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Rating Index Rating
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4.6
960 Reviews (960)
5 Stars
606
4 Stars
270
3 Stars
61
2 Stars
12
1 Stars
11
Conditions
4.5
Value
4.2
Layout
4.7
Friendliness
4.7
Pace
4.3
Amenities
4.3
89.7%
Recommend this course
886 out of 960 reviews
Read Reviews
Average Rating
Avg Rating
4.4
13 Reviews (13)
5 Stars
7
4 Stars
4
3 Stars
2
2 Stars
0
1 Stars
0
Conditions
3.8
Value
3.7
Layout
4.4
Pace
4.2
Amenities
3.8
StaffFriendliness
4.3
76.9%
Recommend this course
10 out of 13 reviews
Read Reviews
Average Rating
Avg Rating
4.6
36 Reviews (36)
5 Stars
24
4 Stars
8
3 Stars
4
2 Stars
0
1 Stars
0
Conditions
4.3
Value
4.1
Layout
4.7
Pace
4.3
Amenities
4.3
StaffFriendliness
4.7
83.3%
Recommend this course
30 out of 36 reviews
Read Reviews
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AI summaries based on real golfer reviews
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Course Highlights
Strategically placed bunkers and heavily undulated greens create a rewarding challenge that consistently earns top marks for course layout and conditions. Exceptionally friendly staff and strong overall value make this desert resort course a repeat favorite for visiting golfers.

About

Holes 18
Type Public/Resort
Par 71
Length 7006 yards
Slope 135
Rating 73.7

Nick Faldo brings his exacting, often critical eye to West Coast golf for the first time at this Shadow Ridge Golf Course in Palm Desert. Faldo wanted a design that forced a ton of strategic choices and the architect team of Brian Curley and Lee Schmidt delivered for him.

Options? You want options!

Ten of Shadow Ridge's 18 holes are doglegs. The towering Santa Rosa Mountains serve as backdrop. The tall native tawny grasses contrasts sharply with the white sand bunkering. But it's the golf choices that are likely to seize your attention at this 7,006-yard, par-71 course.

The finish alone is enough to rattle an average golfer to the bone. No. 17 is a 157-yard par 3 that puts the wind in your face and nothing but trouble straight ahead. There's a lake to carry, deep bunkers and a green that slants left to right like a wayward chalkboard. No. 18, a 446-yard par-4, places both a stream and big fairway bunkers right in the straightest path to the green.

"The fairways are generous and the bunkering style is bold," Faldo said. "And the greens have plenty of subtle undulations that reward and encourage a variety of approach shots."

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Shadow Ridge Golf Club
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Course Details

Year Built 2000
Golf Season Year round
Architect Nick Faldo (2000) Lee E. Schmidt (2000) Brian Curley (2000)

Rentals/Services

Carts Yes
GPS Yes
Clubs No

Practice/Instruction

Driving Range Yes
Bunker Yes
Golf School/Academy Yes - "Golfzon Leadbetter Academy"
Teaching Pro Yes
Pitching/Chipping Area Yes
Putting Green Yes

Policies

Metal Spikes Allowed No
Walking Allowed No
Dress code Proper golf attire required.

Food & Beverage

Bar, Grill

Available Facilities

Clubhouse, Banquet Facilities, Sauna, Locker Rooms

Available Activities

Swimming, Billiards

Available Sports

Fitness

Accolades

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Reviews

4.6
960 Reviews (960)

What Golfers Are Saying

The 19th Hole is Great For:
Drinks 44
Patio Dining 32
Brunch 20
Course Challenges Include:
Bunkers 79
Undulating Greens 70
Water Hazards 57
This course/club is great for:
Advanced Golfers 52
A Weekend Splurge 42
Locals 37
This Course's Location is:
At a Resort 66
Convenient to the City 44
Worth the Drive 26

Numbers based on reviews tagged with attribute.

Advanced Filters
Overall Rating
Recommended
Handicap
Age
Type of Golfer
Gender
Played On
Reviews 4
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Nice course, great summer price

Great hospitality, late afternoon golf in the middle of summer locals hidden gem, Can't wait to play again!! Thanks

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 7
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Average weather
Used cart

Bunkers Galore

Bunkers at the 200 yd mark is unforgivable from a design and player fairness perspective. Most fairways are severely sloped especially when you hit your approach shot to the green. The course layout will unfortunately take a good shot and turn it into a bad shot. Greens had many undulations which makes single putts very rare. The tee boxes weren't bad and offered many options based on skill level. Glad to say that water was available on even holes. It would be nice to have ice making machine on some of the even holes. This is very important because of the heat in July.

Conditions Good
Value Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Difficulty Extremely Challenging
Played On
Reviews 10
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Fair weather
Used cart

Pin Seekers wanted

While the fairways graciously accept most decent drives (let us not mention foul drives) they require navigation through undulations around or over bunkers in order to set up a promising approach.

The slope of the greens require high trajectory and the undulations accuracy or else be ready to be on the money getting up and down or lagging. Beware of prospective three-putts.

I appreciate the variety and adornment of this course, the wonderful staff and the well kept fascilities. Thank you Nick Faldo, Shadow Ridge and Marriot for a fun round.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 7
Handicap 5-9
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Previously Played
Good weather
Used cart

Great Course - Need crowd control

Great course, but they have a real issue with the hotel guest walking onto the course. There were kids playing baseball on the 17th green, people sun tanning on the green and a football game in the middle of the 18th fairway! I am sure Faldo would not be happy he designed a course for anything else but golf. Staff didn't seem to care.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Friendliness Average
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 35
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Excellent weather
Used cart

Interesting Course

Played with another couple. Course feature many deep bunkers which posed a challenge to the ladies.
Course in good condition, greens were a good speed and pace of play was good

Conditions Good
Value Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Excellent layout...great variety of holes

Challenging but not ridiculous like some courses... Short par 4s look easy but can bite you... Reachable par 5s are nice to see... Will play again soon.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 2
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Good weather
Used cart

Course in great shape.

Had 6:00 AM tee time. Played under 4 hours. Course in great shape. Heat was not a problem.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 3
Handicap 5-9
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

fun golf course

This is a fun golf course to play, solid par 3's good mix of interesting par 4's &5's, greens roll true, overall a great course I'll most definitely be back

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 4
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a month
I Recommend This Course
5.0
First Time Playing

Awesome desert course

Lots of great holes, challenging yet not unfairly so. Definitely worth a trip out to the desert. Very friendly staff and one of the best practice facilities I've ever seen.

Conditions Excellent
Value Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 2
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Good value

Great location. Great value in summer. Played in late May. Good challenge and good condition.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 9
Handicap 10-14
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Excellent weather
Used cart

Fun course

played this many times, I like the course, greens can be tough, some very short par 4's but challenanging all the same.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 2
Handicap 15-19
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Previously Played

High end course tempered by many bunkers

Course is well laid out and very well maintained. Only complaint is there are way too many sand traps to be totally enjoyable.

Conditions Excellent
Value Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 4
Handicap 0-4
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Good weather
Used cart

Awesome golf course

Great design. Great service, great condition, pace was 4.5 hours, it might be very challenging for higher handicaps but in general fairways are wide and greens are big. Bunkers were packed hard so difficult on short bunker shots. Will definitely play again as it s one of the better courses in the area certainly in the top 5 public courses!

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Average
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 17
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
First Time Playing

Great experience

Very good experience. Course in great shape and I would recommend to any and all

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 13
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Great course

Was really looking forward to playing here again and wasn't disappointed. Right from the start everyone was exceptionally helpful. Got out 30 mins early and as a 2 ball we were around in 3 hrs and that included being held up for the last 3 holes! Greens were a little slow and front 6 had been tined. Also some of the bunkers had little sand but that's being picky. Great course will play again.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 3
Handicap 0-4
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Good weather
Walked

bunkers

good course with scenic views. very good green speed.. many unnecessary bunkers.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Average
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 1
Handicap 5-9
Skill Beginner
Plays Once every three months
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Average weather
Used cart

Good course!!

That course is very nice...
We will hope so play the golf soon .

Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Challenging greens and bunkers

The greens border on being unfair due to severe undulations. Sand in bunkers is like waste bunkers. Bunker walls are extremely high faced.

Conditions Excellent
Value Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 3
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Excellent weather
Used cart

Golf

Great day for golf. Nice steady pace and no waiting. Course has been in better shape in previous years. Two great finishing holes. Definitely worth playing at the right price. I wouldn't overpay to play.

Conditions Fair
Value Average
Friendliness Good
Pace Average
Amenities Average
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 3
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Good weather
Used cart

Great facility/course

love the practice range at this course and have gone there for that purpose alone. Course is challenging for a higher handicap but in good shape

Food and drinks are marginal. . .2 years in a row have had VERY bad drinks.

Conditions Good
Value Good
Friendliness Average
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
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Golf Packages

Best of Indian Wells Package

CLICK BELOW
PALM SPRINGS, CA | Enjoy accommodations at the Grand Hyatt Indian Wells Resort, the Tommy Bahama Resort & Spa, the Indian Wells Resort Hotel, or the Renaissance Esmeralda Resort & Spa and golf at Indian Wells Golf Resort - Celebrity & Players Courses.

Best of Indian Wells Package

CLICK BELOW
PALM SPRINGS, CA | Enjoy accommodations at the Grand Hyatt Indian Wells Resort, the Tommy Bahama Resort & Spa, the Indian Wells Resort Hotel, or the Renaissance Esmeralda Resort & Spa and golf at Indian Wells Golf Resort - Celebrity & Players Courses.

The Palm Mountain Resort & Spa Stay & Play Package

CLICK BELOW
PALM SPRINGS, CA | Enjoy up to 5 nights’ accommodations at Palm Mountain Resort & Spa and up to 4 rounds of golf at your choice of Indian Canyons – South Course, Indian Canyons – North Course, The Classic Club, Tahquitz Creek – Resort Course, and Tahquitz Creek – Legend Course.

The Hilton Garden Inn Palm Springs/Rancho Mirage Stay & Play Package

CLICK BELOW
PALM SPRINGS, CA | Enjoy up to 5 nights’ accommodations at the Hilton Garden Inn Palm Springs/Rancho Mirage and up to 4 rounds of golf at your choice of Indian Canyons – South Course, The Classic Club, Tahquitz Creek – Resort Course, and Tahquitz Creek – Legend Course.

Aviara Stay & Play Package

Click Below
SAN DIEGO, CA | Enjoy lodging accommodations at the Park Hyatt Aviara Resort, Golf Club & Spa and golf at Aviara Golf Club.
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