Desert Falls CC
A view of a green and snowy mountains in background at Desert Falls Country Club.
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Rating Index Rating
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3.8
1491 Reviews (1491)
5 Stars
448
4 Stars
663
3 Stars
244
2 Stars
86
1 Stars
50
Conditions
3.7
Value
3.8
Layout
4.2
Friendliness
3.8
Pace
4.2
Amenities
3.2
78.5%
Recommend this course
1214 out of 1491 reviews
Read Reviews
Average Rating
Avg Rating
3.8
128 Reviews (128)
5 Stars
30
4 Stars
61
3 Stars
29
2 Stars
3
1 Stars
5
Conditions
3.8
Value
3.9
Layout
4.2
Pace
4.3
Amenities
3.0
StaffFriendliness
3.6
81.2%
Recommend this course
104 out of 128 reviews
Read Reviews
Average Rating
Avg Rating
3.7
150 Reviews (150)
5 Stars
34
4 Stars
66
3 Stars
36
2 Stars
6
1 Stars
8
Conditions
3.6
Value
3.8
Layout
4.2
Pace
4.2
Amenities
3.0
StaffFriendliness
3.6
77.3%
Recommend this course
116 out of 150 reviews
Read Reviews
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AI summaries based on real golfer reviews
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Course Highlights
The course layout consistently earns high marks for its challenging yet fair design with uniquely fun greens that roll true. Rounds move along efficiently, and the overall value makes this Palm Desert track worth booking.

About

Holes 18
Type Semi-Private
Style Links
Par 72
Length 6686 yards
Slope 143
Rating 79.5

Can bunkers qualify as their own continent? Desert Falls Country Club in Palm Desert seems determined to find out.

This Ron Frehm design boasts bunkers so huge that they look like the inventor of the Big Gulp came up with them. And escape is anything but guaranteed. Sometimes getting out of one bunker, just means landing in another at Desert Falls.

That is just part of the reason this course totes a 128 slope rating - putting it among the five highest slope ratings in the entire Palms Springs area. Remember, this is the golf mecca with Pete Dye's Stadium Course, which was only designed to be "the toughest golf course in the world." Desert Falls is on that list.

There are five sets of tees to take away some of the bite. But the greens are still an obstacle of their own. These are undulating greens that are large enough to offer several varieties of challenges.

Just getting on the green is not enough at Desert Falls. It's important to land on the right part of the green. This is also a course with more hills than you expect to see in the desert.

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Desert Falls Country Club
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Course Details

Year Built 1984
Fairways Bermuda Grass
Greens Tifdwarf Grass
Golf Season Year round
Architect Ron Fream (1984) Chris Pitman (1984)

Rentals/Services

Carts Yes - included in green fees
GPS Yes
Clubs Yes

Practice/Instruction

Driving Range Yes
Bunker Yes
Golf School/Academy Yes
Teaching Pro Yes
Pitching/Chipping Area Yes
Putting Green Yes

Policies

Credit Cards Accepted VISA, MasterCard Welcomed
Metal Spikes Allowed No
Dress code Proper golf attire required.

Food & Beverage

Bar, Grill

Available Facilities

Clubhouse, Meeting Facilities, Banquet Facilities
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Reviews

3.8
1491 Reviews (1491)

What Golfers Are Saying

The 19th Hole is Great For:
Drinks 20
19th Hole Scenic Views 15
Patio Dining 12
Course Challenges Include:
Water Hazards 42
Bunkers 39
Undulating Greens 31
This course/club is great for:
Locals 30
Advanced Golfers 29
Seniors 17
This Course's Location is:
Convenient to the City 37
Worth the Drive 14
At a Resort 9

Numbers based on reviews tagged with attribute.

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Overall Rating
Recommended
Handicap
Age
Type of Golfer
Gender
Played On
Reviews 6
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
3.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Hot weather
Used cart
Conditions Fair
Value Poor
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Average
Amenities Average
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 30
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Excellent Value

I enjoyed the course. It was a good value, some interesting holes, wide fairways and good pace of play. The greens were good but somewhat slow. Staff were friendly.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 1
1.0
Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Layout Average
Friendliness Poor
Pace Poor
Amenities Poor
Played On
Reviews 18
Handicap 25+
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Hot weather
Used cart

Nice Local Round

For the price - Desert Falls is a decent course in good condition - conveniently located.

Conditions Excellent
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 18
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
1.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Not a good experience

Where should I start?

Bag drop says to call them and they will up you and your bags. No phone in the cradle.

No starter, no ranger, no help with clubs.

After the 3rd hole we came upon a group in front of us.

This group was so slow….we waited on every shot while they tinkered around on every hole, posing for selfies, etc

Turns out it was 4 women and a guy.

After 9 holes in 102 heat, I found the women and asked if they were continuing in.

They said no and asked why I was asking.

I told them how we waited on every shot. They were clueless and then told me the 4 of them were getting a lesson from the club pro.

That guy should have known better than to hold us up while he guided them around.

We were so frustrated that we decided to give up on this place after 12 holes.

Golf Now should not promote this and should give us our money back back.

Conditions Fair
Value Poor
Layout Fair
Friendliness Poor
Pace Poor
Amenities Poor
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Verified Purchaser
Value Good
Layout Good
Friendliness Fair
Pace Average
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 8
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
3.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Good course rough conditions

This is a really good layout with the greens being somewhat unfair in some places due to the slopes. They keep the greens very slow to be able to play on the slopes. Fairways were like first cut of rough everywhere else in the world. Very disappointing to play bumpy greens, and no fairway cut to hit out of. I have played here quite a few times over the years but I will probably not go back if they aren’t going to mow the grass.

Conditions Fair
Value Poor
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Average
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
2.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Disappointing

This was a very disappointing course to play. A very conspiring clubhouse experience tied with unpleasant staff in the pro shop was just the starter for our round. Add in a very poorly maintained golf course made for a poor value for the money we paid. I would not play this course again.

Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Layout Average
Friendliness Poor
Pace Fair
Amenities Fair
Played On
Reviews 6
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Desert Falls 2026

We got an early tee time and our for some was finished unless than 4 hours. We have played there twice and it’s a nice course and good value for the money. We will be back!

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Played On
Reviews 2
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Hot weather
Used cart
Conditions Good
Value Average
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Good
Amenities Average
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
3.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Frustrating experience

We’ve played Desert Falls numerous times over the years and enjoyed our experience, however this time was disappointing.

Check-in was fine however the employee in the pro shop couldn’t have been more disinterested. Didn’t look at us, rattled off relevant information and that was it. Maybe he was having a bad day but his social skills were lacking.

No starter, no marshalls, no beverage cart, just go.

The fairways weren’t mowed, the first cut of rough was tall and thick which made finding your ball, even a couple of feet into it challenging and frustrating.

The snack bar closed at noon, which makes no sense, so you have to go to the bar to get anything to eat or drink. The attendant in the bar was great but the fact that you just couldn’t make the turn and go was irritating. We won’t be back…sorry, but there are plenty of other good courses in the valley to choose from.

Conditions Fair
Value Average
Layout Good
Friendliness Fair
Pace Good
Amenities Poor
Played On
Reviews 12
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Course conditions

The course has a great layout and property. They need to spend some money to maintain the fairways greens and Tee boxes properly. It's a very shaggy course but could be so much better.

Conditions Average
Value Average
Layout Good
Friendliness Average
Pace Good
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 8
Handicap 10-14
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Hot weather
Used cart

Nice, But VERY Tired!

Decent value for the area at $135. I've played here several times in years past & you can really feel the cost-cutting with each year. "Furry" greens might be from the hot weather, but tee boxes too overgrown. No clubhouse foodservice, no on-course cart person, & one water cooler for 18 holes in 100+ degree weather is not real helpful. The "club cleaner", however, was right there on the 18th green to get paid!

Conditions Average
Value Average
Layout Good
Friendliness Fair
Pace Good
Amenities Poor
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 1
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Hot weather
Used cart

Great Layout

Desert Falls CC in Palm Desert is very nice course. It is a great layout with a good mix of challenging hole design unfortunately the day we played it was 105 degrees in March. I think due to the heat the course wasn’t maintained to its usual manicured standards.

Conditions Average
Value Average
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Good
Amenities Fair
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 57
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Hot weather
Used cart

Fun Day

Course in Great Shape, staff very Friendly and Helpful

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 2
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Hot weather
Used cart
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 2
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Hot weather
Used cart

Desert Falls with Terry and Cam

Overall this was a good experience.!

I would have liked a marshal on first tee. Also on the course.

Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 3
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Good
Friendliness Fair
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 3
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Average
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 2
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Used cart
Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
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Golf Packages

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