Desert Kings

It had to be a mirage. After all, it was the desert and the temperature was near 105 degrees.

But as the images drew closer, it became obvious that the four figures were living, breathing, sweating teenagers trudging across the Firecliff course at Desert Willow Golf Resort in Palm Desert.

There are a few basic rules about playing summer golf in the desert. Bring lots of water, wear a hat with a wide brim, apply plenty of sunscreen and remember that after about an hour, lip balm will liquefy and form a pool of burning wax in your pocket.

Using a golf cart seems as obvious a rule as any, but not to those on a budget such as the foursome of Andy Browning, Michael Finney, Jon Friedman and Nate Yates, all high school students from Irvine.

They moved along just fine, often wiping their faces with wet towels or pausing to drink cool water. Walking in the desert heat, unthinkable to most, wasn’t that big a deal to this hearty group.

They already had walked 18 holes in the heat of the same day while playing in a tournament at Eldorado Country Club in Indian Wells. They then came to Firecliff to take advantage of an amazing deal.

Weekday green fees were $120 last winter ($140 on weekends), but the rate drops to $50 on weekdays with a cart in the summer. After 2 p.m., it’s $40, and only $10 to walk.

“It was cheap,” said Finney, who is 15 and will be a junior at Irvine High this fall. “The heat really wasn’t too bad and the wind was blowing. We had a lot of water in our bags anyway.”

The summer golfing deals at Firecliff and several other courses in the area have helped keep public golf courses in the Coachella Valley busy despite temperatures that climb above 100 before 11 a.m. and stay there into the late afternoon.

There’s no question it’s hot, but as residents will quickly remind you: “It’s a dry heat.”

“When someone plays in this heat it becomes like a war story,” said Desert Willow assistant pro Daniel Roux. “They tell their friends over and over about the time they played when it was 120 degrees.”

Roux said only three people have returned to the clubhouse asking for refunds this summer because it was too hot to play.

“Fatigue can set in really quickly when it’s hot,” Roux said, “so you don’t want to stand around and wait much. But on the plus side, your muscles never seem to tighten up.”

Much of the play occurs in the morning, but more and more players are willing to brave the heat to play a good course at a bargain price, according to several desert golf professionals.

Courses that get about 300 players on winter days average about 75 in the summer. About 80% of those tee off before 9 a.m.

Afternoon rounds have fewer players and a more relaxed atmosphere.

That is what brought Mike Guendling, 37, of San Diego and his three children to Firecliff.

Dad hit from the tee, then as the family, all riding in one cart, neared the green, the kids jumped out and hit chip shots, then putted.

“We come down here four or five times during the summer,” Guendling said. “These courses really dry up in the summer as far as play goes. You can bring a group of guys and with those golf packages, you can spend less than $100 and play a lot of golf.”

Several plush hotels offer packages that cost about $100 a night and include two rounds of golf at courses such as the East and West layouts at the Indian Wells Golf Resort.

Two of those hotels are on the grounds of the Indian Hills Resort and two are across the street. Players taking advantage of the packages and also using coupons from golf passport books account for about 50% of the course’s clientele this summer, according to Joe Williams, manager of operations.

Such passport books are available at most golf shops for about $25 each or two for $39.

Indian Wells is $45 during the week in the summer but only $25 with a coupon.

“It’s been a phenomenal summer, partly because of the weather,” Williams said. “It’s been about 10 degrees cooler than last year. We’ve already had a day this month where it didn’t reach 100--that’s just crazy.”

Players start to descend on the courses about 5:30 a.m., when it’s about 75 degrees. The first groups tee off about 6, or as soon as they think they can find the balls they hit, according to the first-tee marshal at Indian Wells. The foursomes keep coming until about 8:30 a.m. on weekdays and 10 on weekends.

But heat is the least of the problems for dawn-patrol desert players. Bugs are an issue and the grass is damp from overnight watering. Hitting into a blinding sun on east-facing holes isn’t a lot of fun either.

But the courses dry out in a couple of hours and a well-hit drive will seemingly roll forever. If the wind picks up, the bugs vanish.

On the Indian Wells East Course, there is another hazard of playing early. As the first group of the day approached the fourth tee recently, a couple geese confronted the players, who made it to the tee box only by holding off the birds with their seven-irons.

The geese were a gift to the city, Williams said. “When they were first put out on the course, I didn’t know that, so I was calling [around] to try and get rid of them, but I was told we couldn’t. We’ve had complaints about them, but we’ve also had great things said about them. You might not believe it, but you can pet them.”

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Desert Discounts

The summer rates for playing a round on Southern California’s desert courses, compared to the winter rate (many courses have yet to set rates for this winter so rates could change):

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Course Summer Rates Winter Phone Cathedral Canyon C C M-Th, $20 $80 760/328-6571 Fri.-Sun., $35 $100 Desert Dunes M-Th, $25 $110 760/251-5366 Fri.-Sun., $25 $120 Desert Willow Resort Firecliff M-Th, $50 $120 760/346-7060 Fri.-Sun., $60 $140 Mountain View M-Th, $50 $120 Fri.-Sun., $60 $140 Heritage Palms $25 $90 760/772-7334 Indian Wells East Course M-Th, $45 $110 760/346-4653 Fri.-Sun., $55 $110 West Course M-Th, $45 $110 Fri.-Sun., $55 $110 La Quinta Resort Dunes Course M-Th, $50 $155 760/564-7610 Fri.-Sun.,$60 $155 Mountain Course M-Th, $50 $200 Fri.-Sun., $90 $200 Mesquite Country Club $45 $75 760/323-9377 Mission Hills Gary Player Course M-Th, $55 $145 760/770-9496 Fri.-Sun., $65 $145 Pete Dye Course M-Th, $55 $145 Fri.-Sun., $65 $145 Palm Springs Country Club $25 $60 760/323-2626 PGA West Jack Nicklaus Course M-Th, $80 $200 760/564-7170 Fri-Sun., $95 $200 Stadium Course M-Th, $80 $200 Fri-Sun., $95 $200 Presidents Club $25 $65 760/775-4444 Tahquitz Creek Legends Course M-Th, $28 $43 760/328-1005 Fri.-Sun., $35 $53 Resort Course M-Th, $35 $50 Fri.-Sun., $45 $65 Woodhaven Country Club $35 $75 760/345-7513

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