Borrego Springs Resort - The Palms Course

We understand that Borrego Springs Golf Courses have bee permanently closed – what a shame!

Borrego Springs Resort is home to twenty seven holes and each of the three nines has it's own unique personality and characteristics:

• Desert Willow is the most lady and couples friendly nine because it is the easiest and prettiest of the 27 holes
• Mesquite is a par 35 and  the middle of the road nine with some fun and challenging holes
• The Palms is the most demanding of the three because it's longer and requires some shot making to avoid the huge treacherous bunkers

Common to all three courses are good conditions, a good restaurant and bar, snack bar, pro shop, and practice area.  Borrego Springs Resort has lodging and some good stay and play packages. 

The Palms nine is characterized by over 55 treacherous bunkers of all shapes and sizes and some holes will seem like a minefield of bunkers that you'll need to carefully navigate your way through.  You'll encounter them strategically placed along the fairways and plenty of them guarding the bunkers.  The bunkers pinch several fairways demanding accuracy off the tee box as well as on most of the approach shots.  Take number nine for example, a 459 yard dog leg right that will temp you to try to fly the large bunkers on the right side only to find four more a little farther up the right side – oh, and there are three more big monsters on the left side waiting for your tee shot and then two additional bunkers protecting the green. 

The Palms has a open links style look and feel to it and as such you'll have an unobstructed view of the majestic mountain ranges.  No homes with barking dogs or hecklers line this nines which makes for a peaceful and quiet round. 

The Palms offers a pretty good mixture of fun and challenging holes.  #3 is a challenging and scenic 181 yard par 3  water hole with the mountains reflecting off the smooth surface until my ball entered and created the ripples.  On the two par 5's you can pull out the big dog and let it rip but make sure you miss the bunkers strategically placed in the landing zone.

The fairways are a little tight and the rough is wide but was a mixture of spotty grass, some weeds, and dirt – after that you're in the natural area which if you can find your ball is playable.  The fairways are a mixture of flat and straight to some gentle dogs and some contour and mounding.  The fairways were in above average condition and firm which gives the ball some extra roll.

The bent grass greens are ample size, pretty well guarded, and had both slope and some undulation.  The fringe as well as the greens were in outstanding condition.  The speed was good, they ran true, and held the ball well. 

Practice your sand shots before you head out to play the Palms.  The sand is thick and heavy but the good news is most of the lips are manageable.  I know, I took home plenty of sand and I'm still finding it in my pockets, hair, and car. 

The Palms is the most demanding of the nines but we enjoyed our round here and turned in a pretty good score.  The good news is that the pro shop will let you pick which of the nines you want to play.  But challenge yourself and give this nine a try. 

The slope and rating are based on playing The Palms and Desert Willow.