Golf, Tennis & Pickleball

You don't have to drive far for a round of golf or a few games of pickleball. Yucca Valley has a 12-hole public course and town courts, and the Coachella Valley, about 40 minutes to an hour below the house, has plenty of public courses and free city courts. Everything here is open to the public and was confirmed operating in 2025 or 2026, but check rates, hours and tee times before you go.

Golf in Yucca Valley

Hawk's Landing Golf Club at Blue Skies, on Martinez Trail in Yucca Valley, is the course closest to the house. It opened in the 1950s as the 18-hole Blue Skies Country Club and reopened in 2015 after a redesign by architect Cary Bickler. Today it's 12 holes in two six-hole loops, so you can play 6, play 12, or go back around the first loop for 18. Each hole is named after local wildlife, there's a café with a patio on site, and tee times are listed on the major booking sites. At roughly 3,300 feet, Yucca Valley usually runs cooler than the valley floor. For more to do in town, see things to do in Yucca Valley.

Golf in the Coachella Valley

Mission Lakes Country Club

In Desert Hot Springs, about 40 minutes from the house, Mission Lakes is an 18-hole, par-71 course designed by Ted Robinson. It's open to the public, with public tee times bookable online. It's the nearest of the valley courses listed here and pairs well with a visit to Cabot's Pueblo Museum in the same town.

Tahquitz Creek Golf Resort

Owned by the City of Palm Springs, Tahquitz Creek has two public courses, the Legend and the Resort. The Legend, a William Bell design, dates to the late 1950s as the city's municipal course. The city raised green fees sharply in fall 2025, then paused part of the increase for residents that December, so check current rates.

Indian Canyons Golf Resort

On Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians land in south Palm Springs, Indian Canyons has two 18-hole courses open to the public. The North Course is a William P. Bell design, and the South Course was redesigned in 2004 with LPGA Hall of Famer Amy Alcott as a consultant.

Desert Willow Golf Resort

Owned by the City of Palm Desert and run as a daily-fee club, Desert Willow has two courses by Michael Hurdzan and Dana Fry. Firecliff opened in 1997 and has been through a multimillion-dollar renovation; Mountain View followed a year later. It's a little over an hour from the house.

Overseeding season

Many valley courses close for a few weeks each fall while they overseed their summer grass with winter rye. In 2026 those closures ran from late September into late December depending on the course, and reopened courses are often cart-path-only for about three weeks. High season runs roughly January through April, so book ahead for those months.

Tennis and pickleball in Yucca Valley

The town's public courts are at Jacobs Park on Onaga Trail. Its lighted tennis courts and four pickleball courts, carved out of one tennis court after a 2022 council vote, are kept locked, and players buy a key at the Yucca Valley Community Center or Town Hall. As of January 2026 a three-year pickleball key cost $15. In October 2026 the town opened a new eight-court pickleball complex behind the Community Center, with lighting, a shade structure and spectator seating, also with key access. The town and the Morongo Basin Tennis Association run clinics and leagues. Call the Community Center to ask how visitors can get court time.

Tennis and pickleball in Palm Springs

Ruth Hardy Park, at 700 Tamarisk Road, has eight public tennis courts for day and night play, free and first come, first served. For pickleball, Demuth Park on East Mesquite Avenue is the city's hub, with 12 free courts. In 2026 the city was building 22 more courts there, due to finish in late summer, and sent players to temporary courts at a College of the Desert campus during construction, so check the city's pickleball updates before you go.

Watching the pros

The BNP Paribas Open, the professional tournament held each year around March at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, is a little over an hour from the house. The 2027 event runs February 28 to March 14. If you're planning a trip around it, book early.

Heat and timing

Summer highs in Yucca Valley commonly reach the mid-90s to over 100°F, and the valley floor runs hotter. From May through September, book the earliest tee time you can, carry more water than you think you'll need, and take shade between holes or games. Spring and fall bring the mildest days, typically around 65 to 80°F. Our guide to when to visit the high desert covers the seasons.

Know before you go

• Book ahead in high season, and check each course's overseeding dates in fall.
• Rates change by season and time of day. Confirm before you go.
• Court keys. Yucca Valley's courts are locked, so sort out access with the Community Center first.
• Palm Springs courts are free and first come, first served.
• Drive times. Hawk's Landing is in town; Mission Lakes is about 40 minutes; Palm Springs about 50 minutes to an hour; Palm Desert and Indian Wells a little over an hour.

Make a day of it with a Palm Springs day trip or a soak from our hot springs and spas guide, then cool off back at the house in the stock-tank pool. Check dates for your trip.