Category: Green Valley

AZGA Arizona Golf Buzz: It’s not uncommon for private golf courses to convert to public play, especially in the economic climate of recent years, but Desert Hills went the opposite direction nearly 30 years ago.

This was one of the first courses built in the golf-rich Green Valley retirement community south of Tucson, opening as a public course in 1979, and becoming a private equity club five years later that has flourished in that realm.

Designed by Dick Bailey, and course architect Dave Bennett, it is a walkable, player-friendly layout with just enough birdie opportunities and challenges to maintain a healthy membership pool. It is one of the few private clubs with no monthly minimum spending requirement and proudly claims that it is “financially stable with no debt, and money in the bank.”

Desert Hills is a relatively flat layout with mild desert in the transition areas, smooth greens, generous fairways and some nice views of the Santa Rita Mountain Range. Set in the Santa Cruz Valley at an elevation of about 3,000 feet, it is considerably cooler in the summer months than Tucson and Phoenix.

The property spans 120 acres with five lakes that bring water into play on seven holes. There are four sets of tees at 6,490, 6,159, 5,949 and 5,247 yards, with a rating of 71.7 and slope of 129 from the tips.

The No. 1 handicap hole is the fifth, a 359-yard par 4 with water prominently in play, but it is sandwiched between a pair of good birdie opportunities – the par-5 fourth plays at 496 yards and the par-5 eighth at 485 from the back tees.

Move up one set of tees, and there are no 500-yard holes to deal with. The par 3s range from 162 to 204 yards from the back tees, and the signature hole is the 18th, a 526-yard par 5, which has a double dogleg and a heavily bunkered green, and is the No. 6 handicap hole.

Membership approved the replacement of all greens at Desert Hills in 1998 and an expansion of the clubhouse the following year. It does not have a restaurant, but offers a full-service bar and snack bar, and has meals and other activities that are catered with special events monthly.

Desert Hills has nice practice facilities, including a driving range and putting green, and a reciprocal membership policy is in effect for outside play.

The Buzz: Nestled in the shallow ravines and rolling hills of the Santa Cruz River Valley, this course offers a combination of natural beauty and bentgrass greens that typically are among the best in southern Arizona. Canoa Hills, designed by Dave Bennett, plays to par-72 at 6,610 yards along contoured fairways with generous landing areas, which make it very playable for the average golfer.

After a straightaway, par-4 starting hole, Canoa Hills quickly gets interesting with another par-4, considered one of the better golf holes in southern Arizona. The 375-yarder is a risk-reward hole with an elevated tee to an ample lay-up area, which leaves a mid-iron shot into a green that slopes away and is well-guarded by bunkers. Hitting a driver off the tee leaves a much-easier short iron shot to the green but the tee shot is to a much narrower part of the fairway flanked by mesquite trees right and left. The front nine ends with an uphill par-4 at 362 yards, setting up a back nine that requires a variety of shots as it winds through the natural terrain with scenic mountain and valley views. Most memorable is the 15^th hole, a 537-yard par-5 with a double dogleg. The course, which opened in 1984, is located about 20 miles south of Tucson near the retirement area of Green Valley, in a picturesque setting with the Santa Cruz River Valley being flanked by the Patagonia and Santa Rita mountains on the east and the Tumacacori and Sierrita mountains on the west. That combination provides an excellent setting for the 19^th hole, otherwise known as Quail Grill in the Canoa Hills clubhouse. This area also is known for its birding and historic missions, including the San Xavier Mission, which is considered an excellent example of Spanish Mission architecture.

If you’re planning to spend a night or more in the area, consider The Inn at San Ignacio, which features villa rooms and condo-style luxury villa suites, along with the Coyote Grill, where the food and scenery are both first rate. Also nearby is the new Trivetti’s Piano Bar, which offers Italian and Continental cuisine, two happy hours a day (including one from 9 p.m. to close) and a large patio for outdoor dining. And if you have a taste for the bubbly, it’s well worth a visit to Sonoita Vineyards and Santa Cruz wineries to sample southern Arizona fare.