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SilverRock Resort
Few golf destinations in the world can compete with the diverse golf offerings found in the Coachella Valley. The region has more than 100 courses — a vast host of which have been crafted by architectural and professional masters like Nicklaus, Palmer, Fazio, Dye, Fought, and Robinson — and there is no shortage of challenge for players of all levels. With varied terrain supplying consistently inspired backdrops, a score of top tournaments and charity events take place in the desert each year. Here’s what to look for in 2011:
Bob Hope Classic
January 17-23
Courses: La Quinta Country Club; Nicklaus
Private and Palmer Private at PGA WEST;
SilverRock Resort
www.bhcc.com
Now entering its 52nd year of play, this annual PGA Tour stop dates back to its genesis tournament, the Thunderbird Invitational, which debuted in 1952. And like both the T-Bird and Palm Springs Golf Classic events which preceded it, the Hope Classic is among the most distinctive of all tour tournaments, both for its celebrity element and playing schedule. It’s the only tour stop to sport a four-course, five-day format. Last year, Bill Haas (son of 1988 winner Jay Haas) became the third Hope winner in four years to make the Classic his first career win when he birdied the 90th hole of play to beat out Bubba Watson, Matt Kuchar, and Tim Clark by one shot. Should he be able to defend his title, Haas would become just the second winner to claim back-to-back Hope crowns and the first since Johnny Miller did so in 1975 and ’76.
Kraft Nabisco Championship
March 28-April 3
Course: Mission Hills Country Club, Dinah Shore Tournament Course
www.kncgolf.com
The ladies’ first major championship of the season, the Kraft (also referred by its prior “Dinah Shore” moniker) celebrates the tournament’s 40th anniversary this year — and will do so in fine style. A new program forged with Screen Actors Guild opens the tournament week with a two-day celebrity pro-am. Last year’s champion, Yani Tseng of Taiwan, furthered the splash of Eastern influence on the LPGA with the famed victory leap into Poppy’s Pond. While an American won the tournament 16 of 17 times since the Kraft became a major in 1983, foreign players have taken the title nine times since 2000.
Frank Sinatra/Starkey Hearing Foundation Celebrity Invitational
February 24-27
Course: Eagle Falls Golf Course
www.franksinatragolf.org
Founded in 1988, this annual charity event — known as “Frank’s little party in the desert” — benefits the Barbara Sinatra Children’s Center at Eisenhower Medical Center. With nightly parties, entertainment, and a fashion show, the scene is readily on par with the golf. Tournament play consists of two days of competition, with team gross and net scramble scoring. The five-player teams comprise one celebrity entrant paired with four amateurs. This year’s contestants include Joe Mantegna, Berry Gordy, Dennis Farina, Rollie Fingers, Smokey Robinson, and Pat Boone.
Palm Springs Amateur
January 6-9
Courses: Stadium Course at PGA WEST; Nicklaus Tournament Course at PGA West; Dunes Course and Mountain Course at La Quinta Country Club; Firecliff Course at Desert Willow Golf Resort
www.palmspringsam.com
Modeled after other popular amateur tournaments, the Palm Springs Am enjoyed a fine debut last year, as more than 125 players came from 16 different states to enjoy some of the desert’s finest tracks. Scheduled just weeks before the Hope, the tournament crowns champions in multiple classes. The three-day, 54-hole net, stroke-play competition places entrants in flights where they’ll compete on a different course each day. Handicaps from a recognized golf association are required.
