Framed by craggy desert ranges and the retirement homes of wealthy Californians, the Mission Hills Country Club is not a course Kiwi golfers would find much familiarity with.
But it will host a New Zealander with hopes of achieving something special in the Coachella Valley Desert this week, with Lydia Ko taking part in her first major as a professional, the Kraft Nabisco Championship.
The tournament is the first LPGA major of the season and presents Ko with her first opportunity this year to famously become the youngest major winner in history.
The 16-year-old Kiwi is no stranger to the Mission Hills Country Club. As an amateur, she finished tied for 25th in last year's Kraft Nabisco - the field's top ranked non-professional.
But what of the course in front of her - how will her specific golfing talents match up with the fairways, greens and bunkers ahead?
The Mission Hills Country Club tournament course has a par of 72, with a challenging range of holes.
The front nine shapes as slightly easier than the home stretch. The first hole, a par-4, tests golfers' fairway finesse - with the green flanked on three sides by bunkers, before a long par-5 on the second.
Though it features a massive dog leg, birdie chances are available for those with distance off the tee.
Mission Hills' sixth hole, a par-4, looks interesting - with water and palms needing to be cleared to reach the green. The par-3 eighth isn't without its trappings - with bunkers lining the green - while at 492 metres, the ninth hole is the longest of the course. With a tight fairway and big undulating green, it's one of the tricky holes, too.
The back nine opens with a wide, comfortable fairway, before the narrow par-5 11th keeps golfers' confidence in check.
The massive green on the par-4 13th should play into the hands of the often-praised putter of Ko; a hole that kicks off what many experts in the LPGA see as one of the most challenging four hole stretch of the tour.
The par-3 14th is the course's shortest at just 135 metres - though par is seen as a good get - while the par-4 16th shapes as the trickiest on the course.
Trees lining the right of the hole have proved a graveyard for many over the years, while the green holds incredible contours.
The final hole is the course's most famous - a par-5 that finishes in front of the clubhouse. Tradition stipulates that the small lake in front of the 18th - Poppie's Pond - must be jumped into by the tournament winner. World number one Inbee Park did the honours last year.
While the majority of the Kraft Nabisco field took part in yesterday's Pro-Am, Ko instead just played the back nine solo, starting at 6.30am.
The Kiwi went on to alternate between the driving range and practice greens for the rest of the day, as well as getting some quality time in with her pitching wedge.
Ko teed off at 3.50am this morning, alongside her playing partner, Ai Miyazato of Japan, for the tournament's first round.
Source: Stuff.co.nz
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