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Central Arizona Mesa

Mesa Country Club

Mesa Country Club – Arizona Golf Course Reviews
In its early days, Mesa Country Club didn’t have a lot of wealthy members. But thanks to the founding group’s vision and perseverance, the club now sports a rich history and stands as one of the most popular private country clubs in the Phoenix-metro area.

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And following the renovation which took place during the summer months of 2013, the club that dates back to 1948 is better than ever. The golf course, clubhouse and country club amenities all received attention.

Essentially, careful inspection reveals that 12 of the 18 golf course offerings have been modestly enhanced, although all 18 holes were touched in one way or another – but only “soft hands” would do here.

Mesa Country Club’s golf course was designed by the father-son team of William Park “Billy” Bell and William Francis Bell, still considered “California’s first family” of golf course architecture.

Commissioned by the members in 1947, Bell returned with both a 9-hole and an 18-hole layout. The members chose the 18-hole design and immediately acquired an additional 13 acres of property the layout required,

Mesa Country Club embodies the grand golf course style of the mid-1940’s and remains one of the most envied and prominent classic layouts still available to players in the Phoenix area today.

Dick Turner, one of the club’s former head pros, also did some tweaking to the course in 1974, mainly to add length, but all the enhancements maintain the original Bell family trademarks: tight, tree-lined fairways, classic doglegs, smallish greens by modern standards and intimate, elevated tees.

mesa-country-club-tee-photoThere’s nothing tricked up about Mesa Country Club. From the tee, you can clearly see what’s expected of you as you determine your plan of attack.

But executing that plan can be a challenge due to Bell’s traditional strategic design. The course routinely tests the best as the former host of events like the Arizona Open, Arizona Amateur and Southwest Section of the PGA Championship.

A narrow canal winds through the property, coming into play on five holes, and several lakes and ponds bring water into play on three more. The first seven holes, plus Nos. 14 and 15, lie on the top level of a mesa for which the city is named. The other half are located on acreage that members refer to as the “Lower 40.”

A different site, which is now home to Falcon Field Airport, was considered by the founding members, but they settled on the current location in the heart of Mesa.

Those founders, who included Dwight Patterson (known as the “Father of the Cactus League” for Arizona baseball spring training), struggled to maintain the club’s finances in its early years and, legend holds, did so with an assist from some slot machines, which were popular private entertainment during those years.

Today, they’re very public entertainment in Arizona as several Native American nation casino – hotel – golf resorts are scattered all across the state.

mesa-country-club-fairwayMesa Country Club offers six sets of tees stretching to 6,870 yards, with a rating of 72.5 and slope of 131 from the tips. The Bells created several excellent holes, including a three-hole stretch starting at No. 5, a 520-yard par-5 that plays downhill over the canal to an elevated green.

The sixth is a 419-yard uphill par-4 with a slight dogleg left, the canal resides 220 yards out from the tee and fairway bunkers threaten on the right, with a smallish green that slopes sharply from back to front; tough par here.

Capping the stretch is the seventh, one of the best par 3’s in town. The 198-yarder plays downhill, over the canal lying in wait just in front of the green, to a putting surface surrounded by mature eucalyptus trees and four large bunkers. Miss the green here, and you’ll probably find a double on your card.

Highlights on the back-9 include No. 16, another downhill par 3 of 154 yards with deep bunkers surrounding the green, and the two par 5’s – 13 and 18. At 504 and 495 yards, respectively, they appear as birdie opportunities on the card, but both play much longer to uphill green complexes, where a lot of birdies remain just that – opportunities.

Members here also enjoy swimming, tennis, fitness and fine dining facilities. A variety of memberships, for golfers and non-golfers, are available and the price is right.

Read the Arizona Golf Course Review for every golf course in Arizona before you tee it up. You’ll find it’s “All Things Arizona Golf” from the Arizona Golf Authority.

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Central Arizona Scottsdale

Camelback Golf Club – Ambiente Course

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Ambiente Course – Camelback Golf Club – Arizona Golf Courses
Ambiente is the new name for for the forgettable Indian Bend Course at Camelback Golf Club. Architect Jason Straka, on behalf of Hurdzan/Fry Environmental Golf Desegn, has completely transformed this tract into a championship caliber test of golf, and a complimentary pairing to Camelback’s original layout, the parkland-style Padre Course.

Ambiente, the Spanish term for “environment”, has a links-type feel as it winds its way across an area known locally as the Indian Bend Wash. You’re ensconced within a mature area of mid-town Scottsdale here so the stunning mountain backdrops, scenic water holes, colorful flowering gardens and luxurious homes are no surprise. And Ambiente is just one component of the $70 million, seven year renovation project completed at the historic JW Marriott Camelback Inn Resort and Spa.

camelback-ambiente-13-photographLocal players are pleasantly “shocked” at the transformation, particularly the artful native grass vegetation that frames the playing surfaces and penalizes wayward shots.

Five sets of tee boxes are provided for your consideration, and the most forward set guarantees you’ll have no forced carries during your round.  Ambiente’s par 72 offering can be stretched to 7,221 yards; it’s up to you.

AZGA “Local Hang” – After the last putt drops, enjoy the 36,000-square-foot pueblo-styled clubhouse. It’s a great place to unwind with libation and tasty dishes, patio dining and outdoor adobe-style fireplace ambiance facing a lake and waterfall on the Padre’s finishing hole. The two courses are not located at the Camelback Inn at JW Marriott Resort, but are about three miles away. If you are lucky enough to stay at the resort, you will experience first-class amenities that are among the best in Arizona. If not, there are myriad hotels and restaurants in the area from which to choose because this golf facility, even with its rustic setting, is located near the heart of Scottsdale.

Click Padre Course at Camelback Golf Club to read about the original course, and for every golf course in Arizona, click Arizona Golf Course Reviews. It’s “All Things Arizona Golf” from the Arizona Golf Authority.

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Central Arizona Mesa

Dreamland Villa Golf Course

Arizona Golf Course Reviews – Arizona Golf Authority

Dreamland Villa’s public 9-hole executive course is part of the Dreamland community, the first active-adult golf community created by Farnsworth Developers, which began building for retirees in Mesa in the late-1950s. You’ll find two sets of tees at 1,936 and 1,763 yards, level par of 31 and a course rating of 57.6 for an 18-hole loop from the back tees.

The golf course features four par-4 holes and five par 3s; two lakes bring water into play on four holes. Par 3s range from 118-157 yards, which just happen to be the eighth and ninth holes, and both require tee shots over the same lake, which also guards the green at the par-4 second hole.

Another lake is positioned between the fourth and fifth holes, and threatens both the 140-yard par 3 and the 261-yard par 4. The longest hole on the course is the 338-yard par-4 seventh, where wild-right tee shots may also be rinsed for free.

Dreamland does not have a driving range but does have putting and chipping greens available and a café. In 2011, the course adopted a “closed for the summer” policy which may continue in future years.

Farnsworth also created the nearby Sunland Springs Village Golf Course development with three nine-hole executive courses that spans 900 acres.

Visit our Arizona Golf Course Directory List and read the AZGA Player’s Review for every golf course in Arizona at www.arizonagolfauthority.com/coursedirectory/.

It’s “All Things Arizona Golf” from the Arizona Golf Authority.

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Casa Grande Central Arizona

Tierra Grande Golf Course

Arizona Golf Course List – Arizona Golf Authority Golf Course Guide

The golf course at Tierra Grande, located just west of Casa Grande, about halfway between Phoenix and Tucson, recently underwent a major makeover.

Originally designed by Arthur “Jack” Snyder, it opened in 1978 as a nine-hole course and has now expanded to 18, with nine new holes interspersed with the existing nine. The course boasts level par of 67 shots, which is generous considering the modest length of the course; new slope and course rating figures are due for assignment in 2012.

From the back tees it plays at 4,433 yards, 3,990 yards from the forward set. Water comes into play on two holes – the par-4 third at 261 yards and the par-3 seventh at 126 yards. Tierra Grande has a putting green available but no driving range and has a restaurant that serves breakfast and lunch. This is a budget play with rates below $25 most of the year.

Visit our Arizona Golf Course Directory List and read the AZGA Player’s Review for every golf course in Arizona at www.arizonagolfauthority.com/coursedirectory.

It’s “All Things Arizona Golf” from the Arizona Golf Authority.

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Central Arizona Phoenix

Vistal Golf Club

Arizona Golf Authority AZGA Golf Course Buzz: Vistal Golf Club takes advantage of its central Phoenix location and offers up great golf and the best views of the city’s skyline from a fairway, anywhere in town.

Vistal Golf Club

Originally designed by Arizona golf legend Johnny Bulla, the golf course opened in 1957 as the Thunderbird Country Club. The course received a major redesign in 2000 by PGA Tour Design Services, who assigned local resident tour player consultants Howard Twitty, Tom Lehman and Billy Mayfair to the job.

The local boys produced a gem that re-opened in November of 2001 as the Vistal Golf Club to accolades all around. Quickly named a “Top 10 New Public Course in the U.S.” by Sports Illustrated, Vistal Golf Club was selected as the host course for two local U.S. Open qualifying tournaments.

Some of Bulla’s original holes remain intact, particularly on the front nine, and the new back nine winds up through the rugged mountain foothills while maintaining a traditional feel. Four sets of tees range from 7,013 to 5,235 yards with a rating of 72.9 and slope of 129 from the tips, 69.4 and 116 from the most forward tees. More than 80 bunkers add to the challenge and three lakes bring water into play on six holes, most notably at the third, the ninth and 18th.

Vistal entertains right from the start and begins with a birdie, a bogey and the anything from a 2 through “I’m in my pocket” third hole.

The 526-yard par-5 first features an elevated tee and fairway-pinching bunkers in the landing area. Negotiate them successfully and make a putt to bag an opening birdie. The second is a classic 440-yard par-4, straightaway; both the yardage and a swale in the center of the generous green produce a lot of bogeys here.

The par-3 third hole at Vistal is a birdie hole when the pin is left; but if the cup is cut in the right half of the green, you can make numbers that won’t fit on your card. Playing just 167 yards from the tips, 108 forward, the right half of the green is a lake-wrapped peninsula that demands precise yardage control from the tee. You can drown several pieces of ammo if you’re a bit short, a bit long or just a little bit right of your intended line of play. Tournament golf; play left and card a two-putt par – recreational golf; have some fun and have a go.

As you would expect, the PGA Tour player’s authored a strong finishing stretch at Vistal Golf Club. The 16th is 438-yard par-4 with an angry green surface devoid of a single flat spot more than 4-feet in diameter; it’s still a lot of fun to putt. The 17th is 597 yards of 5-par golf into the prevailing breeze in these parts; just play for par.

18th Green - Vistal Golf Club

The par-4 18th is a terrific tournament golf closer. Playing at 427 yards, the tee ball must be shaped into a fairway running on a diagonal to the tee, miss a little left and your second will be played from a bunker. A lake runs along the left side of the fairway, and the left side of the green wraps behind it, so depending on pin placement, you may need to carry it on the approach. Two well struck shots produce a routine birdie putt, but miss either shot just a hair and the leader board can change quite dramatically.

Vistal offers full practice facilities, complete with classic rock music piped in. After the round, the Blue Pig Patio is a good place to relax with excellent views of several holes and the Phoenix skyline in the distance.

Originally, some holes on the back-nine holes were located west of 7th Street. As part of the 2000 redesign, that property has been re-crafted as the Thunderbirds Par-3 Course and the official home of the First Tee of Phoenix program. Designed by Tom Fazio, the course plays at about 600 yards and level par of 27.

After golf, as long as you’re in the neighborhood, spend some time and check out two more Phoenix originals. The entrance to South Mountain Park is just down the street, south on Central Avenue, and you can make the short drive up to the 1,000-foot summit for the view; it’s spectacular, day or night.

And if you’re on south Central Avenue, at #8684 you’ll drive right past one of the best meals in town at the family owned and operated restaurant, Los Dos Molinos. Named by Victoria “The Two Grinders” for the chili grinders she and her husband Eddie each received from their grandmothers, this is hand-crafted New Mexico style cuisine presented in a small, homey atmosphere. The food is great because as Victoria says, “There’s no assembly line here, my daughters and I prepare each dish, with one helper at most.”

Read the Arizona Golf Authority AZGA Arizona Golf Course Review for every golf course in Arizona at www.arizonagolfauthority.com/coursedirectory.

It’s “All Things Arizona Golf” from the Arizona Golf Authority.