Ride the Coachella Valley hills at the Rancho Las Palmas resort in Rancho Mirage
RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. -- For resort golfers and seniors, you can't beat the Rancho Las Palmas golf course. Scratch that. I bet most anybody who plays at this 27-hole facility will enjoy themselves during a fast, fun round.
None of the nines at Rancho Las Palmas -- managed by the nearby Omni Rancho Las Palmas -- play longer than 3,218 yards. Despite the lack of length, there's plenty of challenging and interesting holes. The elevation changes of Rancho Las Palmas' North nine dictate a handful of downhill tee shots and tough uphill approaches from fairways set in the valleys below the green.
The first three holes on the West nine are the meatiest stretch on property with a 427-yard par 4 at no. 1, a 235-yard driver on the par-3 second hole, and the 645-yard third hole one of the longest par 5s in the Coachella Valley.
The West nine gets quirky in a few tight spots: A red line signals the in-course/out-of-bounds line along the left side of the first fairway and the third fairway. It is supposed to keep golfers going in opposite directions away from one another, but I doubt many players worry about it much. The 285-yard fifth hole and 129-yard sixth hole are shoe-horned into a narrow plot of land within the resort, where guests can watch the action from their balconies. Both require carries over water to reach the greens.
Rancho Las Palmas' South nine is highlighted by the ninth hole members call "Jaws" because there's so much water involved.
At Golf Advisor, KaymMorgan gave Ranch Las Palmas four stars, writing: "We enjoy this course. The play was challenging enough, and no one in front of us. Lots of little challenges to keep us on our toes."
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