Indian Wells Golf Resort (Celebrity)

There is certainly a higher celebrity-to-average-joe ration in Palm Springs than almost anywhere else in the United States but unfortunately many of us don’t have easy access to some of the region’s private golf getaways. For everyone else, the Indian Wells Resort offers 36 holes of championship-caliber golf and the ability to play “Celebrity.”

That is to say, the resort’s Celebrity Course. Ted Robinson laid out this design along with the Players Course during the mid-’80s, and the resort oversaw a massive renovation of both during 2006. While John Fought handled the changes on Players, Clive Clark gave the Celebrity a facelift. The result now tops 7,000 yards and those enjoying the classy digs can play from the “Cabernet” tees in order to experience that full yardage.

One of the resort’s unapologetic claims to fame is the exotic decor of the course, which was maintained as part of the renovations. All along the route, players will enjoy the contrasting beauty of the natural (the mountains rising in the background) and the unnatural (the many waterfalls accompanying greens and tee boxes, especially on the back nine).