greens were pure, rolling a medium speed, nothing too crazy and I know I would have liked them quicker. This course is the perfect combo of challenging and "easy". In my opinion, there are several scoring holes (2, 4, 11, 12) and many demanding holes (8, 9, 16, ,18). All in all, i highly recommend checking this place out in the next couple months to get some of the great conditioning as they prep for the Career Builders Challenge!

Played the Blues (6522/72.2/134) with Tony & Steve in slightly over 4H. The weather was sunny, breezy and in the 60's. One of the toughest chipping courses I have ever played because of the firm rai... Continue »

Played the Blues (6522/72.2/134) with Tony & Steve in slightly over 4H. The weather was sunny, breezy and in the 60's. One of the toughest chipping courses I have ever played because of the firm raised greens. The layout features mounds along the side of fairways, large/deep bunkers, several split fairways and some expansive sand waste bunkers. The course looks nice with the majority over seeded emerald green framed by the not over seeded dormant Bermuda secondary rough. Not in as good condition overall as Stadium, but still quite good. The tees were lush but had alot of late in the weekend divots. The fairways were lush and nice to play from. The primary rough was lush and deep enough to make playing longer clubs unlikely. The secondary rough is currently dormant Bermuda. The large sand traps are plentiful here. Many have decent size lips and need to be avoided in most cases because of the raised greens. Mostly in good condition, decently maintained. The greens putted medium fast & were firm and smooth. The cart gal was out making the rounds numerous times. Excellent customer service from everyone involved with the golf. Great course in very good to excellent condition. Definitely recommended.

This was my 5th and last day of the Palm Springs trip. I hadn't played the Nicklaus Tournament course befit so I thought I'd check it out. This is definitely a players course and not a resort style ... Continue »

This was my 5th and last day of the Palm Springs trip. I hadn't played the Nicklaus Tournament course befit so I thought I'd check it out. This is definitely a players course and not a resort style course. Conditions of the playing field are solid for the most part with the fairways stealing the show. Greens rolled smooth and were the easiest part of the track challange wise.

Optimal landing areas in the fairways are narrow with steep drop offs and wasteland bunkers or moguls off to the side. A number of the holes offer water features like the peninsula green 8th (par 3) and the island Green 15th (par 5). Other courses in the area offer waterfalls and flowers surrounding the lakes to add beauty to the track. Nicklaus Tournament doesn't wow you with those type feature and puts a premium on shot accuracy.

Customer service is good with a tip of the cap to the valet kids who were excellent. Having the valet service is a nice touch in itself.


I will need to go back and play the Stadium course next time I'm in the area to see which course I prefer. For now the Nicklaus Tournament course gets the nod.