Tee time: 10:30 AM on 3/1. Played from the Blue tees. Let’s get this out of the way — the course? Stunning. The pace of play? Absolutely brutal. We got wedged behind a wall of four bachelor party foursomes. It took 35 minutes just to clear the 1st tee, and the round crept beyond five hours. Hard to stay in rhythm with that kind of crawl, but the course itself is well designed and a great time.

Driver was feeling much better today — I adjusted to a +2 neutral setting, and it made a real difference. Ball flight straightened out, and contact was way more reliable. Started hot: 1-under through the first 3 holes, feeling sharp and confident. Unfortunately, all the standing around started to mess with tempo.

Course conditions:

Fairways: Firm, fast, and fair. Well-kept with plenty roll-out to reward solid drives.

Greens: Quick, I often over putted my first strike by 5-8 ft. Held well on good approach shots. Some multi-tiered and tricky pin placements made for creative putting.

Rough: Basically desert scrub. If you miss wide, you're punching out or re-teeing.

Scenery: Unreal. Mountain backdrops, canyon drops, and elevated tee boxes all day.

Standout holes:

Hole 2 – Par 3: Deceptively simple on the card, but don’t sleep on this one. 180yd par 3 with a guarded green that punishes anything long or left. I stuck an 7iron to the rear pin position away with an easy par, but I saw how quickly this hole can turn into bogey if you don’t respect the pin location. My playing partner took a 6 (bunker, bunker, 3 putt) Pure iron shot here is key — don’t overthink it, just hit your number.

Hole 5 – Par 5: This one kicks off what might be the most scenic stretch in Mesquite. Standing on an elevated tee box that drops more than 100 feet into a narrow canyon fairway, it’s hard not to pause and soak it in. The view is wild, but so is the risk. I focused on hitting the slot — miss left or right, and you’re flirting with desert walls. The fairway, it opens up a chance to go for the green in two, but you’ve got to be bold. I played it smart with a layup and left myself a comfortable wedge. This hole rewards commitment — but it punishes hesitation.

Hole 10 – Par 4: Looks gettable on the card, but it’s a trap. All uphill to a shallow, well-defended green. I hit a smooth iron off the tee but couldn’t stick the approach — hard to judge distance with that elevation. One of those “feel” holes that can bite if you’re off even a little.

My round: That first stretch had me feeling locked in. 1-under through 3, and the new driver setting gave me way more control. After that, the waiting around started to creep into my swing — lost momentum, lost tempo. Still managed a 90, but I know I had 85 in the tank if the pace didn’t grind everything down. Short game was reliable, putting was solid, and the course fit my eye.

Bottom line: The Palmer Course is a top-tier desert golf experience. It’s dramatic, strategic, and absolutely fair if you’re smart about your targets. The layout rewards bold play — but only if you execute. I’d play it again in a heartbeat, just hopefully not behind a bachelor party convoy. Give me 4 hours and a clean rhythm, and I’d be chasing 80 out here.

Tee time: 7:30 AM on 2/28. Early start, cool air, and extra nice staff — couldn’t ask for a better way to kick off our Mesquite trip. Played from the Spades tees for our 1st Annual "Brothers Travel Trip".

CasaBlanca is classic desert resort golf carved into the flats it winds through brush and water with a calm, open feel. You get 5 par 3s and 5 par 5s, which gives ample scoring opportunities. The course was wide enough to encourage driver on every tee, but tough enough to make you worried when your off line.

Course conditions:

Fairways: lush, generous landing zones but tight enough to reward solid contact.

Greens: rolled medium-fast, true, and held well on approach. For this early in the season, the greens had some unrepaired divots, but not enough to really effect your line.

Bunkers: consistent sand and fair placement — you’re punished if you're off, but not brutally.

Tee boxes: flat, clean, and well-kept.

How did I play? Scrappy. Driver was shaky — brand new to me, AI Smoke triple diamond— and irons were a bit heavy, leaving me longer putts than I’d like. But chipping was reliable, and the flat stick showed up when I needed it. Walked off with a 91 (adjusted to 80 in our best ball format). Felt like a solid score given how the course played.

Standout holes:

Hole 3 – Par 4: One of the most memorable of the round. Slight dogleg left with water hugging the entire left side. Demands a smart tee shot — driver might be too much, but a layup leaves a longer approach into a well-guarded, slightly elevated green. There’s a bunker right waiting for any bailout. I tried to work a draw off the tee and had to scramble from the rough, but walked off with a proud two-putt par. Scenic, strategic, and a great early test.


Bottom line: CasaBlanca is a clean, fair, and enjoyable track that sets the tone for a Mesquite golf trip. It won’t beat you up unless you’re wild off the tee, but it rewards smart play and short game sharpness. I'd definitely play it again — especially as a first-round warmup for a desert weekend.

Got out for the first round of the year following the 24.6 trillion gallon rainfall California has been under since the beginning of the year (2023). The course looked amazing for winter conditions. Usually you can expect a browner surface, shaggy greens, you know simple course maintenance. Not here, the course was amazing. The grass was lush, full, and green that I wonder if it will last to summer.
This 18 hole, par 70 course is a real treat to play if you find yourself in the area. While the course looks beautiful, it is not a cake walk. From each tee box you will be challenged to put the ball in the right area. Sometimes the driver is left in the bag for a much shorter, but more controlled approach to a level spot on the fairway. The course offers a lot of elevation changes, and the course is tucked into the “Western hills”.
Playing the course after the rain, the fairways were quit soggy, and I found about 15 quality balls plugged or “lost” due to ground conditions. The bunker sand was as hard as a rock, and I played it like a ball just off the cart path, little sand, all ball. Not many fairway bunkers on the course, but the greens tend to be protected by guardian trees. The greens were soft, and even with the rain they were rolling fairly quickly. There is a good amount of break on these smaller greens. Average green depth was about 20 yards, and many of them elevated above your approach shot. Slight undulation on the greens, but nothing major.
It took about 5 hours to play, but again it was a very wet course. Looking forward to what the course will offer as it continues to air out.

Took the opportunity to play a pre-Thanksgiving day round of golf. I booked my tee time online, twilight round with a 1 p.m. tee time. This is a place to show up early, the driving range sits between the 1st and 18th hole fairways, allowing you ample time to get ready for the first tee box. THIS IS A GRASS DRIVING RANGE AREA! So you get the feel of the course grounds a bit from the beginning. A small, bump and run style putting area. Granted it was late Fall, and California has been a bit dry.
The course offers its own digital scorecard and hole information in their phone app. However, I utilize SwingU so I avoided the new app on my phone. The course is great, each hole offers a different challenge, and you really need to think about placement. The elevation changes can bring a large swing in club selection, so it is important to dial in your ‘carry distance’ and you total distance. I found myself having to club up as much as 2 full clubs on certain holes.
The tee boxes were easily identified, and the fairways were large, and provided a good amount of roll on the course. Rough grass was thick and fluffy, which made for some interesting shots. All sand bunkers were concrete. No need to play sand, just pluck the ball off the tops of the bunkers.
Greens were full of speed and break. Many of the greens have ‘hidden’ breaks right at the cup, forcing you to be on with your putting pace. Some greens were marked for winter repairs, and I will be honest, I replaced at least 3 ball divots per green. (Take care of the course, course will take care of you).
Overall this is a great choice of play. The course maintained pace of play, and I finished the round with enough light to putt out for a score of 87 on a well designed and enjoyable course.

S.C.3