Palm Springs Golf Course Reviews
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Review
Indio, CA
73.7 rating; 137 slope |
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Overview: A true oasis amidst the desolate lands of Indio, this golf course (formerly called Landmark multiple time host of the PGA tour Skins Game), provides a good challenge of true desert golf, especially on the front nine. It incorporates a wide variety of hole types and even brings a good deal of water into the picture on the back nine. The best holes are reviewed below:
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Hole 1: The round starts with an uphill par four. it is not overly long and the fairway is relatively generous, but the second shot is to a green with sand left. Shots may come down off the hill to the right, but if they get stuck up there or go too far right, it's a tough up and down.
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Hole 2 (right): Uphill, long and tight, supplemented by a usually strong wind in the face, this second hole of the day is very difficult and requires attention from tee to green. The putting surface has an upper level to the right side and a lower level behind the bunker on the left side.
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Hole 3 (below): A short dogleg left around an enormous bunker from an elevated tee. The view from the first shot is what makes the hole pretty and intimidating as there doesn’t seem like a lot of room to land the drive and the player’s depth perception is thrown out of whack. The green is tiny and severely sloping, which adds to the intrigue.
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Hole 3 (below): A short dogleg left around an enormous bunker from an elevated tee. The view from the first shot is what makes the hole pretty and intimidating as there doesn’t seem like a lot of room to land the drive and the player’s depth perception is thrown out of whack. The green is tiny and severely sloping, which adds to the intrigue.
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Hole 6: The most intriguing par five on the course has a landing area from the tee that pinches in for a big drive, so reaching it in two requires dead precision. The safe drive can than lay up short of the bunkers for the second shot to leave a shorter iron into the wide, but shallow green.
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Hole 7: This downhill par three has a green that is partially visible through the hills both right and left. There is more room right than is visible from the tee, but the only safe miss is a little bit short. The second half of the green runs away from the player.
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Hole 11: This long par four is a little wider than it appears for the tee as the driver can actually miss a little left of the fairway if they strike it well. Right, however, is not a good option from tee to green. The green complex is well bunkered and has a rather large green, backed by a ring of palm trees.
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Hole 12 (left): Named “Options”, this hole is a very short par four where the idea is to miss the bunkers using any combination of clubs necessary. Two seven irons are long enough to play the hole, but driver hit well can leave a putter instead and can entice the player to cut across the enormous bunkering on the right side of the layout to go for the green.
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Hole 13 (below): This long and brutal par 3 features a deep and menacing bunker short and left of the green. There is absolutely no reason to go near it under any circumstance.
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Hole 13 (below): This long and brutal par 3 features a deep and menacing bunker short and left of the green. There is absolutely no reason to go near it under any circumstance.
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Hole 14: A similar idea to number 12, except the gutsy player cutting the dogleg now has to fly water, which wraps around the peninsula green guarded on the dry side by three sand traps. Once again, two mid-irons can get the job done, but what’s the fun in that?
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Hole 15: Island par 3’s are always worth mentioning and this one is no exception. The island green is large enough to accommodate a little rough and two bunkers, but this is little comfort as both are deep and make for dangerous up and downs.
Terra Lago, North Course Hole 16: This dogleg right par four has a tough drive between the bunkers and desert to the left and the reed-filled water to the right. The second shot has a deep bunker to the right and water right of that, so bailing left is the safer play if the green is missed.
Terra Lago Golf Club, North Course Hole 18: The last hole of the day is not one you want to come to with a good score on the line. While dead straight, it is very long and the second shot will be a mid or long iron over the water to the green. There is trouble both left and right from the tee.
