Westin Desert Willow Villas

On Sep 1 the Marshall warned our twosome we would run into a fivesome, and they would let us play through and they did. On Sep 8 our twosome was flying through course and ran into a fivesome on 9. After waiting, we explored going to 12 and then returned to 9. After playing 9 a threesome cut in front of us. Neither would let us through. We played behind both for 2-3 holes then returned to 9 to create space. It worked well until 18 when we caught the threesome. We quit. After playing I complained to the manager on duty about the fivesomes our last two rounds and he said they never put fivesomes on the course and based on his standards I had a fast round.

Great course. Play it when ever I come to Palm Desert

I signed up as a single for an early morning round due to the heat of an August day. I was paired with a threesome, and had a great time. Course was in excellent shape, as usual. Plenty of ice water available every 3 holes, and a marshall even came by and offered us cold towels on the course. Pace of play was perfect. Nice place to have a beverage in the clubhouse after playing.. Overall a great time!

I like the Desert Willow courses. We played Firecliff two times this trip and enjoyed both rounds, although the second round was better. We also play Shadow Ridge. We like both courses because they are challenging but reasonable for most golfers. Having some shade at the back of the driving range and a practice bunker would be nice. Regardless, an excellent golf experience.

I love playing at Desert Willow. I’ve played the other course before but it was closed for maintenance so I played fire cliff. It’s hot this time of year and the greens were slow but the facilities and course layout is really nice. I had a great experience overall!

We purposely booked an 1130am tee time to avoid large grouos or slow play and were unfortunately surrounded by groups in front of us that were playing with 3+ people and were playing extremely slowly (15 -20 mins/ hole). Couple this with extreme temps and it was a challenging day.

The course itself is very demanding and unique. The "desert" feel was fun and presented some chuckle worthy moments with roadrunners and white geckos that broke up the frustration from the slow play.

All in all, it was a mediocre day by I definitely recommend more course attendants to help keep the pace reasonable.

Played the Mountain course and Tee boxes, Fairways and Greens were all in great shape considering the summer conditions. Better than my home CC in Central Texas! Beverage cart was very regular, saw her 3 times on 18 holes.

Desert Willow use to be our favorite golf facility. A municipal golf course built for, and supported by the residents of Palm Desert. Residents of Palm Desert have supported the facility in two ways: local tax assessments and course play. Several years ago, the City brought in Kemper Management to run the facility. Kemper has continually raised prices and could give “two cents” about Palm Desert Residents. Since Kemper has stepped in, everything about Desert Willow has declined (except for the pricing). The condition of the course is not even close to what it once was and the pace of play has become excruciatingly slow. Lunches at the restaurant have become overpriced, portions are much smaller, and the food is bland. Hopefully, the City of Palm Desert steps in, removes Kemper, and brings this facility back to its original greatness. If in Palm Desert to play golf choose Desert Springs, Shadow Ridge, or Desert Falls over Desert Willow.