As tour returns, a proper time to honor desert icon Arnold Palmer

Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Dwight Eisenhower stand on the future site of Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage on Jan. 31, 1967.(Photo: Photo courtesy of Palm Springs Historical Society)

Arnold Palmer and the Masters became so intertwined through the years that it was difficult to think of one without thinking of the other.

Palmer was the first four-time winner of the green jacket, winning in 1958, 1960, 1962 and 1964, forging his image as the hard-charging golfer of the people, the blue-collar hero able to win in the most upscale of settings. Palmer and his legion of fans also helped raise the profile of the Masters to perhaps the biggest tournament in the golf world.

But for all the great connections between Palmer and the Masters, there was one tournament where Palmer was even a more prominent figure. In the Coachella Valley, at the tournament hosted by his close friend Bob Hope, Palmer was truly the King.

As the tournament now known as the CareerBuilder Challenge is played for the 58th time this week, the towering figure of Palmer will be difficult to escape. The event is planning some small tributes to Palmer, the long-time desert resident who died last September at the age of 87. This is 2017, after all, and the chase for the trophy, the check and the FedEx Cup points can't be overshadowed by any one golfer.

But Palmer was not just any golfer, of course. He was one of the best to play the game and his popularity in the game at his peak and even today is unmatched.

In the desert particularly, Palmer seemed to carve out a place that ranked him with names such as Hope, Eisenhower, Sinatra and Shore as Coachella Valley icons. Nowhere was Palmer's prowess as a player, course designer and ambassador to the game on display more than in the desert.

Consider that six of Palmer's 62 official PGA Tour titles, or just a shade under one out of 10 of his official wins, came in the Coachella Valley. Most desert fans know that Palmer won Bob Hope's tournament five times, the first in the inaugural event in 1960 before Hope's name was even on the tournament and the last in 1973 in a classic rainy day duel with Jack Nicklaus. There was also a playoff loss and a few other close calls in that span of 14 years.

But mention to Palmer that he won five times in the desert and he would flash that unmistakable smile and get that twinkle in his eye and say, "It was six!" The win many forget about was the 1959 Thunderbird Invitational, the final playing of the desert's first official PGA Tour event. Palmer shot 62 in the final round that week to claim what was at the time his 11th tour title.

Before you discount Palmer's six desert wins as just victories in a small little regular tour event, know that in the 1960s and 1970s few tournaments could rival the Bob Hope Classic for star power. Names including Ken Venturi, Gene Little, Billy Casper, Raymond Floyd, Johnny Miller and, yes, Nicklaus fell to Palmer under the palm trees.

But Palmer was far more than just a man who won golf tournaments in the desert. He had close friends in the desert, from President Dwight Eisenhower to Hope to long-time tournament official Ernie Dunlevie, and Palmer lived in the desert for at least a few months a year for most of five decades. He designed far more courses in the desert than he had wins in the area, and he had far more friends in the desert than perhaps any other desert resident.

So as the world mourned the loss of Palmer and smiled at all of the memories the kid from Latrobe, Penn., left them, it was only natural that the grieving was perhaps a bit stronger and the memories a bit brighter in the desert at places like Arnold Palmer's Restaurant in La Quinta and The Nest, a frequent Palmer haunt in Palm Desert.

As the CareerBuilder Challenge is played this week, watch some of the top names in the game and some of the brightest newcomers play for the title and their share of the purse.

But stop for a moment during the week and remember Palmer. Remember his smile, his powerful and unmistakable swing and his six desert wins. Remember how he lifted the desert's tour event and golf in the desert to greater levels of popularity. And you can smile and be thankful that golf and the desert had a great friend in Arnold Palmer.

Larry Bohannan is The Desert Sun golf writer. He can be reached at (760) 778-4633 or larry.bohannan@desertsun.com. Follow him on Facebook or on Twitter at @Larry_Bohannan.