Desert Island CC: #18
View of the 18th hole at Desert Island Country Club.
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4.3
1362 Reviews (1362)
5 Stars
711
4 Stars
494
3 Stars
111
2 Stars
32
1 Stars
14
Conditions
4.1
Value
4.2
Layout
4.3
Friendliness
4.7
Pace
4.5
Amenities
4.0
89.6%
Recommend this course
1245 out of 1362 reviews
Read Reviews
Average Rating
Avg Rating
4.5
34 Reviews (34)
5 Stars
20
4 Stars
13
3 Stars
0
2 Stars
1
1 Stars
0
Conditions
4.4
Value
4.4
Layout
4.4
Pace
4.6
Amenities
4.3
StaffFriendliness
4.9
97.1%
Recommend this course
33 out of 34 reviews
Read Reviews
Average Rating
Avg Rating
4.3
157 Reviews (157)
5 Stars
74
4 Stars
62
3 Stars
14
2 Stars
4
1 Stars
3
Conditions
4.0
Value
4.1
Layout
4.2
Pace
4.5
Amenities
4.0
StaffFriendliness
4.7
87.3%
Recommend this course
137 out of 157 reviews
Read Reviews

About

Holes 18
Type Private/Resort
Style Traditional
Par 72
Length 6716 yards
Slope 128
Rating 71.9

Formerly known as Desert Island Golf & Country Club and The Sinatra Resort & Country Club.

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Desert Island Country Club
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Course Details

Year Built 1971
Fairways Bermuda Grass
Greens Bermuda Grass
Golf Season Year round
Architect Desmond Muirhead (1971) Walter R. Stewart (1971)

Rentals/Services

Carts Yes
Clubs Yes

Practice/Instruction

Driving Range Yes
Pitching/Chipping Area Yes
Putting Green Yes

Policies

Metal Spikes Allowed No
Walking Allowed Yes
Dress code Proper attire is required.

Food & Beverage

Bar, Grill

Available Facilities

Banquet Facilities, Locker Rooms

Accolades

  • Golf Advisor: Top 25 Friendliest Courses in the U.S. (2019 #6)
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Reviews

4.3
1362 Reviews (1362)

Reviewer Photos

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Overall Rating
Recommended
Handicap
Age
Type of Golfer
Gender
Played On
Reviews 5
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Summertime Challenge

The course is a good track with some challenging holes. Unfortunately the recent storm (Hurricane Hilary) had just passed through so there was a lot of debris on the fairways and rough, No fault of the greens keepers. The greens however were like shag carpet or Velcro, take your pick! It is summertime in the desert. Overall, despite the recent storm damage, it’s a nice course, challenging with a very friendly staff.

Conditions Average
Value Average
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 7
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a month
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Hot weather
Used cart

fun course

Good course for the amount of money. It is summer and very hot, but course was in good condition. Staff very friendly.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 6
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
2.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Dirt Tee Boxes?!?

Friendly staff, quiet course in need of some loving. The fact they groundskeeper crew was out in full force all day long taking care of the fairways and greens means they are trying to keep up the green color on the course. The one down fall are the tee boxes, felt like I was playing a public course in LA county. The tee boxes had no grass what so over. Interesting course, lots of shade but needs more TLC.

Conditions Poor
Value Average
Layout Fair
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Average
Played On
Reviews 7
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
2.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Poor
Value Fair
Layout Fair
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Poor
Played On
Reviews 42
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
3.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Average
Value Average
Layout Average
Pace Good
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 2
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a month
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 6
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
2.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

No amenities

There few places on the course for water or beverages no restaurant that was open or bar for beverages.the few staff that were there were helpful and good spirited. Some of the greens were rug and some had a fungus. The pace of play was great due to the heat but for the price it was terrible. One last word the warm up area ( driving range )had hundreds of ants crawling on your shoes you had to find a spot that the ants were not crawling on you and your clubs .

Conditions Average
Value Fair
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Fair
Played On
Reviews 95
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Top 500 Contributor
Previously Played
Hot weather
Used cart

Overall a great deal, BUT...

At $42.95 for a 9 AM start time this was A GREAT DEAL OVERALL. However about 1/3 of the greens are close to "terrible". They have almost as much bare, hardpacked dirt as grass. Most still run fairly true but a few are so bumpy I invoked the 2 putt max rule! Some of the sand traps are ok, others are NOT. Most of the fairways were 75% good to very good and 25% were bad to very bad. Having said all that...the course layout and use of water for hazards and for beautiful scenery are awesome. It was very hot this day, but by starting at 9 AM I played on my own and often hit 2 or 3 balls and still finished in just over 3 hours. I NEVER had to wait to hit a shot. Well worth the money and even though the conditions are not quite what they should be, I WILL BE BACK!

Conditions Average
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Beginner
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
First Time Playing

Great course

This time of year can be hard on a course. It's obvious they take great pride in keeping the course in the best condition possible. Staff was Friendly and helpful. I will definitely stop by again. If you are planning to play in the summer keep in mind many amenities are limited.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 30
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Greens are ok

So I played here nearly 4 weeks ago and lots has changed. The weather is hotter which means the greens got a tad worse here. Bumpy and slow. I love the layout of this course and the fairways. The staff is always kind and helpful!

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 5
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
3.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Hot weather
Used cart
Conditions Average
Value Fair
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Poor
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a month
3.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Fair
Value Poor
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
2.0
Previously Played

Greens are punched and not playable

Would have been nice if this course advised in advance that their greens were under repair an basically unplayable … otherwise ok … fairways in good shape !

Conditions Poor
Value Fair
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Poor
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
1.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

I should get my money back from golf now/course

Golf Now and course should be ashamed of themselves. They should not be selling rounds. This course is losing its greens to a fungus. Golf Now did not notify me that the course was being aerated and we had to play same nine twice. I have played all my life public and private and have never played greens this bad. It is a fun short track but you can’t enjoy it because of green conditions. We implemented a automatic two putt, and on a few that were so bad just picked up.

When we got there the staff pointed at a paper that showed that golf now should have notified us. It didn’t and now I am out $150 bucks since I paid for my son and father in law.

Cmon Golf Now and Desert Island,, do what is right and send me the refund.

Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Layout Good
Friendliness Average
Pace Excellent
Amenities Poor
Played On
Reviews 2
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
1.0
First Time Playing
Hot weather
Used cart

Misleading + Disappointing

We showed up to the course eager and optimistic as always. We usually play municipal golf courses, so we were pumped to play a country club in Palm Springs. When checking in, we were informed that only the back nine were being played today (so we would play the same 9 holes twice), because the greens on the front were being aerated. This was disappointing, as this info was not on GolfNow when we booked it (nor is it now). We carried on. As we played the first hole and were walking up to the green on the 10th hole, we looked upon a muddy, patchy, and uneven 10th green.... Foolishly thinking to ourselves that it might be a one off, we carried on only to find the 8 remaining greens to be the same patchy, uneven, muddy variety as the first. Paying 75 bucks a person to play 9 holes twice at a course that has some of the worst greens I've played is an experience we won't soon forget.

Did I mention that the clubhouse was essentially closed? Oh that's right, it's all coming back to me. After playing the 10-18 for the first time in the 100 degree heat, we stopped into the clubhouse to enjoy the time honored tradition of crushing a hot dog and an ice cold beer. Much to our chagrin, no halfway house, no hot food, only a cold burrito --which you are free to microwave--and some other nothings at the pro shop...and this is on Fathers day weekend, mind you.

GolfNow should have listed this as 'BACK 9 ONLY' and that there are 'NO AMENITIES', and as it didn't.....very misleading and I would say GolfNow is at least half at fault for our less than stellar day on the links. Furthermore, for $75 per person, only to play half a course, and that one half having some of the worst greens I've seen, and having ZERO amenities to boot… I mean come on, not even a hot dog? Disappointing is an understatement.

Will not go back, and hopefully this will convince others to avoid this course and save themselves the headache.

Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Good
Amenities Poor
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 4
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
2.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Hot weather
Walked

Very disappointed

This is one of the most disppointing courses I have ever played at. First, only half the course was open - a fact that was not mentioned on the Golf Now website when booking OR even when I checked in. People were expected without explanation to play the back nine twice. There was no starter or course official around. This also made the course crowded and we had to wait on a number of tee boxes. The green fee was more expensive than many of the other courses in the area. Finally, the greens are in very poor condition. I attach photos of the 18th green which has more bald spots that grass. This course should be avoided.

Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Fair
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 5
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
First Time Playing

Good but only nine holes open.

Good course pace was excellent but didn’t know that the front nine was closed until I got to the course. Can’t really give a review as I was only able to play the back nine twice,

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Average
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Enjoyable but greens no bueno

17 hcp

Nice course and enjoyable! Not stressful and not overly challenging.

Amenities closed for summer.

Pace of play was OK

Greens are a mess. Either burned or some kind of issue. Not in good shape. Very slow. Worst part of the course.

Conditions Average
Value Good
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Average
Amenities Fair
Played On
Reviews 2
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a month
1.0
First Time Playing

Only 9 Holes!!!!

Booked a tee time for 18 holes. Arrived at the course and only 9 holes are open. Super disappointed that this was not disclosed upon booking. I would've booked another course if this was mentioned. Call course first before booking. The app is not updating the course condition.

Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Layout Poor
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Fair
Amenities Poor
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