The Five: What you need to know about Black Desert Resort, newest PGA TOUR venue

The PGA TOUR is back in Utah for the first time in 60 years, and its return to the state will be at a fittingly dramatic course. This week’s Black Desert Championship will be played at the stunning Black Desert Resort in Ivins, Utah.

The 2022 Tom Weiskopf design features views of Snow Canyon State Park nestled amongst lava fields and vermillion cliffs of Greater Zion. The area has become a hotbed for resort golf and now will add a TOUR event to its resume. What’s more, Black Desert Resort will host an LPGA tournament in 2025.

Here are five things to know about Black Desert Resort.

1. Carved into black lava

Black Desert presents a remarkable contrast in color: red rock mountains, lush green fairways and black lava, the first color that catches the eye and makes the others pop.

Black lava, the signature feature of Black Desert Resort, lines nearly every fairway and shapes the topography as golfers are asked to play around, through and on top of the lava.

Phil Smith, Weiskopf’s business partner and architect, called it “the most difficult project … that I worked on in my career,” likening the technical challenge to an advanced math class.

“A calculus, differential equations and trigonometry class all wrapped into an art class,” Smith told Golf Digest in a 2023 episode of the “Feed the Ball” podcast. “It took a lot of detail and a lot of precise drawings to get everything just right.”

Smith and Weiskopf’s crew had to blast every square inch they wanted to use as playable land, a tedious and time-consuming act as the course was routed through the lava outflow utilizing natural veins and dynamite. Construction began in 2021. Grassing started in May 2022 and finished in December 2022. Smith said they walked every square inch of the site twice, a dangerous task in its own way.

“We lost (Weiskopf) a couple times, he fell down the lava a couple times and we sort of fished him out,” Smith said. “He was beaten and bloodied and everything else, but he kept on going.”

2. Tom Weiskopf’s last design

Weiskopf, a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, took on a second career as an architect after retiring from professional golf in the late ‘90s. He designed more than 70 courses, and Black Desert was the last of these.

Weiskopf was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer as construction began, and he continued to travel to the property as his condition worsened. He passed away in August 2022 at age 79, four months before the course was finished.

Smith carried out most of the work when Weiskopf’s condition worsened, but the overall feel of the property is very much in Weiskopf’s image. He laid plans for the routing well before his diagnosis and continued his work during his cancer treatment. Although he didn’t see its final form, the course closely resembles what he laid out. The result is one of Weiskopf’s most dramatic designs.

“It’s off-the-charts cool,” Smith said, adding that the vibe is, “Kona meets Sedona.”

Black Desert is currently ranked No. 1 in Utah on Golfweek’s Best list of public-access courses and 26th among all U.S. resort courses.

3. Inspired by masterpieces

Weiskopf claimed his lone major title at the 1973 Open Championship at Royal Troon, outlasting Jack Nicklaus, Johnny Miller and Neil Coates. Only six players were under par that week, and Weiskopf won comfortably at 12-under. So perhaps it’s no surprise that his last design features an ode to Troon’s signature hole, the "Postage Stamp" par-3 eighth.

Weiskopf admittedly designed Black Desert’s 17th hole as a “spin-off” of Troon’s eighth. Three greenside bunkers protect the small green, with runoff areas on all sides. The tee box is perched well above the green, creating a "postage stamp" feel off the tee. Black Desert’s version of the hole was not designed to be as penal, despite playing about 30 yards longer than its Scottish inspiration. The bunkers are more playable, and the wind isn’t as much of a factor as it is across the pond, but Weiskopf captured the Postage Stamp’s essence.

It’s not the only hole that he pulled from his playing days. The 198-yard par-3 third is a callback to the famous sixth hole at Riviera Country Club, with a bunker cut in the middle of the green. It wasn’t until Weiskopf’s last site visit before construction that the idea came to him as he looked to spice up an area of the property that used to be a quarry. It’s a bold design choice and extremely rare beyond Riviera.

“The trick is making sure no matter where you are on the green, you can access the hole,” Smith said.

The expansive green slopes heavily from back to front, creating that opportunity for players to putt regardless of where their approach settles.

The par-5 13th green is inspired by the 14th green at Pebble Beach, with the back-left portion elevated above the rest of the green and guarded by a deep greenside bunker. The rest of the hole at Black Desert only slightly resembles its famous Pebble counterpart, but Weiskopf thought of it similarly – a difficult par 5 that comes in the middle of the back nine.

4. The (drivable) Weiskopf par 4 is in play – twice

The drivable par 4 has become synonymous with Weiskopf, who arguably brought that cool risk-reward feature back in style. He designed TPC Scottsdale and its 17th hole, one of the most consequential drivable par 4s on the PGA TOUR schedule.

Fittingly, players will see two drivable par 4s at Black Desert – the fifth and 14th holes.

“That’s what our bread and butter was,” Smith said.

The 320-yard fifth hole runs south, through lava fields, and to the farthest point from the clubhouse. Players choosing to lay up will have multiple options, either aiming farther back on the right side of the fairway or playing it up closer to the green on the left side.

Most players will have the firepower to drive the fifth green, though they’ll contend with a greenside bunker short of it and the black lava behind the putting surface. The prevailing fall wind will move shots from left to right.

The 322-yard 14th hole provides a prime opportunity to play over the black lava fields. The right side of the green is blind from the tee, guarded by a large mound of black lava. Players could take on the lava, but the more prudent play will be aiming at the left edge of the green. A layup shot will be enticing with a wide-open corridor setting up an optimal angle for the approach shot, but with the tournament in the balance on Sunday, the hole offers the players an opportunity for an eagle if they are up for the risk.

“I think it creates some of the best drama in golf,” Smith said.

5. A setting like none other

Golf at Black Desert looks unique to all other PGA TOUR golf. That’s evident with one cursory glance at course photos. But the reality is the land is unique to almost anywhere in the U.S., period. Situated in the southwest corner of Utah, Black Desert is the only spot in the United States where three major ecosystems converge: the Mojave Desert, the Colorado Plateau and the Great Basin.

The Mojave Desert approaches from the southwest, while the Colorado Plateau borders the east and the Great Basin lines the north end of the property. The convergence of the land creates a picturesque setting for golf, a main driver of tourism in the area.

The signature point of the course may be the double green shared by the second and eighth holes that winds around the black lava. The green, which sits at a high point on the property and looks especially lush against the lava, is a golf photographer’s dream.

Said Weiskopf before he passed away: “It’s one of the most beautiful vistas and places that you could ever just stand there and (do) a 360 turnaround and look at all these beautiful mountains.”