The Buzz: Many executive courses claim to be better than the average bear, but Rolling Hills definitely has more character than most facilities in this category, along with a great location and affordable rates. Although the Tempe municipal course is an 18-hole layout, it more accurately is two nine-hole courses that were created nearly 30 years apart by two designers and later combined into one.
The original nine, which plays as the front, was designed by Milt Coggins, who created many executive and adult community courses around Arizona. Rolling Hills debuted in 1958, is more open and definitely the easier of the two, but it’s a fun track and if you happen to hear some strange noises along a couple holes, it’s probably just the animals from the nearby Papago Park Zoo, hidden behind some trees. If you’re not holding up play, take it slow playing the third hole and you might hear elephants commenting on your last shot.
The back nine, which opened in 1987, was designed by Gary Panks, who created several of Arizona’s best championship courses. It is a desert style layout with more interesting terrain, tree-lined fairways, elevation changes and elevated greens. Combined, they play at 3,817 yards from the back tees, 3,509 from the middle and 3,284 from the front. The par-62 layout includes eight par-4 holes and is rated at 58.9 with a slope of 93. The two design styles make for a nice variety of holes with the par 3s ranging from 117 to 195 yards and the par 4s from 237 to 401 yards. Coincidentally, the shortest and longest par 4s are the first and last holes, respectively.
Along with the second nine, a new clubhouse was built in 1987 and includes a fully-stocked pro shop with reasonable prices and the 19th Tee Restaurant, which serves up daily specials and is popular with business people working nearby. Rolling Hills also is home to the Core Golf Academy and offers some excellent views of the Papago Buttes, Camelback Mountain and the Phoenix skyline. The location also makes is appealing. Rolling Hills is close to downtown Tempe, next to the historic Papago Park and near two Cactus League facilities – Tempe Diablo Stadium, which is the spring training home of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and Phoenix Municipal Stadium, home of the Oakland A’s. Combine all of that with its reasonable green fees, and it’s easy to see why this is one of the more popular municipal courses in the state.