The Desert Classic (currently known as The American Express for sponsorship reasons; previously known as the CareerBuilder Challenge, Palm Springs Golf Classic, the Bob Hope Desert Classic, the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, and the Humana Challenge) is a professional

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

tournament in

southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban ...

on the

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also ...

. Played in mid-winter in the

Coachella Valley , map_image = Wpdms shdrlfi020l coachella valley.jpg , map_caption = Coachella Valley , location = California, United States , coordinates = , width = , boundaries = Salton Sea (southeast), Santa Rosa Mountains (southwest), San Jacin ...

(greater

Palm Springs Palm Springs (Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Riverside County by land ...

), it is part of the tour's early season "West Coast Swing." It previously had five rounds of competition (90 holes) rather than the standard of four rounds, and was known for its celebrity pro-am. For many years, the event was named for and hosted by entertainer

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, with ...

and featured a number of celebrity participants. In 2012, the Desert Classic changed to a traditional 72-hole format over three different courses with a 54-hole cut, similar to the

AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour, held annually at Pebble Beach, California, near Carmel. The tournament is usually held during the month of February on three different courses, currently Pebble Bea ...

. It continues to have a large pro-am, but has slowly ceased featuring celebrity participants. The tournament is organized by the nonprofit Impact Through Golf, which took over from Desert Classic Charities in 2020.

History

Founded in 1960 as the Palm Springs Golf Classic, the tournament evolved from the Thunderbird Invitational that was held in Palm Springs the previous six years, from 1954 to 1959, but with a much smaller purse. The event was renamed the Bob Hope Desert Classic in 1965 and the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic in 1986. Until 2012, its format remained unique among PGA Tour events, being played over five days and four different courses. In its first three years, the tournament was played at Thunderbird Country Club and Tamarisk Country Club, both in

Rancho Mirage Rancho Mirage is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. The population was 17,218 at the 2010 census, up from 13,249 at the 2000 census, but the seasonal (part-time) population can exceed 20,000. Incorporated in 1973 and located ...

; Bermuda Dunes Country Club in Bermuda Dunes; and Indian Wells Country Club in Indian Wells. Bermuda Dunes was used through 2009 and Indian Wells through 2005. In 1963 Eldorado Country Club, also in Indian Wells, replaced Thunderbird Country Club. From 1964 until 1968 La Quinta Country Club in

La Quinta La Quinta (Spanish for "The Fifth") is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States. Located between Indian Wells and Indio, it is one of the nine cities of the Coachella Valley. The population was 37,467 at the 2010 cen ...

, replaced Tamarisk Country Club, but in 1969 Tamarisk Country Club rejoined the event and alternated annually with Eldorado Country Club until 1986 (Tamarisk Country Club's last turn being in 1985). An evolution towards courses more suited to modern professionals began in

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...

. From 1987 until 1994, and again from 1998 to the present, a course at PGA West in La Quinta, (the TPC Stadium Golf Course in 1987 and the Arnold Palmer Private Course thereafter) became a permanent member of the roster; from 1995–97, Indian Ridge Country Club in Palm Desert replaced PGA West. To make room for a new permanent member, Eldorado Country Club and La Quinta Country Club alternated from 1987–89 (Eldorado being used in 87 and 89), after which Eldorado Country Club was dropped from the roster. From 1990–2003 Tamarisk Country Club and La Quinta Country Club followed a "1–2" alternating arrangement, where Tamarisk was played the first year and La Quinta CC the next two; this pattern was deviated from when Tamarisk was used in 2004 (a La Quinta CC year by the pattern), although the 2005, 2006 and 2007 events were then played at La Quinta CC. In early 2005 a local charitable foundation gave its new course, The Classic Club in Palm Desert (an

Arnold Palmer Arnold Daniel Palmer (September 10, 1929 – September 25, 2016) was an American professional golfer who is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most charismatic players in the sport's history. Dating back to 1955, he won numerous ev ...

-designed track) to the tournament, making the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic the only event on the PGA Tour that owns its own facility. The Classic Club took the place of Indian Wells in 2006, but the course was dropped from the Hope course field after the 2008 event, citing players concerns over high winds. The 2009 course rotation consisted of the Arnold Palmer Private Course and the Nicklaus Private Course (both at PGA West in La Quinta), SilverRock Resort (in La Quinta), and the Bermuda Dunes Country Club. In 2010, La Quinta CC replaced Bermuda Dunes CC. In 2012, SilverRock Resort dropped from the rotation due to the tournament shortening to 72 holes. In 2016, the main course was Pete Dye's PGA West Stadium Course, and also used PGA West’s Nicklaus Tournament course (originally designed for the

1991 Ryder Cup The 29th Ryder Cup Matches were held September 27–29, 1991, on The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island Golf Resort in Kiawah Island, South Carolina, southwest of Charleston. The United States team won the competition by 14 to 13 points, winning b ...

, the

European Broadcasting Union The European Broadcasting Union (EBU; french: Union européenne de radio-télévision, links=no, UER) is an alliance of public service media organisations whose countries are within the European Broadcasting Area or who are members of the C ...

objected because of the European domination of the tournament and a nine-hour time difference from

Central European Time Central European Time (CET) is a standard time which is 1 hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). The time offset from UTC can be written as UTC+01:00. It is used in most parts of Europe and in a few North African countries. CE ...

was inconvenient; the tournament moved east where only a six-hour time difference allowed the event to air in primetime hours), and La Quinta Country Club in the first three rounds. The tradition of choosing the tournament's "Classic Girls" from among the area's collegians began in those early years, with the earliest tournaments having a celebrity dubbed "Classic Queen." The earliest titleholders included

Debbie Reynolds Mary Frances "Debbie" Reynolds (April 1, 1932 – December 28, 2016) was an American actress, singer, and businesswoman. Her career spanned almost 70 years. She was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer for her portra ...

, Jane Powell, and

Jill St. John Jill St. John (born Jill Arlyn Oppenheim; August 19, 1940) is a retired American actress. She may be best known for playing Tiffany Case, the first American Bond girl of the 007 franchise, in '' Diamonds Are Forever''. Additional performances i ...

. The queens of the 1970s included

Barbara Eden Barbara Eden (born Barbara Jean Morehead; August 23, 1931) is an American actress, singer, and producer best known for her starring role as Jeannie in the sitcom '' I Dream of Jeannie'' (1965-1970). Other notable roles include Roslyn Pierce opp ...

and

Lynda Carter Lynda Jean Cordova Carter (born July 24, 1951) is an American actress, singer, and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss World USA 1972 and finished in the top 15 at the Miss World 1972 pageant. Carter is best known as the star of t ...

. The Classic's biggest draw, both then and now, has been the celebrity Pro-am competition which has attracted some of the era's biggest celebrities. According to the official website, those celebrities have included: *

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

Burt Lancaster Burton Stephen Lancaster (November 2, 1913 – October 20, 1994) was an American actor and producer. Initially known for playing tough guys with a tender heart, he went on to achieve success with more complex and challenging roles over a 45-yea ...

Kirk Douglas Kirk Douglas (born Issur Danielovitch; December 9, 1916 – February 5, 2020) was an American actor and filmmaker. After an impoverished childhood, he made his film debut in '' The Strange Love of Martha Ivers'' (1946) with Barbara Stanwyck. D ...

Phil Harris Wonga Philip Harris (June 24, 1904 – August 11, 1995) was an American actor, comedian, musician and songwriter. He was an orchestra leader and a pioneer in radio situation comedy, first with ''The Jack Benny Program'', then in '' The Phil Harr ...

Desi Arnaz Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III (March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986) was a Cuban-born American actor, bandleader, and film and television producer. He played Ricky Ricardo on the American television sitcom '' I Love Lucy'', in which he c ...

(one of the founders of the aforementioned Indian Wells Country Club) *

Ray Bolger Raymond Wallace Bolger (January 10, 1904 – January 15, 1987) was an American actor, dancer, singer, vaudevillian and stage performer (particularly musical theatre) who started in the silent-film era. Bolger was a major Broadway performer in ...

Hoagy Carmichael Hoagland Howard Carmichael (November 22, 1899 – December 27, 1981) was an American musician, composer, songwriter, actor and lawyer. Carmichael was one of the most successful Tin Pan Alley songwriters of the 1930s, and was among the first ...

Dwight Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War I ...

(the first U.S. President to play in the pro-am) The first edition in 1960 was won by Arnold Palmer at 338 (–22), a record that stood for twenty years. He had won the last Thunderbird event the previous year, which had a $15,000 purse with a winner's share of $1,500. The purse in 1960 was over six times larger at $100,000, and the $12,000 first prize was Palmer's biggest check to date. Hope, who was possibly Hollywood's greatest golfer, added his name to the tournament in

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is sworn in for a full term ...

, and became its chairman of the board. The 1970s saw stars like

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the " Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular entertainers of the 1940s, 1950s, and ...

make their debuts. Less than three weeks out of office,

Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( ; born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected ...

played his first pro-am in

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democrat ...

, making him the second former president to play in the tournament. More recently celebrities such as

Jimmy Fallon James Thomas Fallon (born September 19, 1974) is an American comedian, television host, actor, and writer. He is known for his work in television as a cast member on '' Saturday Night Live'' and as the host of the late-night talk show ''The To ...

Don Cheadle Donald Frank Cheadle Jr. (; born November 29, 1964) is an American actor. He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including two Grammy Awards, a Tony Award, two Golden Globe Awards and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. He has also earned nom ...

, and Samuel L. Jackson have competed in the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, before its subsequent renames. History was made at the tournament in 1995 when the pro-am team of

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again ...

, George H. W. Bush, Gerald Ford, Bob Hope and defending champion

Scott Hoch Scott may refer to: Places Canada * Scott, Quebec, municipality in the Nouvelle-Beauce regional municipality in Quebec * Scott, Saskatchewan, a town in the Rural Municipality of Tramping Lake No. 380 * Rural Municipality of Scott No. 98, Sask ...

teed up for the tournament's opening round. The event marked the first time a sitting president – Clinton – had played during a PGA Tour event and perhaps the first time three presidents had ever played together. Its long history has made the event synonymous with golf in the Coachella Valley. Additionally, the allure of Hope's name, even after his death, has convinced the Hope estate, tournament organizers and corporate sponsor Chrysler to include the legendary entertainer's name on the tournament for as long as a substantial portion of its proceeds are given to charities. Before 2012, the tournament's five-round format was a "tough sell" for many players, such as

Tiger Woods Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods (born December 30, 1975) is an American professional golfer. He is tied for first in PGA Tour wins, ranks second in men's major championships, and holds numerous golf records. * * * Woods is widely regarded as ...

, who has never played there. It took place over five days, four of which include celebrity players. That meant rounds take far longer and the presence of so many spectators out to catch a glimpse of their favorite TV, film or music star, can turn even an early round into a far more informal endeavor, which many golfers did not enjoy. Starting in 2012, the tournament was narrowed to a four-round event played on three courses with a 54-hole cut. The tournament is the first continental stop of the calendar year, but is still a hard sell because network television coverage of the PGA Tour starts the ensuing week. The tournament was called the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic until the 2009 tournament, when

George Lopez George Edward Lopez (born April 23, 1961) is an American comedian and actor. He is known for starring in his self-produced ABC sitcom. His stand-up comedy examines race and ethnic relations, including Mexican American culture. Lopez has rece ...

was let go as host and Chrysler dropped their name from the tournament's name, but continued to sponsor the tournament. Instead, the tournament was hosted by the only 5-time winner of the event,

, for the tournament's 50th anniversary. In 2010,

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

Hall of Famer

Yogi Berra Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra (May 12, 1925 – September 22, 2015) was an American professional baseball catcher who later took on the roles of manager and coach. He played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) (1946–1963, 1965), all but t ...

served as the first "Classic Ambassador".

Professional field

The professional field consists of 156 players selected using (slightly reordered) standard eligibility rankings except that the following are also eligible: #

The Players Championship The Players Championship (commonly known as simply The Players, stylized by the PGA Tour as The PLAYERS Championship) is an annual golf tournament on the PGA Tour. Originally known as the Tournament Players Championship, it began in 1974. The ...

winners prior to 1996 # PGA Tour members who played on the most recent

Ryder Cup The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is contested every two years with the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe. The Ryder Cup is named af ...

and

Presidents Cup The Presidents Cup is a series of men's golf matches between a team representing the United States and an International Team representing the rest of the world minus Europe. Europe competes against the United States in a similar but considerably ...

teams of both sides. # Winners of the tournament prior to 1999 and in the previous ten seasons There is no open qualifying for the tournament.

Tournament hosts

Winners

''Note: Green highlight indicates scoring records.''
Source:

Multiple winners

Nine men have won this tournament more than once through 2022. * 5 wins **

: 1960, 1962, 1968, 1971, 1973 * 2 wins **

Billy Casper William Earl Casper Jr. (June 24, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American professional golfer. He was one of the most prolific tournament winners on the PGA Tour from the mid-1950s to the mid-1970s. In his youth, Casper started as a caddie a ...

: 1965, 1969 ** John Cook: 1992, 1997 **

Bill Haas William Harlan Haas (born May 24, 1982) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour and won the 2011 FedEx Cup. He is the son of former PGA Tour player Jay Haas. Early life Haas was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, and was r ...

: 2010, 2015 **

John Mahaffey John Drayton Mahaffey Jr. (born May 9, 1948) is an American professional golfer who has won numerous tournaments including 10 PGA Tour events. Mahaffey was born in Kerrville, Texas. He attended the University of Houston in Houston, Texas. He turn ...

: 1979, 1984 **

Phil Mickelson Philip Alfred Mickelson (born June 16, 1970), nicknamed Lefty, is an American professional golfer who plays for LIV Golf. He has won 45 events on the PGA Tour, including six major championships: three Masters titles (2004, 2006, 2010), two ...

: 2002, 2004 **

Johnny Miller John Laurence Miller (born April 29, 1947) is an American former professional golfer. He was one of the top players in the world during the mid-1970s. He was the first to shoot 63 in a major championship to win the 1973 U.S. Open, and he ran ...

: 1975, 1976 **

Corey Pavin Corey Allen Pavin (born November 16, 1959) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and currently on the PGA Tour Champions. He spent over 150 weeks in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking between 1986 and 1997 a ...

: 1987, 1991 **

Hudson Swafford Hudson Swafford (born September 9, 1987) is an American professional golfer. He formerly played on the PGA Tour, where he won three tournaments, until June 2022, when he joined LIV Golf. Early life and amateur career Swafford was born in Talla ...

: 2017, 2022

Tournament highlights

* 1960:

wins the inaugural version of the tournament by three shots over

Fred Hawkins Fred Hawkins (September 3, 1923 – December 6, 2014) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour from the mid-1940s to the mid-1960s. Hawkins was born in Antioch, Illinois. He attended the University of Illinois and the Texa ...

. Joe Campbell earned $50,000 in unofficial money for scoring a hole-in-one on the fifth hole of the Tamarisk Country Club. * 1963:

Jack Nicklaus Jack William Nicklaus (born January 21, 1940), nicknamed The Golden Bear, is a retired American professional golfer and golf course designer. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest golfers of all time. He won 117 professional tou ...

defeats

Gary Player Gary James Player DMS, OIG (born 1 November 1935) is a South African retired professional golfer who is widely considered to be one of the greatest golfers of all time. During his career, Player won nine major championships on the regular tou ...

65 to 73 in an 18-hole playoff for the tournament title. * 1964: 53-year-old

Jimmy Demaret James Newton Demaret (May 24, 1910 – December 28, 1983) was an American professional golfer. He won 31 PGA Tour events in a long career between 1935 and 1957, and was the first three-time winner of the Masters, with titles in 1940, 1947, and ...

who rarely played competitive golf any more finishes regulation play tied for first with

Tommy Jacobs Keith Thomas Jacobs Jr. (February 13, 1935 – July 9, 2022) was an American professional golfer and golf course owner/operator who played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. He was the older brother of John Jacobs who has also played on t ...

but loses on the second hole of sudden death. * 1967: Club professional

Tom Nieporte Thomas Nieporte (October 21, 1928 – December 21, 2014) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1950s and 1960s. Nieporte grew up in the Cincinnati suburb of North College Hill, Ohio. He attended the Ohio State Univ ...

birdies the 90th hole to beat

Doug Sanders George Douglas Sanders (July 24, 1933 – April 12, 2020) was an American professional golfer who won 20 events on the PGA Tour and had four runner-up finishes at major championships. Early years He was born into a poor family in Cedartown, Ge ...

by one shot. * 1972:

Bob Rosburg Robert Reginald "Rossie" Rosburg (October 21, 1926 – May 14, 2009) was an American professional golfer who later became a sports color analyst for ABC television. Early years, college Rosburg was born in San Francisco, California. He played go ...

wins for the first time since the 1961

Bing Crosby National Pro-Am The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour, held annually at Pebble Beach, California, near Carmel. The tournament is usually held during the month of February on three different courses, currently Pebble Be ...

. He beats

Lanny Wadkins Jerry Lanston "Lanny" Wadkins Jr. (born December 5, 1949) is an American professional golfer. He ranked in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking for 86 weeks from the ranking's debut in 1986 to 1988. Early years Born in Richmond, Virgini ...

by one shot. * 1973: Arnold Palmer wins the tournament for a fifth time by two shots over

and

. It is Palmer's final PGA Tour triumph. * 1976: Johnny Miller shoots a final round 63 to successfully defend his Bob Hope title. He wins by 3 shots over

Rik Massengale } Rik Massengale (born February 6, 1947) is a former American professional golfer who played full-time on the PGA Tour from 1970–1982. Massengale was born and raised in Jacksboro, Texas. He developed an interest in golf as a result of his older ...

. * 1980:

Craig Stadler Craig Robert Stadler (born June 2, 1953) is an American professional golfer who has won numerous tournaments at both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour level, including one major championship, the 1982 Masters Tournament. Early life Stadler was bor ...

wins for the first-time on the PGA Tour. He beats

Tom Purtzer Thomas Warren Purtzer (born December 5, 1951) is an American professional golfer who has won tournaments on both the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. Purtzer was born in Des Moines, Iowa. He attended Arizona State University in Tempe, where he w ...

and Mike Sullivan by 2 shots. * 1982:

Ed Fiori Edward Ray Fiori (born April 21, 1953) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. Fiori was born in Lynwood, California. As a youth, Fiori would sneak through a barbed wire fence to a nine-hole cour ...

, expecting to become a first-time father any day, rolls in a 35-foot birdie putt on the second hole of a sudden death playoff to defeat

Tom Kite Thomas Oliver Kite Jr. (born December 9, 1949) is an American professional golfer and golf course architect. He won the U.S. Open in 1992 and spent 175 weeks in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Ranking between 1989 and 1994. Career Kite w ...

. * 1985: Lanny Wadkins plays the last five holes of regulation in five under par to tie Craig Stadler, then goes on to beat him on the fifth hole of a sudden death playoff. * 1989:

Steve Jones Steve or Steven Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Steve Jones (English presenter) (born 1945), English musician, disk jockey, television presenter, and voice-over artist * Steve Jones (musician) (born 1955), English rock and roll guita ...

becomes the first golfer since

Gil Morgan Gilmer Bryan Morgan II, OD (born September 25, 1946) is an American professional golfer. Morgan was born in Wewoka, Oklahoma. He graduated from East Central State College in Ada, Oklahoma in 1968. In 1972, Morgan earned a Doctor of Optometry de ...

in 1983 to sweep the first two events of the PGA Tour Schedule. He defeats

Paul Azinger Paul William Azinger (born January 6, 1960) is an American professional golfer and TV golf He won twelve times on the PGA Tour, including one major championship, the 1993 PGA Championship. He spent almost 300 weeks in the top-10 of the Official ...

and

Sandy Lyle Alexander Walter Barr Lyle (born 9 February 1958) is a Scottish professional golfer. Lyle has won two major championships during his career. Along with Nick Faldo and Ian Woosnam, he became one of Britain's top golfers during the 1980s. He spe ...

on the first hole of a sudden death playoff. * 1990:

Peter Jacobsen Peter Erling Jacobsen (born March 4, 1954) is an American professional golfer and commentator on Golf Channel and NBC. He has played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. He has won seven events on the PGA Tour and two events on the Champions ...

birdies the 90th hole to win the Hope by one shot over

Brian Tennyson Brian Tennyson (born July 10, 1962) is a retired American golfer. Tennyson was born in Evansville, Indiana. He played college golf at Ball State University. He was twice named as an NCAA All-American in 1982 and 1983; in 1984, the Golf Coaches A ...

and Scott Simpson after NBC golf announcer Johnny Miller talked about how easy it would have been for Jacobsen to choke his second shot to the par-5 finishing hole. * 1991:

holes a 35-foot wedge shot on the first hole of sudden death to defeat

Mark O'Meara Mark Francis O'Meara (born January 13, 1957) is an American professional golfer. He was a tournament winner on the PGA Tour and around the world from the mid-1980s to the late 1990s. He spent nearly 200 weeks in the top-10 of the Official World ...

. * 1992: John Cook holes a chip shot from 100-feet to defeat

Gene Sauers Gene Craig Sauers (born August 22, 1962) is an American professional golfer, currently playing on the PGA Tour Champions. He had three wins on the PGA Tour and overcame a deadly skin condition that kept him off the golf course for five years. He ...

in sudden death. The playoff, originally composed of five players, also involved Tom Kite, Mark O'Meara, and

Rick Fehr Richard Elliott Fehr (born August 28, 1962) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and the Nationwide Tour. Fehr was born in Seattle, Washington and grew up in the state of Washington. As a teenager, Fehr won the Washin ...

. * 1993: Tom Kite, who had twice previously lost the tournament in playoffs, shoots 325, a PGA Tour record for 90 holes at the time. He beats Rick Fehr by 6 shots. * 1999:

David Duval David Robert Duval (born November 9, 1971) is an American professional golfer and former World No. 1 Golfer who competed on the PGA Tour and currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions. Duval won 13 PGA Tour tournaments between 1997 and 2001; incl ...

shoots a final round 59 to beat

Steve Pate Stephen Robert Pate (born May 26, 1961) is an American professional golfer who has played on both the PGA Tour, the Nationwide Tour and Champions Tour. Career Pate was born in Ventura, California. He attended UCLA and was a member of the golf t ...

by one shot. * 2001

Joe Durant Joseph Scott Durant (born April 7, 1964) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour Champions. He was previously a member of the PGA Tour, where he was a four-time winner. Early life Durant was born in Pensacola, Florida. He a ...

shoots a record score for a 90-hole PGA tournament with a 36-under-par score of 324 (65-61-67-66-65). * 2003:

Mike Weir Michael Richard Weir, (born May 12, 1970) is a Canadian professional golfer. He currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions. He spent over 110 weeks in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Ranking between 2001 and 2005. He plays golf left-handed ...

birdies the final three holes to win by two shots over Jay Haas. * 2009:

Pat Perez Patrick Anthony Perez (born March 1, 1976) is an American professional golfer who plays in the LIV Golf Invitational Series. Early life Perez was born in Phoenix, Arizona, and is of Mexican-American descent. He is married to Ashley Perez. Pro ...

shoots 124 to set a new PGA Tour record for the first 36 holes of a tournament. He goes on to win the Hope by three shots over John Merrick. * 2011: In just his fifth PGA Tour start and second as a Tour member,

Jhonattan Vegas Jhonattan Vegas (born 19 August 1984) is a Venezuelan professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour and is a two-time Olympian. Vegas was born in Maturín, Venezuela. He played college golf at the University of Texas, graduating with a degree i ...

became the first Venezuelan to win on the PGA Tour. It was also the last year the tournament was a five-round event. * 2014:

Patrick Reed Patrick Nathaniel Reed (born August 5, 1990) is an American professional golfer. He has nine tournament victories on the PGA Tour, including one major championship, the 2018 Masters Tournament, and two World Golf Championships, the 2014 WGC-C ...

shot 63s in his first three rounds, a PGA Tour record 27-under-par for 54 holes. * 2017:

Adam Hadwin Adam Hadwin (born 2 November 1987) is a Canadian professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour. He has won once on the PGA Tour, twice on the Web.com Tour, and twice on the Canadian Tour. Early life Hadwin was born in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan an ...

shot a 59 in the third round. He is the first Canadian on the PGA Tour to accomplish this and only the third player to shoot 59 on a par-72 course.

Records

* Low 18-Hole record 59 –

(1999),

(2017) * Low 36-Hole record 123 –

Steve Stricker Steven Charles Stricker (born February 23, 1967) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour and the PGA Tour Champions. He has twelve victories on the PGA Tour, including the WGC-Match Play title in 2001 and two FedEx Cup play ...

(2009) * Low 54-Hole record 189 –

(2014) * Low 72-Hole record 259 –

(2001) * Low 90-Hole record 324 –

(2001) (PGA Tour record) * High winning score 349 –

(1966),

(1967) * High finish by winner 72 –

(1965) * Low finish by winner 59 –

(1999) * Low start by winner 63 – Jay Haas (1988) * High start by winner 76 –

(1967),

(1989) * Largest victory margin 6 strokes –

(1977),

(1993) * Low cut 273 – 15-under-par (2009) (PGA Tour record) * Wire to wire winners –

(1977),

Bruce Lietzke Bruce Alan Lietzke (July 18, 1951 – July 28, 2018) was an American professional golfer who won 13 tournaments on the PGA Tour between 1977 and 1994, including two victories in the Canadian Open. His best finish in a major championship was ...

(1981) * Best turn around –

Jonathan Kaye Jonathan Andrew Kaye (born August 2, 1970) is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour. Biography Kaye was born in Denver, Colorado, and is Jewish. He attended Sunnyslope High School in Phoenix, Arizona, where he was a star in ...

(1999) 2nd – 83 3rd – 62

Timeline of courses used

DateFormat = yyyy ImageSize = width:1100 height:auto barincrement:20 Period = from:1959 till:2029 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal PlotArea = right:20 left:0 bottom:50 top:5 #> to display a count on left side of graph, use "left:20" to suppress the count, use "left:20"<# Colors = id:line value:black id:bg value:white id:Non value:rgb(0.8,0.8,0.8) # Use this color to denote a non-host course id:1rh value:rgb(0.7,0.3,0.7) # Use this color to denote a host course that was not part of the pre-cut rota id:Host value:rgb(0.95,0,1) # Use this color to denote a host course PlotData= width:15 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s bar:1 color:Host from:1960 till:1961 text:Thunderbird Country Club bar:1 color:Non from:1961 till:1963 bar:2 color:Non from:1960 till:1962 text:Bermuda Dunes Country Club bar:2 color:1rh from:1962 till:1963 bar:2 color:Non from:1963 till:1965 bar:2 color:Host from:1965 till:1966 bar:2 color:Non from:1966 till:1968 bar:2 color:Host from:1968 till:1969 bar:2 color:Non from:1969 till:1971 bar:2 color:Host from:1971 till:1972 bar:2 color:Non from:1972 till:1973 bar:2 color:Host from:1973 till:1974 bar:2 color:Non from:1974 till:1975 bar:2 color:Host from:1975 till:1976 bar:2 color:Non from:1976 till:1978 bar:2 color:Host from:1978 till:1979 bar:2 color:Non from:1979 till:1981 bar:2 color:Host from:1981 till:1982 bar:2 color:Non from:1982 till:1984 bar:2 color:Host from:1984 till:1985 bar:2 color:Non from:1985 till:1986 bar:2 color:Host from:1986 till:1987 bar:2 color:Non from:1987 till:1989 bar:2 color:Host from:1989 till:1990 bar:2 color:Non from:1990 till:1992 bar:2 color:Host from:1992 till:1993 bar:2 color:Non from:1993 till:1995 bar:2 color:Host from:1995 till:1996 bar:2 color:Non from:1996 till:1998 bar:2 color:Host from:1998 till:1999 bar:2 color:Non from:1999 till:2000 bar:2 color:Host from:2000 till:2001 bar:2 color:Non from:2001 till:2010 bar:3 color:Non from:1960 till:1963 text:Indian Wells Country Club bar:3 color:Host from:1963 till:1964 bar:3 color:Non from:1964 till:1966 bar:3 color:Host from:1966 till:1967 bar:3 color:Non from:1967 till:1969 bar:3 color:Host from:1969 till:1970 bar:3 color:Non from:1970 till:1972 bar:3 color:Host from:1972 till:1973 bar:3 color:Non from:1973 till:1974 bar:3 color:Host from:1974 till:1975 bar:3 color:Non from:1975 till:1976 bar:3 color:Host from:1976 till:1977 bar:3 color:Non from:1977 till:1979 bar:3 color:Host from:1979 till:1980 bar:3 color:Non from:1980 till:1982 bar:3 color:Host from:1982 till:1983 bar:3 color:Non from:1983 till:1985 bar:3 color:Host from:1985 till:1986 bar:3 color:Non from:1986 till:1988 bar:3 color:Host from:1988 till:1989 bar:3 color:Non from:1989 till:1991 bar:3 color:Host from:1991 till:1992 bar:3 color:Non from:1992 till:1994 bar:3 color:Host from:1994 till:1995 bar:3 color:Non from:1995 till:1997 bar:3 color:Host from:1997 till:1998 bar:3 color:Non from:1998 till:2005 bar:4 color:Non from:1960 till:1961 text:Tamarisk Country Club bar:4 color:1rh from:1961 till:1962 bar:4 color:Non from:1962 till:1964 bar:4 color:Non from:1969 till:1970 bar:4 color:Non from:1971 till:1972 bar:4 color:Non from:1973 till:1974 bar:4 color:Non from:1975 till:1976 bar:4 color:Non from:1977 till:1978 bar:4 color:Non from:1979 till:1980 bar:4 color:Non from:1981 till:1982 bar:4 color:Non from:1983 till:1984 bar:4 color:Non from:1985 till:1986 bar:4 color:Non from:1990 till:1991 bar:4 color:Non from:1993 till:1994 bar:4 color:Non from:1996 till:1997 bar:4 color:Non from:1999 till:2000 bar:4 color:Non from:2002 till:2003 bar:4 color:Non from:2005 till:2006 bar:5 color:Non from:1961 till:1964 text:Eldorado Country Club bar:5 color:Host from:1964 till:1965 bar:5 color:Non from:1965 till:1969 bar:5 color:Non from:1970 till:1971 bar:5 color:Non from:1972 till:1973 bar:5 color:Non from:1974 till:1975 bar:5 color:Non from:1976 till:1977 bar:5 color:Non from:1978 till:1979 bar:5 color:Non from:1980 till:1981 bar:5 color:Non from:1982 till:1983 bar:5 color:Non from:1984 till:1985 bar:5 color:Non from:1986 till:1988 bar:5 color:Non from:1989 till:1990 bar:6 color:Non from:1964 till:1967 text:La Quinta Country Club bar:6 color:Host from:1967 till:1968 bar:6 color:Non from:1968 till:1970 bar:6 color:Host from:1970 till:1971 bar:6 color:Non from:1971 till:1977 bar:6 color:Host from:1977 till:1978 bar:6 color:Non from:1978 till:1980 bar:6 color:Host from:1980 till:1981 bar:6 color:Non from:1981 till:1983 bar:6 color:Host from:1983 till:1984 bar:6 color:Non from:1984 till:1987 bar:6 color:Non from:1988 till:1989 bar:6 color:Non from:1991 till:1993 bar:6 color:Non from:1994 till:1996 bar:6 color:Non from:1997 till:1999 bar:6 color:Non from:2000 till:2002 bar:6 color:Non from:2003 till:2008 bar:6 color:Non from:2010 till:2020 bar:7 color:Host from:1987 till:1988 text:PGA West Stadium Course bar:7 color:Host from:2016 till:2020 bar:8 color:Non from:1988 till:1990 text:PGA West Palmer Private Course bar:8 color:Host from:1990 till:1991 bar:8 color:Non from:1991 till:1993 bar:8 color:Host from:1993 till:1994 bar:8 color:Non from:1994 till:1995 bar:8 color:Non from:1998 till:1999 bar:8 color:Host from:1999 till:2000 bar:8 color:Non from:2000 till:2001 bar:8 color:Host from:2001 till:2006 bar:8 color:Non from:2006 till:2009 bar:8 color:Host from:2009 till:2016 bar:9 color:Non from:1995 till:1996 text:Indian Ridge Country Club bar:9 color:Host from:1996 till:1997 bar:9 color:Non from:1997 till:1998 bar:10 color:Host from:2006 till:2009 text:The Classic Club bar:11 color:Non from:2008 till:2012 text:SilverRock Resort bar:12 color:Non from:2009 till:2016 text:PGA West Nicklaus Private Course bar:13 color:Non from:2016 till:2020 text:PGA West Nicklaus Tournament Course ScaleMajor = gridcolor:black unit:year increment:5 start:1960 TextData = fontsize:L textcolor:black pos:(0,30) tabs:(550-center) text:^"Desert Classic courses" Legend:

Television broadcast and cable history

From the mid-1960s through 1998,

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

broadcast the fourth and fifth rounds of the tournament. ABC took over the coverage in 1999 through 2006, with

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

covering the tournament in 2003 due to ABC's involvement with

Super Bowl XXXVII Super Bowl XXXVII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Oakland Raiders and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers to decide the National Football League (NFL) cha ...

. On the cable side, the first three rounds were covered by

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

through 2002. From 2003–06,

USA Network USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madi ...

covered the early action. Beginning in 2007, the tournament lost its network coverage and the

Golf Channel Golf Channel (also verbally referred to as simply Golf) is an American sports television network owned by the NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. Founded in Birmingham, Alabama, it is currently based out of NBC S ...

showed all five rounds on

cable television Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with bro ...

. Even with the move to four rounds and the reduction in celebrity involvement, the tournament is still exclusive to cable, as it is usually the last full-field stop restricted to cable-only coverage, as network television coverage of the PGA Tour currently does not begin until the week after the NFL's Conference Championship Games, which is the week before the Super Bowl.

Coverage style

Prior to 2007, USA and ESPN/ABC consistently covered all four courses used for the event, with the primary camera crew covering PGA West, but live coverage still emanating from the other courses. However, when Golf Channel took over coverage, the network only assigned live coverage to PGA West (both the Palmer and Nicklaus courses). All other courses used did not receive live coverage at all, with an hourly highlights package sent in and played, but none of it live. This has been the approach consistently taken by Golf Channel in regards to tournaments with multiple courses, including the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am and the Walt Disney World Golf Classic.

References

External links

*
Coverage on the PGA Tour's website
{{coord, 33.643, -116.268, display=t, type:event PGA Tour events Golf in California Sports competitions in California Sports in Riverside County, California La Quinta, California Pro–am golf tournaments Recurring sporting events established in 1960 1960 establishments in California