PGA West Stadium Course: #17
PGA West Stadium Course #17: Welcome to “Alcatraz.” Home to Lee Trevino’s “Hole in One” – one of the most famous shots in golf history – which gave him the “Skins Game” victory over Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Raymond Floyd.
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Rating Index Rating
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4.5
1192 Reviews (1192)
5 Stars
756
4 Stars
273
3 Stars
96
2 Stars
41
1 Stars
26
Conditions
4.5
Value
4.2
Layout
4.8
Friendliness
4.6
Pace
4.1
Amenities
4.6
91.0%
Recommend this course
1053 out of 1192 reviews
Read Reviews
Average Rating
Avg Rating
4.7
37 Reviews (37)
5 Stars
29
4 Stars
6
3 Stars
1
2 Stars
1
1 Stars
0
Conditions
4.8
Value
4.2
Layout
4.9
Pace
4.1
Amenities
4.6
StaffFriendliness
4.9
94.6%
Recommend this course
35 out of 37 reviews
Read Reviews
Average Rating
Avg Rating
4.5
94 Reviews (94)
5 Stars
62
4 Stars
22
3 Stars
6
2 Stars
3
1 Stars
1
Conditions
4.5
Value
4.2
Layout
4.8
Pace
4.1
Amenities
4.6
StaffFriendliness
4.7
90.4%
Recommend this course
85 out of 94 reviews
Read Reviews
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AI summaries based on real golfer reviews
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Course Highlights
This iconic stadium course delivers a bucket-list layout with stunning mountain views, challenging water hazards, and conditions that consistently impress recent golfers. Welcoming staff from bag drop to pro shop make every visitor feel genuinely excited to play.

About

Holes 18
Type Public/Resort
Par 72
Length 7300 yards
Slope 148
Rating 75.8

This is the monster of all monsters, the one that carries so many folktales of golfer terror with it that it should qualify as its own myth. The developers asked Pete Dye to make this "the toughest golf course in the world" and many argue he succeeded. Too well.

The Stadium Course at PGA WEST in La Quinta is one of those tracks that any self-respecting golf nut has to play once. Just to experience it. Just to say you did. Just to have stories of golf cruelty to tell at the office water cooler. There's a 19-foot deep bunker on the 16th hole. That's right. A 19-foot deep bunker. Your ball won't get out. Heck, you might not get out. From the back tees it measures 7,300 yards with an incredible 148-slope rating.

Every hole is a story waiting to be told. Either in success to be bragged about or failure to be even more bragged about. The PGA players moaned about this course so loud that it's no longer a regular stop on tour. Yet for average hackers, it's often a joy of punishment. Go in with the right attitude and it's liable to be one of your most unforgettable days of golf.

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PGA WEST - Pete Dye Stadium Course
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Course Details

Year Built 1987
Fairways Bermuda Grass
Greens Bermuda Grass
Golf Season Year round
Architect Pete Dye (1987) Alice Dye (1986)

Rentals/Services

Carts Yes - included in green fees
GPS No
Clubs Yes

Practice/Instruction

Driving Range Yes
Golf School/Academy Yes - "PGA WEST Golf Academy"
Teaching Pro Yes
Pitching/Chipping Area Yes
Putting Green Yes
Practice Hole Yes

Policies

Credit Cards Accepted VISA, MasterCard, Amex, Discover Welcomed
Metal Spikes Allowed No
Dress code No denim, collared shirt and bermuda shorts required

Available Facilities

Clubhouse, Banquet Facilities

Available Sports

Fitness, Tennis

Accolades

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Reviews

4.5
1192 Reviews (1192)

What Golfers Are Saying

The 19th Hole is Great For:
Drinks 42
Patio Dining 28
19th Hole Scenic Views 26
Course Challenges Include:
Bunkers 70
Water Hazards 67
Forced Carries 49
This course/club is great for:
Advanced Golfers 61
A Bucket list/Top 100 Pick 52
A Weekend Splurge 31
This Course's Location is:
Worth the Drive 42
At a Resort 34
Convenient to the City 18

Numbers based on reviews tagged with attribute.

Reviewer Photos

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Overall Rating
Recommended
Handicap
Age
Type of Golfer
Gender
Played On
Reviews 2
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays Twice a year
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Hot weather
Used cart
Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Default User Avatar
Commented on 06/07/2021

Hi, bdherrick. Thank you so much for the great review. We are glad you had an incredible time, and we hope to see you again soon! Thanks for choosing The Stadium Course at PGA West.

Played On
Reviews 38
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
3.0
First Time Playing

Pete Dye hates you

Check in was great, pleasnt people and very helpful. Course starts off like most upper end courses, tough but reasonable. By the end of the front nine things are getting more difficult. By the end of the course the traps a ridiculously deep and mounds high, no bailout areas. Miss the green by a few feet and you're dead. Course to gimmicky for me, way over done.

Conditions Good
Value Average
Layout Fair
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Fair
Amenities Good
Default User Avatar
Commented on 05/24/2021

Hi jdspwf, We're sorry that you felt the course was a little gimmicky. We'll use your feedback to get better!

Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Default User Avatar
Commented on 05/24/2021

Hello and thank you for your 5-star rating, rdrpops1976! We're delighted you enjoyed your round. Please book another round with us soon, and thanks for choosing us!

Played On
Reviews 1
Handicap Don't know
Skill Beginner
Plays Once a month
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Hot weather
Used cart

Beautiful course!

Enjoyed this course immensely and the staff. Bunkers were challenging, but fun.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Extremely Challenging
Default User Avatar
Commented on 05/13/2021

Thanks so much for your wonderful review. We are thrilled to hear how much you enjoyed your time with us. Please visit again soon. Thanks for choosing The Stadium Course at PGA West!

Played On
Reviews 6
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Default User Avatar
Commented on 05/12/2021

We're glad you enjoyed your 5-star experience with us. Please comment or reach out to our team in the golf shop to let us know more about your round at The Stadium Course at PGA West!

Played On
Reviews 17
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Conditions Excellent
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Default User Avatar
Commented on 05/11/2021

We are so pleased that you enjoyed your time at The Stadium Course at PGA West. We look forward to seeing you on the course soon for another 5-star experience!

Played On
Reviews 1
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Perfect weather
Used cart

PGA West Stadium

From check in to cart return, the entire staff was friendly and professional. Got there about an hour and half early and enjoyed the practice facility: great driving range, multiple chipping and putting greens. Starter Frank was friendly and offered some helpful tips. Fairways were like carpet and greens were impeccable.Many undulations in the fairway but course was fair. Water comes into play on a number of holes. Alactraz #17 is no joke. Shoot the yardage and hit it straight or you end up in a watery grave. It was 97 degrees but not overbearing. Plenty of water available and ice for coolers. Beautiful landscaping and mountainscape throughout the entire course. To end the round with dinner at Ernie's was the cherry on top. Great Kobe burgers and cold beer! Will definitely come back.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Default User Avatar
Commented on 06/08/2021

u1270... Can I copy your Post perfectly said. I played it 2x, 1st time from Blues with a Y.Buck hitting 300yd D. even though 50 yd behind, did not get in any Big Ugly Traps. 2nd time played from White, I hit Every Fricken DEEP Bunk. GREAT COURSES. play all 3.Bucket List done for these 3

Default User Avatar
Commented on 05/11/2021

Thank you for your kind words! We hope to see you again at the course very soon for another 5-star experience. Thanks for choosing The Stadium Course at PGA West.

Played On
Reviews 4
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Default User Avatar
Commented on 05/11/2021

Hello and thank you for your 5-star rating! We're delighted you enjoyed your round. Please book another round with us soon, and thanks for choosing The Stadium Course at PGA West!

Played On
Reviews 1
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Previously Played
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 15
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Windy weather
Used cart
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Difficulty Extremely Challenging
Default User Avatar
Commented on 05/05/2021

We would love to hear more about your positive experience on our course. Please contact us to share with us your favorite part of your experience. Thanks for golfing at The Stadium Course at PGA West!

Played On
Reviews 4
Handicap 5-9
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
4.0
First Time Playing
Windy weather
Used cart

Over Rated

I was disappointed in playing the golf course today. The course layout was difficult but fair. It was a little windy so that added an additional factor as well. Where I was disappointed was in the conditions of the course. The PGA tour was just here less than 4 months. In that time, some of the sand traps were light on sand, the greens had some burn out, some of the fairways had some burn spots. They gave each cart 2 bottles of water. It was only just short of 100 degrees today.

Conditions Average
Value Average
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Average
Pace Excellent
Amenities Fair
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Default User Avatar
Commented on 05/05/2021

Thank you for reviewing the course. Let us first start by apologizing for the poor experience you had during your visit. Your feedback about the course is important to us. We are working to get everything up to par. The current condition is by no means the standard we strive to achieve. We are going to escalate your feedback to our team so we can make improvements before your next game, and we will continue to work towards an excellent experience by using your comment for guidance. Thank you for playing The Stadium Course at PGA West. We hope to see you again soon.

Played On
Reviews 5
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

One of golfs best

Great course we had a 1:20 hot deal and asked to be moved up to an early time (7:45) and the staff was great about it. Apparently there are 87 or more bunkers here, we only found 3 of them and one water hazard. If you drive it well and hit fairways you are rewarded same with approach shots. Greens ran medium fast and true. The weather was perfect and so was the course. A must play if your in the area. We will be back and adding the other 3 courses to or itineraries.

Conditions Good
Value Average
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Default User Avatar
Commented on 05/05/2021

Thank you so much for the great review. We are glad you had an incredible time, and we hope to see you again soon! Thanks for choosing The Stadium Course at PGA West.

Played On
Reviews 2
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Previously Played
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Poor
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 22
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Perfect weather
Used cart

Up for the challenge

This course lived up to its reputation to me. Brutally challenging but still very fun. The first couple courses give you false confidence then it's uphill from there. Lots of water and deep bunkers so either solid tee shots or a few sleeves of balls required. Greens were fast and difficult to stick. It really is a fun course to play and will always provide a humbling experience.

Conditions Excellent
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Average
Difficulty Extremely Challenging
Default User Avatar
Commented on 04/30/2021

Thanks so much for your wonderful review. We are thrilled to hear how much you enjoyed your time with us. Please visit again soon. Thanks for choosing The Stadium Course at PGA West!

Played On
Reviews 1
Handicap 10-14
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Perfect weather
Used cart

Golf Trip

Trip with buddies course is spectactual but the conditions were so so. Still great people and historic

Conditions Average
Value Average
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Default User Avatar
Commented on 04/23/2021

We appreciate you taking the time to review the course and rate us. Thank you for the 4 stars! We aim for a 5-star experience, so we always welcome feedback for improvement. Thank you for playing The Stadium Course at PGA West.

Played On
Reviews 3
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Very Challenging

It’s always fun to play where the pros play... this course is very challenging and there seems like sand everywhere.. I didn’t know the course had been closed for awhile due to Covid and it isn’t in the best shape right now considering what the green fees are.. There’s some brown spots here and there and even the greens were a little beat up.. But even so, I would still recommend this course as a must play once in your life.. I would imagine it will continue to get in better shape now that play has returned..

Conditions Average
Value Good
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Average
Amenities Good
Default User Avatar
Commented on 04/19/2021

We appreciate you taking the time to review the course and rate us. Thank you for the 4 stars! We aim for a 5-star experience, so we always welcome feedback for improvement. Thank you for playing The Stadium Course at PGA West.

Played On
Reviews 3
Handicap 5-9
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Hot weather
Used cart

Coarse was in great shape. Weather was hot around 100

Had a great time

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Default User Avatar
Commented on 04/08/2021

thank you for your kind words! We hope to see you again at the course very soon for another 5-star experience. Thanks for choosing The Stadium Course at PGA West.

Played On
Reviews 1
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Excellent
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Default User Avatar
Commented on 04/05/2021

Thanks so much for the great review. We look forward to welcoming you back to our course soon. Thanks for choosing The Stadium Course at PGA West.

Played On
Reviews 44
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Perfect weather
Used cart

family golf

we had a great time. course conditions are super, except for maybe two greens that had a slight fungus battle going on. hope to return again next year.

Conditions Excellent
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Extremely Challenging
Default User Avatar
Commented on 04/05/2021

We're glad you enjoyed your 5-star experience with us. Please comment or reach out to our team in the golf shop to let us know more about your round at The Stadium Course at PGA West!

Played On
Reviews 7
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
First Time Playing
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Default User Avatar
Commented on 04/23/2021

Hello and thank you for your 5-star rating! We're delighted you enjoyed your round. Please book another round with us soon, and thanks for choosing The Stadium Course at PGA West!

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