Amazing Coachella Valley

Last updated: 22nd January 2010

Geographically the Coachella Valley, of which La Quinta is part, is the northwestern extension of the Colorado Desert so I was stunned when day two of the five-day Bob Hope Classic was washed out.

It is being played over four courses in the La Quinta area not too far south of wealthy Palm Desert and the famed Palm Springs, the holiday playground of many Hollywood celebrities of today and yesteryear and no play was possible on Thursday when the heavens opened to give it a rare soaking that virtually flooded all four courses.

I believe our picture gallery makes that pretty clear.

Having spent a few days with relatives at Palm Desert a little over a year ago, I was especially taken aback.

When I was there it came across as a small desert city that hardly ever saw rain and it was thanks only to the Coachella Cannel which brings water from the giant Colorado River that it had been possible to construct large numbers of luxury estates in a Valley containing only 600,000 people yet contains a staggering 128, 18-hole rye grass, Palm-lined golf courses (then) that are as pristine as any of the greenest, well-manicured courses you'll find anywhere else in the world.

Naturally they mostly come with posh clubhouses and even posher restaurants, where I have to say, I had one of my most delicious meals during the month I spent in California.

They literally take your breath away, I'm told, no matter what course you play. Their brilliant greens are a stunning contrast to the grey shadow mountains that run along one side of the valley and the yellow and brown hues of the surrounding desert. Certainly they did that for me - and I only played two of them!

But it's not only the courses that make you want to keep saying "Wow!" Especially if you happen to be a golf nut.

The place is a Mecca for people like us.

Every second house in the newer Palm Desert seemed to have a special garage for a golf car (with a built in charger). Most of the cars have been customized and have Rolls Royce, Cadillac and Jeep nose fronts - something you will probably only see in America!

They also contain small fridges, GPS devices which can be used for finding your away around the courses - and also the city

Everybody seems to go everywhere in their golf cars. And because most of them now have electric battery-driven power units, it saves a them lot of 'gas', you see, and helps our struggling environment

Indeed so many people use their golf cars for shopping, the big shopping malls all have special golf-car parking lots.

Something else that had me saying "Wow!" was the habit of many - certainly in the wealthy Palm Desert - to have putting greens in their gardens, and with low-level maintenance.

I was told by my amiable host, Art, who has one containing a mixture of tough, curving holes and flat easy ones, that most of them, like his, are made of artificial turf rolled with sand to give it a silky smooth surface (I hope not too many saw Thursday's rain wash the sand out of them).

And the gardens? They mostly consist of hardy trees and cacti that are drip fed to conserve water, but it all fits in with the environment which is, as I said, part of the Colorado Desert in southern California to the west of Los Angeles and San Diego.

The Bob Hope Classic still has three rounds to play. We can only hope more unseasonal rain isn't going to wreck an event already missing too many big guns who are not overly happy with the format - or have headed for the Middle East where the European Tour is at the start of a three-event swing.