Review: Indian Wells - Celebrity Course

Stunning Good Looks
When I hear the word “Celebrity”  I think of attractive movies stars that are constantly harassed by the paparazzi trying to get their picture.  While they might try to and just be normal and blend in with others, there is no hiding their good looks.  The Celebrity courses has stunning good looks and is sure to cause you to bust out your camera.  It blends in nicely to its surroundings and is really good looking.
While I only got to play the front 9 and played my best round of the trip to Palm Springs, this is also one of my favorite courses in town because of how visually pretty it is.  The Players course is wider and more demanding in terms of length, the Celebrity course is much more stunning visually.  There is more undulation in the terrain, more mountain views, more water features, more flowers and just overall more creativity in design.  It was my last round on the trip so that may have helped with the scoring too.
 

The 1st tee is again across the bridge and the other path at the Y.  This time to the left and all front 9 holes are next to the Players course.  Immediately you can tell this is a different course.  The hills, mounds and dramatic landscaping let you know.  It doesnt play as long, but does play narrower and ball placement is just as vital on this course as the Players, while length isn’t as critical.  The par 3 6th hole is stunning.  Really holes 4-8 are an amazing collection of terrain, length and different features.  Some play uphill, other play downhill and they all have scoring and danger opportunities.

I heard that the back 9 is even better, which means this 18 hole course has stunning good looks and is a ton of fun to play.  If you just had 1 round to play in Palm Springs, this might be one I would consider.  It isn’t a desert style course, but every hole is unique and visually appealing without being too difficult.  Short hitters will be OK on this course, but if you spray it all over, it could be tough.  No matter how well you play, if you go under par  like I did (on front 9) or reach a century, this course has stunning good looks.

For more information: www.indianwellsgolfresort.com/celebritycourse.html

Quick Hits:
+Visually beautiful
+Lots of varying terrain
+Excellent conditions
+Challenging but not long