Free Martini’s if you play fast in Palm Springs!
Palm Springs is the perfect spot for many reasons: shopping, pool parties, sunshine, fabulous service and an abundance of golf courses. No wonder thousands of Vancouverites head down to the desert each year to escape the rain and find their happy place. Many spend extended periods of time in PS year after year, earning them the nickname ‘Snowbirds’ from our friends down south.
Recently, Guys on Golf made their first visit to PS to attend a friend’s wedding and mixed in a little morning golf at Indian Wells Golf Resort. Between the stunning views, top-notch service and immaculate greens it is a truly special experience no matter your playing level.
There are two courses at the Resort: The Celebrity Course, which is a park-like resort setting with lots of colourful plants and flowers and tight tee shots, rolling play and water holes. Our group elected to play the other, The Players Course, and we still had our hands full.
“The Players Course is tough but fair. It is a links inspired rolling terrain with tightly mowed fairways and greens,” said Head Golf Professional, Tom Burley. “It allows you to hit all the clubs in your bag. It is a shot maker’s course and good ball striking is rewarded. The sandy base for the grass allows for perfect drainage and makes for flawless playing conditions and putting surfaces.”
With seven different tee boxes to choose from, we went with the easiest and kept par 3’s reasonable between 124-164 yards. While we enjoyed perfect weather conditions during our early morning round, our biggest problem was figuring out why our shots were flying way over the greens by about 10 yards. Was it all that time in the gym or maybe the new sticks? Neither. Once we realized the air was thinner, being above sea level, we made the necessary adjustments and went with less club on our approach shots resulting in more bogey’s and less triples.
Unlike other golf experiences where things can be strict, the staff at Indian Wells Golf Resort went out of their way more than once to make sure we were having fun and had everything we needed. Maybe it was the fact that I was wearing my retro Vancouver Canadians cap, but it seemed like they treated every guest that way. In fact, they actually have an incentive for fast play and offer a round of Grey Goose Martinis to any group who finishes in 4 hours and 20 minutes or less. What a concept!
“The service at Indian Wells is second to none. From the time you arrive you are treated like a member of the facility,” said Burley. “Every staff member aims to make your day of golf the best possible. The staff embraces a culture of hospitality like no other. This is one place where the associates do care about the product they are presenting.”
Whether you bring your own clubs, send them by Fed Ex or go with their rentals, make sure you book ahead of time for a chance to grab a great tee time and don’t’ forget to bring your sun hat. Play alertly and those smooth-tasting martinis will be waiting for you.
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