Second of his three Ghost of the Sands Desert courses, this par 72 is another beautiful design by Quietly, with small rocky mountains as a panorama, nice plantings (cacti, bushes, small trees), pretty stone walls, a few water hazards, and some elevation changes that will challenge you with quite a few blind approaches to the greens, often guarded by big pot bunkers.
On the front 9, I like the left dogleg par-4 2nd hole, with its undulating fairway, the very long (more than 650 yards) par-5 3rd, with shots over a small winding creek crossing the fairway twice, and the scenic par-3 4th hole, with a tee shot over a wide and shallow sandy area with three pot bunkers in front of the green.
I also like the short (around 345 yards) and straight par-4 5th hole, quite tricky, with its narrow fairway and a big pot bunker (on the left) and two tiny sandy mounds with bushes (in the middle) in front of the green.
Then, after the right dogleg par-4 6th hole, with a slightly-uphill tee shot and a blind and downhill shot to the green, you will have to watch out for a big elongated bunker behind the green of the par-3 8th, while enjoying the nice panoramic view, before heading for the right dogleg par-5 9th hole, with a couple of tiny sandy mounds in the middle of the fairway (near the corner) and an uphill approach to the green.
The scenery changes drastically on the back 9, with the par-4 10th hole and its fairway parallel to a nice small stone wall along a beautiful road on the right (with some small homes), and the dogleg par-4 12th, with a small pond in front of the green (on the left) and a big bunker (to the right) of the flag.
The left dogleg par-5 13th hole is very pretty and challenging too, with a narrow fairway set above a small shallow valley filled with trees (on the left) and two big elongated bunkers midway (on the right) along a small hilltop, and is followed by the right dogleg par-4 14th, with an uphill tee shot landing near a small bunker in the middle of the fairway (around the corner) and a blind and downhill second shot to the green, guarded by three pot bunkers in front, on the left.
The left dogleg par-4 15th is another tricky hole, with two small sandy mounds in the middle of the slanted fairway and a very tough (and blind) approach shot over some big sandy dunes, filled with bushes, toward the downhill green, with a big pot bunker to watch for, on the left.
Then, after the right dogleg par-4 16th hole, with a slightly-downhill tee shot and a second and uphill shot over a rocky and sandy area, splitting the fairway, with a big pot bunker in front of the green (on the left), you will finish in “grand” style with the dogleg par-5 18th, sharply to the left, and uphill all the way, with sandy hilltops all along on the left and a very tough second shot to reach the green, with a small creek crossing the fairway diagonally in front (reminiscent of Augusta’s 13th hole) !
Overall, if I prefer the more challenging back 9, you will have to hit some pretty good shots all along if you want to avoid landing in deep sand or in those pot bunkers and finish with a decent scorecard on this well-designed course, once again, by Quietly.

Thanks everyone.

Although I had intended to do a complete desert links course, I did end up putting in 4 recreations: the 8th was based on St. Andrews #11, 13 was Pebble Beach 18th, 15 was Spyglass Hills 4th and 18 was Augusta's 13th. I intended for 13=13 and 18=18, but I was forced to swap them due to some topographical and routing issues I ran into.

As to Yooperbackers comment about 15, while it was based on Spyglass, obvioulsy not a links course, I feel it still fits the style of a links hole. The approach shot specifically is remeniscent of the Dell Hole (5th at Lahinch, a links course) which has a large mound in front and behind the green making a totally blind shot. Golfers have to ring a bell after they leave the green to let the next group know they can hit.

To me, the quintessential element of most 'links' style designs is quirkiness or uniqueness. Desert Hawks #5 and #15 are my two favourite holes on the course because they are both short and quirky.

Another outstanding course, the 3rd of a set. A trio to keep in the game... thanks for your time and effort

Excellent work here! Every hole is interesting and fun to play, very well planned layout. Make sure to try all Quietly's previous courses. They are all outstanding.