Wind Hurts Desert Golf Scores

It was another breezy afternoon in the desert on Monday with wind gusts in Palm Springs reaching above 35 mph, which made for some challenging conditions on valley golf courses.

Walking up to the tee with strong winds makes even golf pros think twice about their approach.

Business is still open at the city-owned Desert Willow Golf Resort in Palm Desert.

But when the palm trees start bending, fewer golfers hit the fairways.

“We had a little bit of a reduction of rounds in the month of April due to all of the days that we had of wind,” said Bruce Nation, director of sales and marketing for Desert Willow.

The month of May, at this point, is trending the same way, said Nation.

The golf course reported 16 windy days in April and saw a reduction in golfers of nearly 10 percent from the same time last year.

“It’ll move it on the green a little bit,” said Nation. “Obviously, in the air, if you do have any kind of slice or hook or anything, it’ll make it magnified quite a bit.”

Mike Smith was visiting from Las Vegas and said it was a rough day on the course.

Mark Lanning lives in La Quinta and golfs twice a week, and he said he’s played in worse conditions.

“The rates are pretty cheap, and the wind only bothers you if you let it,” said Lanning. “(But) there is some winds where it gets silly and it’s not worth it.”

The golf pros at Desert Willow recommend buying a few extra golf balls from the pro shop just in case the wind takes your shot and throws it into the water.