Spotlight

Arizona Grand Golf Resort - No. 13

Photo gallery: Arizona Grand Golf Resort in Phoenix boasts captivating desert holes and plenty of variety

Located in Phoenix, Arizona Grand Golf Resort boasts one of the more unique settings for a round of golf in the Valley of the Sun. The opening four holes all feature lots of green grass and water hazards, the middle stretch is desert-style target golf, and the final six holes play along South Mountain Park and are the most open and quiet on the course.
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Quarry Pines golf course - No. 9

It's hard to find a better bargain in Tucson than Quarry Pines Golf Club

Quarry Pines Golf Club isn't the glitziest golf course in Tucson, but it is the best bargain. Quarry golf courses are some of the most entertaining you will ever play, and Quarry Pines is no exception. It's a fun and challenging course, and you can't beat the scenery -- or the price, David R. Holland writes.
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Ventana Canyon G.C. - Mountain Course

Golf Channel Am Tour lets you test your game on some of Tucson's top courses

Every sports fan wants to know what it's like to dunk a basketball, hit a 95-mph fastball or sink that 4-foot par putt on No. 18 for the victory and first-place check. Well, the Golf Channel Am Tour is giving swingers of every stripe an opportunity to go 1-for-3. The Am Tour, which features 11 tournaments in the Tucson area, culminating with the Tucson Tour Championship in mid-August, is the closest thing amateurs will get to knowing what touring pros feel like on a week-to-week basis.
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Arizona Golf Destinations

  • Southern Arizona

    Make the trip out to Arizona and the Phoenix area will attract you like a magnet with its legion of golf courses and resorts, all fighting over your golfing dollar. But if you are overwhelmed by the choices the "Valley of the Sun" has to offer, head south into spacious, affordable Southern Arizona. The small towns here have a certain charm that Phoenix, Tucson and Scottsdale lack, not to mention a handful of challenging, affordable golf courses.

    Tucked away in the Santa Cruz River Valley, Rio Rico Golf & Country Club tumbles across a variety of terrain that ranges from hilly to flat. Robert Trent Jones, Sr. designed the course in 1975 and it has since matured into one of southern Arizona's finest layouts. The traditional layout features some of Jones signature elements including greenside bunkers and subtle but challenging contours.
    If you're looking for an all around luxury golf experience, Orange Tree Golf Resort awaits you. Orange Tree Golf Club was established in 1957. This mature, tree-lined, 6762 yard layout is one of Scottsdale's best golf values. Orange Tree is an excellent test of golf for players of varying skill levels. The course par is 72, the course rating is 71.3, and the slope is 122.
    A little different from many desert courses, del Lago Golf Club plays like more of a combination of links and desert golf, featuring wide sweeping fairways that drift off into the surrounding valleys and arroyos, and lead you to oversized greens that often require a traditional bump and run shot.
  • Tucson

    Savvy Arizona golfers are quick to remind anyone who asks that the Valley of the Sun is like the Old Pueblo on steroids when it comes to fairways available for public consumption. But since the early 1990s, Tucson has made a respectable run in the realm of high-end resort and daily-fee golf. What's more, Tucson is not nearly as inundated with players as Phoenix or Scottsdale, and the Old Pueblo's lack of serious traffic issues will enable you to get from one course to another in a much more expedient fashion than in grid-locked Phoenix.

    MountainView Golf Club at Saddlebrooke sits at an elevation of 3,200 feet, offering both dramatic elevation changes and spectacular views. The course sits at the base of the Catalina Mountain range near Tucson, nestled into the mesquite-covered foothills.
    The Conquistador Course is one of three courses at the Hilton El Conquistador. The course has been consistently ranked as one of the top courses not only in Arizona but throughout the Southwest.
    Quarry Pines Golf Club offers a mix of dramatic elevation changes and stunning mountain views with 18 enjoyable holes.
  • Prescott

    Outside of Arizona, Prescott largely remains a mystery, its charming old-time downtown streets and its ancient Victorian homes almost as undiscovered by tourists now as Arizona was in general back before the gold rush boom of the mid 19th century. Not surprisingly, it's a few club-toting, birdie-seekers who are starting to change that. Prescott is emerging as a golf destination, a quality, lower-priced alternative to the crowded meccas of Phoenix and Scottsdale.

    In the sizzling summer heat of Phoenix and Tucson, Sedona can be up to 15 degrees cooler. Sedona is also at the perfect elevation to keep the snow away except for a few days a year, meaning almost year-round golf. The course's elevation ranges from 4,000-4,350 feet.
    Oakcreek Country Club is situated amongst Sedona's red rock mountains, providing unique scenery throughout. Opened over 40 years ago, it is Sedona's first golf course. The course was a collaboration between Robert Trent Jones, Sr. and his son. It is a classic, player-friendly layout that offers plenty of room for error.
    Nestled in a valley between the Mingus and Bradshaw mountain ranges, Prescott Golf & Country Club offers panoramic views, tree lined fairways and fast bentgrass greens. Opened in 1971 and designed by Milt Coggins, the golf course is a par 72 that stretches to 6,800 yards.
  • Northern Arizona

    Northern Arizona will never be mistaken for the Valley of the Sun when it comes to golf, and therein lies the beauty. At elevations ranging from 5,000 to 7,000 feet above sea level, the northern part of the state presents golfers with a completely different set of challenges, landscapes, and (for the budget minded) price points.

    In the sizzling summer heat of Phoenix and Tucson, Sedona can be up to 15 degrees cooler. Sedona is also at the perfect elevation to keep the snow away except for a few days a year, meaning almost year-round golf. The course's elevation ranges from 4,000-4,350 feet.
    Palms Golf Club is situated just east of Mesquite in Littlefield. Built in 1989, it was the Mesquite area's first golf course. The layout balances the old and the new, creating a course with a lot of variety.
    Oakcreek Country Club is situated amongst Sedona's red rock mountains, providing unique scenery throughout. Opened over 40 years ago, it is Sedona's first golf course. The course was a collaboration between Robert Trent Jones, Sr. and his son. It is a classic, player-friendly layout that offers plenty of room for error.
  • Phoenix/Scottsdale

    The Valley of the Sun -- made up of Phoenix, Scottsdale, Mesa and a slew of other rapidly growing cities -- is the golf capital of the American Southwest. With close to 200 courses, the Valley can make a legitimate claim to being the most golf-rich region in the United States. Each year millions of golfers from sun-starved winter climates make their way to this sun-splashed golfing pantheon to test their mettle on desert courses that yield more lost balls than birdies.

    The Lookout Mountain Golf Club is part of the Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort, which has helped the resort become one of Phoenix's most popular golfing destinations. It is consistently ranked as one of Arizona's top 25 golf courses and it is a favorite of local golfers who are in the know.
    Starfire Golf Club is a 27-hole layout situated in the heart of Scottsdale. The Hawk/King combination can be tricky but it is forgiving enough to accommodate a range of skill levels. The front nine finishes with one of the toughest holes on the golf course. It is a narrow par 4 that demands both accuracy and distance.
    Raven Golf Club at Verrado is an upscale desert layout designed by John Fought and Tom Lehman that opened for public play in January 2004. John Fought and Tom Lehman collaborated on the Raven at Verrado Golf Club, a voluptuous design that meanders through the old Caterpillar bulldozer proving grounds.