Category: Central Arizona

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Central Arizona Mesa

Alta Mesa Golf Club

Arizona Golf Courses – Alta Mesa Golf Club
Built in 1985 in the shadows of scenic Red Mountain, this is an equity-owned private club for true golf lovers. Yes, it has an impressive clubhouse befitting its membership, but you won’t find tennis courts and other facilities common at many country clubs.

Alta Mesa GC was built for golfers, it’s operated and maintained by golfers, and it shows.

Along with equity, it offers non-equity, junior and senior memberships and one-time-only seasonal memberships, giving prospective members a chance to take the club for a one-year test run.

Alta Mesa features a traditional design created by architect Dick Phelps with tree-lined fairways and six lakes that bring water into play on eight holes. The par-72 layout has five sets of tees ranging from 5,498 to 7,093 yards with a rating of 73.9 and slope of 132 from the tips.

While it presents an open feel, water hazards, trees and strategic bunkers add up to a formidable challenge, and then there are the well-kept mini-verde greens, which roll smooth but are extremely fast. If you’re going to play it from the tips, take ample time to loosen up because Alta Mesa hits you right out of the gate with a 556-yard par 5, 424-yard par 4, 204-yard par 3 and a 442-yard par 4.

The par-4 ninth is among the most memorable holes at 425 yards with water running down both sides and bunkers along the right edge. Phelps also created an impressive finishing stretch, starting at the par-4 15th hole. It is 405 yards from the back tees with an open fairway but bunkers come into play on both sides of a green with three tiers, and with the speed of these greens, three-putts most definitely are lurking.

No. 16 is a 247-yard par 3 from the back tees that plays into a prevailing wind with little margin for error because desert hugs the left side of the green and trees and shrubs guard the right.

After the par-4 17th (428 yards) comes a daunting finish; the 18th is the longest par 5 on the course at 564 yards. Your tee shot toward the clubhouse needs to avoid a lake along the right side that runs all the way to the green, with bunkers guarding the left side and a narrow neck to the undulating surface, which slopes toward the water.

Many of the holes feature picturesque backdrops provided by Red Mountain and Superstition Mountains in the distance. The overall quality is evidenced by the fact that Alta Mesa has hosted several U.S. Golf Association and mini-tour events, as well as tournaments sanctioned by the Arizona Golf Association and Southwest Section of the PGA.

The 160-acre property also has expansive practice facilities, which cover 10 acres and include two driving ranges, two putting greens, chipping green and practice bunkers. The clubhouse grill and restaurant render fine dining in a scenic setting overlooking two lakes, and the club offers dining memberships for non-golfers.

Visit our Arizona Golf Course Reviews 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

Ahwatukee Country Club

The Buzz: Johnny Bulla, who died in 2003, was a legend in these parts, dominating golf in Arizona for many years. He was one of the world’s few ambidextrous golfers and a true pioneer of the game. And, as this layout shows, he also knew a little something about course design. Ahwatukee CC, which opened in 1974, mixes the beauty of its desert landscape with a fair but challenging layout along the edges of Phoenix South Mountain Park, the largest municipal park in the world, spanning 16,000 acres.

The course presents wide fairways but several have out-of-bounds stakes on both sides of the house-lined layout. Terrain is fairly level with some modest mounding and the course winds through a residential community, offering a good test for mid- to high-handicappers and beginners. It also is female-friendly. The green complexes are medium in size and mostly flat, with open fronts that invite low running pitches and chip shots. Greens are well guarded by 32 bunkers and lakes bring water into play on six holes. The par-72 layout has three sets of tees at 5,506, 6,103 and 6,713 yards. From the back tees it is rated at 70.8 with a slope of 120. Ahwatukee CC is one of four courses that comprise Ahwatukee Golf Properties, which offers discount cards to golfers who play the quartet frequently. The adjacent Lakes at Ahwatukee course is considered one of the best executive courses in the state and annually hosts the Arizona Golf Association’s Short Course Championship.

This one is a tribute to Bulla, a former PGA Tour player who was known for having one of the sweetest swings in the game but one of the poorest putting strokes, which prevented him from winning more worldwide titles. He dominated in Arizona, however, winning the Arizona Open 14 times and 42 Southwest Section of the PGA events.

He was a natural left-hander who was taught to play right-handed since they were the only clubs available to him, but could shoot lights out from either side. At nearby Papago Golf Course, where Bulla played often, his best scores were 61 right-handed and 65 left-handed. He also was a pioneer in many ways and convinced the manager of the Tam O’Shanter tournament in Chicago to allow a black golfer to play in a PGA Tour event for the first time in 1944.

Ahwatukee’s signature hole is the fourth, a 184-yard par 3 with a tee shot over water. Water hazards also are a daunting obstacle on the sixth, a 406-yard par 4, and the 14th, a 192-yard par 3, which are among the more memorable holes. Ahwatukee CC has a comfortable clubhouse with a popular restaurant that serves breakfast and lunch, locker rooms for men and women, a full driving range and two putting greens. The club has daily happy hours and its all-you-can-eat fish fry is particularly popular.

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Central Arizona Phoenix

Aguila Golf Course

aguila-golf-course-photo

aguila-golf-course-photoThe Buzz: This was the last of the municipal courses built by the city of Phoenix and has become the favorite of many “muny” players. Designed by Gary Panks, who created several of Arizona’s best course layouts, Aguila opened in 1999 to much acclaim and gets its name from the Aztec word for “eagle.” The $6.5 million project includes an 18-hole championship and a nine-hole executive course on a 210-acre plot that was the former site of the Alvord family farm. It nestles up to South Mountain Park, the largest municipal park in the country, spanning 17,000 acres, and offers excellent views, with the Estrella Mountains and South Mountain in two directions and the Phoenix skyline in another.

In the fall of 2010, Aguila underwent a three-month renovation project in which some bunkers were re-shaped and all were renovated. Greenside bunkering provides numerous challenges on the course that has four sets of tees, ranging from 5,442 to 6,962 yards. It is rated at 72.4, with a slope of 129, from the back tees.

The layout has a sort of links feel with gently rolling fairways, transition areas that meander through the property, supporting native grasses and desert flora. Three lakes bring water into play on five holes. Raised green complexes and generous fairways make it player friendly, but the fairway bunkers can be very penal. Being a municipal course, Panks allowed for recovery shots around the greens. There are plenty of birdie opportunities, but in most cases, you need to hit good drives to take advantage. Panks enjoys creating risk-reward holes and he did that here on Nos. 8 and 17. Both are short par 4s, at 309 and 321 yards, but both have prominent water hazards you must avoid. Both nines have strong finishing holes, which are rated the second and third handicap holes. The ninth plays at 441 yards and the 18th is the longest par 4 on the course at 471. A lake separates the two holes, running nearly their full length and there are some treacherous bunkers on each.

The nine-hole course is your basic pitch-and-putt which works great for kids. It has two sets of tees at 763 and 1,081 yards and just three holes over 100 yards, with 141 being the longest. Aguila has an excellent youth golf program, including a state-of-the-art learning center, complete with classroom, reading and reference materials plus computers. There also are extensive practice facilities and The Eagles Nest Café serves up breakfast and lunch. Being a municipal course, it offers some of the lowest green fees in the state and golfers who buy a discount card through the city of Phoenix receive even lower rates on the five 18-hole and three nine-hole courses in the city stable.

One more thing Aguila offers that you might not find at any other “muny” course is a head pro who has won the U.S. Women’s Open. That’s right, Janet Anderson, who won the title by 6 shots in 1982, heads up the staff here. She had 52 top-10 finishes on the LPGA Tour and still has plenty of game, playing on the Women’s Senior Golf Tour when her schedule allows.

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Central Arizona Glendale

Adobe Dam Golf Course

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Arizona's "Best Little Golf Course by a Dam Site"

Adobe Dam Golf Course
This place bills itself as the “Best Little Golf Course by a Dam Site” and hey, who’s to argue? It’s not a golf course where you are going to spend your day, but one where you can spend an enjoyable part of a day while you take in the surroundings and activities of this area northwest of Phoenix.

adobe-dam-golf-course-photograph
Arizona’s “Best Little Golf Course by a Dam Site”

This nine-hole executive course is located at the southern end of the Adobe Mountain Recreation Area, which is managed by Maricopa County Parks and Recreation and offers a host of family activities. The course, which most golfers walk, plays at 1,756 yards with one par-5 hole, two par 4’s and six par 3’s, which range in length from 97 to 168 yards. Played twice, it measures 3,512 yards at par 62 with a rating of 58.1 and slope of 87. It’s a good place for newcomers to learn the game and experienced players to work on their short game in a relaxed atmosphere but one that respects the traditions of the game and stresses etiquette.

Designed by Les Gullickson and head pro Pete Julsrud, it opened in 1993 and features arroyos and desert areas that can add to the challenge along with deep rough and small greens, and finishes with a tricky water hazard. The finishing par-3 holes, at 168 and 144 yards, both are testing and can make or break your round. Other amenities include a lighted, grass driving range, putting green, pitching green complete with bunkers, and the Phoenix Golf School. This facility is known for having a quality junior program.

Green fees are about as low as you can find in the Phoenix metro area at around 15 bucks or less. Because you can move around this course quickly, it leaves plenty of time for other activities and you will find lots of them in the nearby park that sets at the base of the Hedgepeth Hills and spans 1,526 acres.

Among other things, it is home to the Arizona Model Pilots Society, Maricopa Live Streamers and Arizona Model Railroading Society, two go-cart racing clubs and the Fort Adobe Paintball Complex. The Maricopa Live Steamers Railroad Heritage Preservation Society operates out of the park and offers free train rides on Sundays (excluding June-August).

There also are numerous athletic fields, hiking trails and the highly popular Wet ‘N Wild waterpark. It is also close to Cactus League spring training baseball complexes and the home arenas of the NFL Arizona Cardinals football team and NHL Phoenix Coyotes hockey club.