The entrance gate. (Photo by Andrew Bramasco and Melissa Bramasco)
The living room. (Photo by Andrew Bramasco and Melissa Bramasco)
The kitchen. (Photo by Andrew Bramasco and Melissa Bramasco)
A casual dining nook in the kitchen. (Photo by Andrew Bramasco and Melissa Bramasco)
The primary suite. (Photo by Andrew Bramasco and Melissa Bramasco)
This Santa Barbara-style home, located along the waterfront of La Quinta Country Club’s 8th fairway, is on the market for $3.95 million. (Photo by Andrew Bramasco and Melissa Bramasco)
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The entrance gate. (Photo by Andrew Bramasco and Melissa Bramasco)
A Santa Barbara-style home, ideally located on a waterfront lot along the 8th fairway of La Quinta Country Club, where the American Express PGA Tournament will be teeing off this week, is on the market.
The asking price is $3.95 million.
Within the residence’s 4,091 square feet are three bedrooms and four bathrooms. Gates open to reveal a private, fountain courtyard framed by French doors.
The sellers are Texas transplants Dr. Carl Highgenboten and his wife, Sheila. He’s a retired orthopedic surgeon. She served as La Quinta Country Club’s first female president.
“I’ve had a home here at La Quinta Country Club since 1991,” said Carl Highgenboten by phone. “After we retired in 2007, we remodeled that home. But we kept looking at this one every time we drove by on our way to the clubhouse.”
On the day a “For Sale” sign went up, the Highgenbotens made an offer on the home. Records show they closed escrow in March 2012 for $800,000.
Renowned modernist Barry A. Berkus originally designed the house, completed in 1978. While his architectural envelope, characterized by a smooth stucco exterior, a red tile roof and a mission revival-style parapet, remains intact, the sellers undertook an 18-month studs-out renovation in 2013 to improve indoor-outdoor flow and upgrade every major system.
Inside, the home features high, sand-blasted tongue-and-groove ceilings, smooth white stucco walls and terracotta tile flooring. Floor-to-ceiling windows and clerestories bring in natural light while framing views of the lake, fairway and mountains.
“On different days, I feel like I have to pinch myself when I look at the mountains because they change colors,” Sheila Highgenboten said.
Gas fireplaces anchor both the living and dining areas, while the gourmet kitchen has been modernized with a center island in place of the former indoor grill. Just outside the kitchen’s glass-encased dining nook is a built-in barbecue area.
The primary suite has a living area, gas fireplace, double walk-in closets and an open shower.
In the backyard, the pool and patio overlook the lake bordering the golf course, where Carl Highgenboten has been a member for 44 years.
“It’s a quiet and understated club,” he said. “It doesn’t have braggarts. You can easily play 18 holes of golf with a guy and never know he’s a billionaire.”
According to the Highgenbotens, their home backs up to where both pros and amateurs tee off.
They have made the most of this prime spot. On Jan. 22, they will host a PGA Tour viewing party with tequila tastings and empanadas.
“If you don’t want to sit (in the house), you can walk out onto the cart path because it’s roped off,” Sheila Highgenboten said, adding, “It’s a great house to entertain in.”
Robert Andrew Millar, J.D. of Desert Sotheby’s International Realty has the listing.