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PGA WEST Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course
Rating Snapshot
About
The Golden Bear tests you with tabletop fairways at PGA WEST - Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course in La Quinta.
If your shot's too wild, it's rolling up, often down into the desert. That's just one bit of the showmanship at the Jack Nicklaus Tournament course. This was designed to hold a PGA event, but it's spent its days delivering damage and fun to regular hackers.
Nicklaus particularly tests your short game with his bunkering around the greens. Confidence in your wedge shots is crucial here. Still, it's not as tough and unforgiving as Pete Dye's Stadium Course or even Greg Norman's course.
It's possible to get lost in the scenery at the Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course and there's plenty of scenery to go around with the desert brush and the mountains looming in the distance.
No. 15 is probably the most well known - and notorious - hole. Nicknamed "Long Island," it's pretty much that: a daunting 572 yard par five with an island green. The fairway's split, giving you a chance to pick your path. Either way you go, getting onto the green in two is oh but a dream.
"Nicklaus also abundantly uses non-traditional design features throughout the course to give the track its own unique flavor," TravelGolf.com's Jeffrey Rendall said. "In many ways, I don't think I've seen another course quite like it."
| Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 72 | 7204 yards | 75.3 | 143 |
| Black (W) | 72 | 7204 yards | 81.9 | 151 |
| Blue | 72 | 6522 yards | 72.2 | 134 |
| Blue (W) | 72 | 6522 yards | 78.2 | 142 |
| Blue/White | 72 | 6224 yards | 70.8 | 130 |
| Blue/White (W) | 72 | 6224 yards | 76.4 | 138 |
| White | 72 | 6061 yards | 70.0 | 128 |
| White (W) | 72 | 6061 yards | 75.4 | 136 |
| Gold | 72 | 5627 yards | 68.1 | 122 |
| Gold (W) | 72 | 5627 yards | 73.1 | 131 |
| Gold/Red | 72 | 5325 yards | 66.5 | 117 |
| Gold/Red (W) | 72 | 5325 yards | 71.5 | 123 |
| Red (W) | 72 | 5023 yards | 70.1 | 120 |
| Red | 72 | 5023 yards | 64.9 | 113 |
| Silver | 72 | 4014 yards | 60.5 | 101 |
| Silver (W) | 72 | 4014 yards | 63.8 | 111 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black M: 75.3/143 W: 81.9/151 | 412 | 444 | 192 | 549 | 364 | 462 | 527 | 172 | 461 | 3583 | 370 | 528 | 188 | 419 | 442 | 572 | 440 | 209 | 453 | 3621 | 7204 |
| Black/Blue M: 73.8/139 W: 80.0/146 | 412 | 398 | 163 | 549 | 364 | 420 | 527 | 143 | 431 | 3407 | 370 | 528 | 164 | 378 | 442 | 516 | 423 | 209 | 431 | 3461 | 6868 |
| Blue M: 72.2/134 W: 78.2/142 | 378 | 398 | 163 | 505 | 320 | 420 | 471 | 143 | 431 | 3229 | 330 | 490 | 164 | 378 | 381 | 516 | 423 | 180 | 431 | 3293 | 6522 |
| Blue/White M: 70.8/130 W: 76.4/138 | 349 | 398 | 163 | 505 | 320 | 386 | 471 | 132 | 383 | 3107 | 330 | 490 | 155 | 338 | 381 | 472 | 368 | 180 | 403 | 3117 | 6224 |
| White M: 70.0/128 W: 75.4/136 | 349 | 387 | 155 | 482 | 299 | 386 | 450 | 132 | 383 | 3023 | 318 | 480 | 155 | 338 | 339 | 472 | 368 | 165 | 403 | 3038 | 6061 |
| White/Gold M: 69.1/125 W: 74.3/134 | 349 | 387 | 155 | 482 | 288 | 373 | 450 | 125 | 340 | 2949 | 318 | 480 | 116 | 323 | 339 | 462 | 348 | 165 | 388 | 2939 | 5888 |
| Gold M: 68.1/122 W: 73.1/131 | 311 | 354 | 133 | 447 | 288 | 373 | 426 | 125 | 340 | 2797 | 283 | 449 | 116 | 323 | 330 | 462 | 348 | 131 | 388 | 2830 | 5627 |
| Gold/Red M: 66.5/117 W: 71.5/123 | 311 | 322 | 133 | 414 | 288 | 342 | 426 | 125 | 335 | 2696 | 283 | 400 | 116 | 323 | 330 | 417 | 304 | 97 | 359 | 2629 | 5325 |
| Red M: 64.9/113 W: 70.1/120 | 273 | 322 | 120 | 414 | 225 | 342 | 391 | 92 | 335 | 2514 | 232 | 400 | 104 | 295 | 301 | 417 | 304 | 97 | 359 | 2509 | 5023 |
| Red/Silver M: 62.4/106 W: 66.7/115 | 218 | 249 | 119 | 414 | 225 | 281 | 391 | 92 | 268 | 2257 | 232 | 400 | 104 | 241 | 237 | 417 | 234 | 97 | 267 | 2229 | 4486 |
| Silver M: 60.5/101 W: 63.8/111 | 218 | 249 | 119 | 322 | 173 | 281 | 328 | 74 | 268 | 2032 | 195 | 318 | 102 | 241 | 237 | 303 | 234 | 85 | 267 | 1982 | 4014 |
| Handicap | 5 | 11 | 15 | 13 | 1 | 7 | 17 | 9 | 3 | 14 | 18 | 10 | 8 | 16 | 2 | 6 | 12 | 4 | |||
| Par | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 72 |
| Handicap (W) | 9 | 13 | 17 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 11 | 15 | 3 | 14 | 10 | 16 | 8 | 12 | 2 | 6 | 18 | 4 |
Course Details
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Reviews
Reviewer Photos
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Photo submitted by chrispsd on 02/12/2026
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First view Photo submitted by Richter6103254 on 12/22/2025
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Photo submitted by setch on 12/19/2025
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Photo submitted by u000002367479 on 09/19/2025
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Photo submitted by u000002367479 on 09/19/2025
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Photo submitted by u000002367479 on 09/19/2025
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Photo submitted by u000002367479 on 09/19/2025
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Photo submitted by Mincer24 on 04/16/2025
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Photo submitted by AroundtheHorn on 07/04/2024
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Photo submitted by AroundtheHorn on 07/04/2024
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Photo submitted by AroundtheHorn on 07/04/2024
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Photo submitted by AroundtheHorn on 07/04/2024
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Photo submitted by daddyzzang on 09/25/2023
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Photo submitted by Magoo6047 on 05/17/2023
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Photo submitted by u7326787 on 05/13/2023
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Photo submitted by u379613247 on 02/03/2023
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Photo submitted by mcry on 01/17/2023
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Gorgeous Photo submitted by igolowuc on 12/27/2022
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Photo submitted by Goegl01 on 12/06/2022
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Photo submitted by u2138341 on 10/04/2022
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Photo submitted by u2138341 on 10/04/2022
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Photo submitted by Golfmd50 on 02/24/2022
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Photo submitted by u355891953 on 11/16/2021
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Photo submitted by u355891953 on 11/16/2021
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Photo submitted by captainlandius on 09/26/2021
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Photo submitted by captainlandius on 09/26/2021
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Par’d it…i can go home now lol! Photo submitted by u000001295218 on 09/22/2021
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Photo submitted by u000001295218 on 09/15/2021
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History!!!!!!!!! Photo submitted by U04596 on 07/06/2021
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Number 8. Photo submitted by u378708142 on 05/16/2021
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Pretty sketchy Photo submitted by jbsocal on 09/13/2020
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Photo submitted by u314159354135 on 01/02/2020
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Photo submitted by u314159354135 on 01/02/2020
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Photo submitted by u314159354135 on 01/02/2020
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18th green Photo submitted by Dave1883044 on 11/10/2019
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Photo submitted by James2537435 on 11/07/2019
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Photo submitted by u841910878 on 05/20/2019
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Photo submitted by u841910878 on 05/20/2019
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Photo submitted by hacksalot03 on 12/31/2016
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Photo submitted by u664859348 on 01/28/2015
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Photo submitted by gjcheney60 on 02/25/2014
Hello and thank you for your 5-star rating, Dave1883044! We're delighted you enjoyed your round. Please book another round with us soon, and thanks for choosing PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course!
Greenside Traps
I played 12 different golf courses in the Palm Springs area over a 2 week period. Tee boxes, fairways and greens at the Tournament Course were as good or better than any of the other courses. The green side traps, however, were the worst of any course I played in the Palm Springs area. The bottoms of every green side trap were nothing but hard pan, without exception. The folks I played with concur with my assessment. Then, many of the front faces of those traps were very soft, as all the sand had been moved from the bottom to the trap faces. Had 2 balls completely buried in the front face of the bunker, totally unplayable. My experience of an otherwise awesome course was completely ruined by the traps.
Paying a premium price to golf at any of the PGA West courses, I would not expect the sand traps to be in the condition of a $50 muni. If this problem is not corrected, I will not be spending money at PGA West on future trips to the area.
Hello u169934279, thank you for taking the time to review us, and for the 3 stars. We're sorry to hear the course may not have been in the best shape on the day of your round. We appreciate your feedback as we work to make any necessary improvements. Thank you for choosing to golf with us, and we look forward to seeing you again soon at PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course.
Hi, u000001805634. We are so pleased that you enjoyed your time at PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course. We look forward to seeing you on the course soon for another 5-star experience!
We love hearing about our golfers' experiences, steve1010. Please tell us more about what you enjoyed during your round. Thanks for choosing PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course!
Hello and thank you for your 5-star rating, u913790525! We're delighted you enjoyed your round. Please book another round with us soon, and thanks for choosing PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course!
u000002197062, thank you for the awesome rating! We hope to see you again at the course very soon for another great experience, and thanks for choosing PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course.
We're glad you enjoyed your 5-star experience with us, u000002197062. Please comment or reach out to our team in the golf shop to let us know more about your round at PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course!
Wonderful course
Can not find fault with this beautiful course. However, I did play with an 87 year old in shape partner. The hills and difficult traps made it an unpleasant and tiring play for him. Anything of the fairways was difficult to walk to your ball & traps were treacherous. Greens outstanding and course conditions and staff the Best!
Hello, u076450747. Thank you for visiting us at PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course. We appreciate your 4-star rating and review. We hope you join us for another round soon.
Hi, u314162445620. 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 PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course!
Fun to play
The snack bar was closed but we found the beverage cart on the 11th hole. A golf course that is both forgiving and intimidating making for a good round of golf.
Hi, u314162517255. 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 PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course.
We love hearing about our golfers' experiences, Schranz14. Please tell us more about what you enjoyed during your round. Thanks for choosing PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course!
11 handicap golfer’s review.
Anytime you can play a course used for a PGA event, it’s always a treat. Friendly staff, challenging but fair layout, and good pace of play made for a great day. The course was in great shape and the greens rolled true. The fairways were wide, but the challenge comes with the areas on the edges of the fairways that drop off to lower depressions where you have to get the ball up in a hurry and potential blind shots to the green. Also lots of sand traps all over the course. The one disappointment was the sand in the bunkers. The bunkers could’ve used more sand as it was very difficult to blast balls out of the steeply sloped green side bunkers. If you avoid the sand, you will score well.
Thank you for your review, u000007655989. We will pass along your positive experience to our team at PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course. We look forward to seeing you again soon.
Hi, steverutt. 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 PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course!
We love hearing about our golfers' experiences, ewgriggs. Please tell us more about what you enjoyed during your round. Thanks for choosing PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course!
Fabulous Course!
We’ve played many courses throughout North America and I would rate the course layout as one of the best. Every hole is a signature hole. Greens were firm and fairly fast just as I like them. Take an extra club or even two when the winds are blowing as most greens are elevated. Some water holes on the back nine which can be carried if you’re a long hitter but if not the fairways are generous to the side. The fairways were in great shape as well. My only recommendation would be to have a Marshall out on the course to speed up play for those who think a 5 hour round of golf is okay instead of 4. Perhaps the starter can tell golfers to keep up with the group in front as is the rule in all private courses. Now that I’m familiar I’d like to play it again soon.
Hi, RGAB2A06F0A8392BA8CA. 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 PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course.
Hi, jolberding. 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 PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course.
Not a good day
Assured a day before playing staff that our 2:00 tee time would allow my spouse and I to play as a twosome, and that we would be able to finish before dark- - both proved to be untrue. No matter, paired with two enjoyable pro’s, who left the course at 5:15, when three different foursome were stacked up on the 15th tee box. It never cleared, so I headed in as well only to find there were 3 different foursomes waiting to tee off in 17 as well. A lot of $$ for 14 holes
Hi, ryugler,
We appreciate you taking the time to review the course and rate us. We are going to pass on your feedback to the teams in charge so they can work to make changes.
Your feedback helps us do better. We are looking into this issue and hope to resolve it promptly.
Thank you for visiting PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course. We hope you'll give us another try in the future.
Hi, u00000337120. We would love to hear more about your 4-star experience on our course. Please tell us what we can do to earn that last star, and thanks for golfing at PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course!
We love hearing about our golfers' experiences, u00000337120. Please tell us more about what you enjoyed during your round. Thanks for choosing PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course!
Hi, dcope123. 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 PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course!
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Hello, ewgriggs. Thank you for leaving us a review. We are sorry to hear your experience was anything short of 5 stars, but we hope you will give us another try in the future. Thank you for choosing PGA West Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course.