Golf in Cathedral City

Golf can be a bonding experience with friends or a make-or-break business meeting that masquerades as a leisure sport. Make the most of your time with friends and colleagues by knocking their argyle socks off with effortless dominance on the green. Today's Groupon to Carlsbad Golf Center gets you a one-hour private golf lesson with your choice of Carlsbad's experienced PGA and LPGA instructors (a $75–$125 value, depending on participating instructor), plus a large bucket of balls with which to practice during and after your lesson (a $10 value). Because the object of golf is to hole the ball in the fewest number of strokes, a better game will help you conserve energy for other activities such as off-track betting or braising Cornish hen.

Situated along the meandering Moosa Creek, the fairways of Castle Creek Country Club sweep gracefully through the foothills of Temecula Wine Country and located near three major casinos. The 1948 Jack Daray blueprint escorts players through a 6,638-yard labyrinth, hemmed in by oak-forest barriers and mottled with bunkers of white sand. After completing a testy front nine that includes the 624-yard par 5 sixth hole, players embark on the most difficult stretch of the course in holes 10, 11, and 12. These holes—a 450-yard par 4 followed by back-to-back par 5s—demand that players demonstrate an ability to hit the ball far, leaving many contestants exhausted, bleary-eyed, and swinging at golf balls that don’t exist.

Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par 72 course

• Total length of 6,638 yards from the back tees

• Course rating of 72 from the back tees

• Course slope of 134 from the back tees

• Five sets of tees per hole

• Scorecard

• Gopher Hole Sports Bar

Two large lakes glisten in the sunlight as they cast reflections of the towering trees. At Emerald Isle Golf's 18-hole executive course, the lakes form a nucleus that is surrounded by 16 par 3s and two par 4s. Players must blast soaring shots over the lakes on four separate occasions, unless they’re able to retrieve golf balls with golf-bag scuba tanks and 9-iron snorkels. Prior to a round, golfers can get a feel for putting speed on the practice green and warm up at the full-grass practice range.

Course at a Glance:

18-hole, par 56 course

Total length of 2,452 yards from the back tees

Course rating of 72 from the back tees

Course slope of 113 from the back tees

Three sets of tees per hole

Scorecard