PGA WEST's TPC Stadium Course honors 25 years

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The TPC Stadium Course at PGA West has hosted many pros over 25 years, including those at the PGA TOUR's Q-School.

Ernie Vossler stared in disbelief at the cavernous 21-foot deep greenside bunker Pete Dye was in the process of carving on the 16th hole of what would become PGA WEST's TPC Stadium Course. It was 1985, and Vossler had commissioned Dye to create one of the crowning jewels of the world renowned La Quinta Resort & Club in the Coachella Valley, Calif., desert, 20 miles southeast of Palm Springs.

Sure, his directive had been to build the "toughest layout in the country;" but this was absurd. A three-time winner on the PGA TOUR himself, Vossler doubted the world's best players could dig themselves out of this two-story monstrosity with anything less than a double bogey, let alone the thousands of resort golfers who flock to La Quinta each year.

Dye, whose daunting 17th hole island green at TPC Sawgrass had already become one of the most iconic golf holes in the world, held his ground when Vossler demanded that the bunker be re-designed. A stalemate of sorts ensued, until Vossler came up with a wager. He placed three balls in the bunker. If Dye could hit even one of the three within 10 feet of the pin, the bunker could stay; otherwise, it had to be completely revamped.

Then in his sixties, Dye picked up a club, lined up his shot, and nonchalantly hit the ball within two feet of the pin on his first try. Vossler, as the story goes, turned on his heels and walked away without a word.

From then on, Dye had free reign in designing what is still considered by most experts among the top four most difficult courses in the U.S -- as well as one of the most brilliantly crafted layouts anywhere in the world. Two hundred-yard carry over water? No problem. Water guarding both sides of the green? Bring it on.

The result is a 7,300-yard, par-72 quintessentially Dye masterpiece that pushes golfers to their mental and physical limits. Woven through a rugged desert tapestry in the shadows of the Santa Rosa Mountains, the TPC Stadium Course at PGA WEST is designed in what Dye has called his "grenade attack look," replete with Scottish links-style moguls and swales, small pot bunkers, more than 5,000 railroad ties, eight lakes, and lumpy hillside lies, with water coming into play on nine holes and numerous peninsula and island par-3s.

Comparatively speaking, the round begins innocuously enough ... impossibly thick Bermuda rough lining the entire fairway over here, endless water over there. By the fourth hole, nicknamed "Sand Pit," golfers know they are in it for the long haul. And by the sixth hole, aptly dubbed "Amen" -- a 255-yard par-3 which is all carry over water, with water also guarding the left and right of the green -- it is clear divine intervention is needed to prevent a complete deterioration of the score card. After all, three of the world's best players, Jack Nicklaus, Payne Stewart and Curtis Strange, consecutively hit their balls in the water off the tee on No. 6 during the 1991 Skins Game.

The TPC Stadium Course culminates with its trio of harrowing finishing holes -- "Dye's Great Escape" -- including the par-five 16th, which was ultimately named the "San Andreas Fault." Next comes "Alcatraz," the enigmatic 17th hole with its intimidating but visually stunning island green, which Dye created in homage to the famed 17th Island Green at TPC Sawgrass. Like its predecessor, Alcatraz was largely the brainchild of Dye's wife, Alice, an accomplished golf champion and architect in her own right. Its forced carries, scores of pot bunkers and difficult greenside chips make this one of the toughest par-three holes ever imagined.

Perhaps the most famous shot ever made on the TPC Stadium Course was Lee Trevino's hole-in-one on Alcatraz, a shot that aced him the win of a huge carry-over skin worth $175,000 in the 1987 Skins Game -- making Trevino the only person ever to hit a hole-in-one in the history of the Skins Game. And finally, the course culminates with the ominous water-lined 18th hole, a dramatic ending to one of the most unforgettable adventures in golf.

In addition to the Skins Game, many prestigious events have been played on PGA WEST's TPC Stadium Course over the years, including the Bob Hope Classic, the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf and the Prestige at PGA WEST Intercollegiate Invitational. Additionally, every other year the course hosts one of its most intense and anticipated events of the year, the PGA TOUR's Qualifying School Finals for talented players vying for a precious spot on the PGA TOUR. TOUR players including Fred Funk, Brad Faxon and Shaun Micheel have been known to tune up their games on its links, while the course has been played by a plethora of Hollywood celebrities, politicians and visiting dignitaries from around the world.

The course is, however, first and foremost a resort layout, offering everyday golfers the unique opportunity to test their skills on the same magnificent layout where some of the world's best golfers have competed. Numerous sets of tees enable golfers of all abilities to enjoy this masterpiece for themselves. And the thrill doesn't stop with the final pin on the TPC Stadium Course. Visitors to La Quinta Resort and PGA WEST can also play four other superb courses designed by none other than Jack Nicklaus, Greg Norman and two others by Pete Dye, as well as enjoy an array of world-class amenities that have earned La Quinta Resort and PGA WEST recognition from The Robb Report as the finest resort golf destination in the world and most recently as "2010 Golf Resort of the Year" for North America from the International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO), the global trade organization for the golf tourism industry.

Celebrating its 25th anniversary in March 2011, PGA WEST is part of the acclaimed La Quinta Resort & Club, a member of Hilton's Waldorf Astoria Collection. Originally developed in 1926 by prominent businessman Walter H. Morgan, the fabled property has grown from 20 cozy hacienda-style casitas to 796 guestrooms and villas and an array of luxurious amenities that have long served as a haven for celebrities, artists and moguls since the Golden Age of Hollywood.

Visitors over the years have included film legends Marlene Dietrich, Bette Davis, Clark Gable, Errol Flynn, Katherine Hepburn and Shirley Temple, along with influential filmmaker Frank Capra -- who wrote the Oscar-winning 1934 romantic comedy, "It Happened One Night" at the resort. The film became such a hit that Capra returned to the same casita year after year, where he wrote scripts including "Mr. Deeds Goes To Town" and "You Can't Take It With You." The famously reclusive Greta Garbo and her on-screen/off-screen leading man, John Gilbert, also frequently sought refuge and relaxation at La Quinta Resort, while famed Mexican muralist Diego Rivera is said to have created many of his paint and charcoal artworks while staying there in the 1930s and 40s -- nine of which are on display at the resort.

Celebrity and sports stars are still drawn by La Quinta's low-key ambience and world-class service. In addition to numerous PGA TOUR players, more recent guests have included Harrison Ford, Elizabeth Taylor, Jessica Lange, Madonna, Britney Spears, Diane Keaton, Oprah Winfrey, Andre Agassi, Kevin Costner, Michael Jordan and Joe Montana, to name just a few.

In addition to its distinctive accommodations, La Quinta Resort & Club and PGA WEST encompass five golf courses and two clubhouses, 41 swimming pools, 53 hot spas, 23 championship tennis courts, expansive spa and fitness facilities, a variety of boutiques and shops, elegantly appointed indoor and outdoor meeting space, and award-winning dining options, including the new Morgan's in the desert, which was spearheaded by celebrated chef and restaurateur Jimmy Schmidt. An assortment of stay and play packages are available through PGA TOUR Experiences at www.pgatourexperiences.com.

The legend of PGA WEST continues at the Bob Hope Classic Jan. 19-23. For tickets or more information, please visit www.bhcc.com. The TPC Stadium Course at PGA WEST is part of the PGA TOUR's acclaimed TPC Network of premier private and resort clubs designed by some of golf's most elite architects. For more information, please visit www.tpc.com,