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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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Alpine Northern Arizona

Alpine Country Club

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Alpine Country Club – Arizona Golf Courses
With no irrigation system, conditioning here depends largely on Mother Nature, and when she cooperates, it is a fun little track with plenty of charm in the high country. Located in the White Mountains at 8,500 feet above sea level, Alpine Country Club is the highest course in the Southwest and resides in an area known as the “Alps of Arizona.”

alpine-country-club-arizona-photographWhat golfers find here is an entertaining nine-holer with plenty of birdie opportunities, fairways surrounded by dense groves of aspen trees, blue spruce and ponderosa pines in temperatures much cooler than those served up by Arizona’s big cities. They also find abundant wildlife, most notably the spectacular elk that still consider the fairways their stomping grounds.

Designed by Lawrence and Ernie Gay, the course opened in 1963 near the New Mexico border and is well off the beaten path, the nearest town with a stoplight is some 30 miles away. The course plays at 2,650 yards for men, with a rating of 65 and slope of 109 for 18 holes. Ladies’ tees are at 2,305 with a rating and slope of 65.7 and 118.

The par-34 layout starts with a pair of drivable par 4s, and keep in mind that at this elevation, you’ll be gaining plenty of distance on your shots. The first hole, called “Grip ‘N Rip,” is just 267 yards and tempts you to blast away, but it features a tight fairway that narrows to just 40 feet at the entrance to the green. Next up is an even shorter par 4 at 250 yards but there are 100-foot-high ponderosas in the middle of the fairway, 180 yards out, that your tee shot must clear to reach the green, which is heavily sloped from back to front.

And so it goes on this quaint little course that keeps you on your toes with its combination of doglegs, forestry and elevation changes. The eighth hole, a 139-yard par 3 that plays downhill to a green surrounded by 80-foot aspens, offers one of the most beautiful settings on the course and has been the site of several weddings.

Alpine, along the eastern edge of the White Mountains, is in an area known for its gentle rolling mountains and the largest stand of ponderosa pine in the world, with the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest and the Gila National Forest providing over 2 million acres of public land. Every direction offers a wonder of nature.

To the north stands Escudilla Mountain at 10,877 feet. The Blue Primitive Area, one of the most remote areas in the western U.S., lies to the south. Off to the west is the Black River with its premium fly fishing and over 50 lakes within an hour’s drive. Due east lies Luna, N.M., and the gorgeous San Francisco River Valley.

This is a very special area of Arizona that you won’t soon forget, and if you’re looking for lodging to complement the golf experience, try the Hannigan Meadow Lodge, the Ta-Wi-Wi Lodge or the Alpine Inn Bed and Breakfast.

Click Arizona Golf Course Reviews for our take on every golf course in Arizona. It’s just a part of “All Things, Arizona Golf” from the Arizona Golf Authority.

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Ajo Southern Arizona

Ajo Country Club

The Buzz: When it comes to golf, this is the only game in the town of Ajo and a true slice of Americana, with a delightful and friendly nine-hole course built on relatively flat terrain with elevated greens. The layout rests among the Ajo Mountains to the south and Childs Mountain to the West, features a natural arroyo cutting through the middle of the course and is home to several species of wildlife, including roadrunners, coyotes and deer. One of the neat features of this place is that it sets across the tarmac from the Eric Marcus Municipal Airport, which was built in 1940 by the U.S. Army.

Ajo Country Club originally served as the Officers Club for the airport and became a public course when Pima County obtained the properties in 1954 with its original members designing and building the course that has aged gracefully. Still today it is common to see pilots land their crafts here, grab their clubs and walk about 600 yards to the first tee. There are two sets of tees with the men’s playing at 3,093 yards to a par of 36, rating of 34.2 and slope of 111. Women’s par is 37 at 2,984 yards with a rating of 36.2 and slope of 117.

The signature hole is the ninth, a par 3 at 123 yards with a tee shot over water that must be placed between two towering palm trees. The longest hole is the par 5 sixth at 562 yards and is followed by another par 5 that plays to 470 from the back tee. The course has complete practice facilities with a driving range, chipping and putting greens, rentals clubs and carts, and a bar-restaurant that is popular with local residents.

Green fees are among the most reasonable in the region, as are rates at the attached RV park. Ajo CC has one other thing you won’t find at any other golf course – an annual fiddling contest each February that lasts for about a week and draws hundreds of fiddlers and spectators from around the country.

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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.

Categories
Central Arizona Phoenix

Aguila Golf Course

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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.