March 21, 2021
La Quinta, California
PGA West Stadium Course
The Stadium Course at PGA West is a Pete Dye resort course in La Quinta, California, opened in 1986 and famous for its island-green 17th, "Alcatraz." It is the toughest of the PGA West courses by rating and slope and a host course of The American Express. The Perry Bros played it on March 21, 2021.
Course facts
- Location
- La Quinta, California
- Access
- Resort (bookable resort tee times)
- Architect
- Pete Dye
- Opened
- 1986
- Par
- 72
- Yardage
- About 7,300 from the back (rating 76.1, slope 150)
- Big events
- The American Express host course (2016 to present); Bob Hope Desert Classic (1987); Skins Game; PGA Tour Q-School finals
Our round at the Stadium Course
About the Stadium Course
Pete Dye built the Stadium Course as the first course at PGA West, and it opened in 1986. It hosted the Bob Hope Desert Classic in 1987, after which the players voted it out of the rotation for being too hard. It came back as a host course of the event, now The American Express, in 2016.
The made-for-TV Skins Game was played here in its early years, and Lee Trevino made a hole-in-one on the island-green 17th during one of them (the club's own pages give both 1987 and 1988). The course has also been a PGA Tour Q-School finals site several times.
What stands out
- The par-3 17th, nicknamed "Alcatraz," is an island green.
- Spectator mounding sculpted into the terrain gives the course its "Stadium" name.
- Highest course rating and slope of the PGA West courses.
Quick answers
Can the public play the PGA West Stadium Course?
Yes. PGA West lists the Stadium Course among its resort courses, and it can be booked as a resort tee time.
Who designed the Stadium Course at PGA West?
Pete Dye. It opened in 1986 as the first course at PGA West.
What is the island green at PGA West?
The par-3 17th on the Stadium Course, nicknamed "Alcatraz." Lee Trevino made a hole-in-one there during the Skins Game.
Sources: PGA West: Stadium Course · PGA West history · Wikipedia: PGA West