Swing for the hills – or the desert washes – on one of the Valley’s many fabled fairways and award-winning golf courses.
Arizona Biltmore Golf Club
Blackstone Country Club The Boulders Club Eagle Mountain Golf Club Gold Canyon Golf Resort & Spa
Grayhawk Golf Club
Golf Club of Estrella Las Sendas Golf Club McCormick Ranch Golf Club Mountain Shadows
Lookout Mountain Golf Club
Papago Golf Club The Phoenician Golf Course SunRidge Canyon Golf Club
Troon North Golf Club
TPC Scottsdale We-Ko-Pa Golf Club The Westin Kierland Golf Club Wildfire Golf Club
The Wigwam
2400 E. Missouri Ave., Phoenix, 602-955-9656, azbiltmoregc.com
Presidents, Hollywood luminaries and various VIPs have all trod the fairways at this classic Central Phoenix golf club, the brainchild of chewing gum magnate William Wrigley Jr., who also built the eponymous mansion up the street. Choose between the Adobe course, built in 1928, or the shorter Links course, which offers striking vistas of the Downtown Phoenix skyline from the 15th hole.
12101 W. Blackstone Dr., Peoria, 623-707-8700, blackstonecountryclub.com
A Golf Digest award-winner, this 18-hole, par-72 course located in the luxury community of Vistancia was designed by Jim Engh and features deep channels and black volcanic rock.
34631 N. Tom Darlington Dr., Carefree, 480-488-9028, bouldersclub.com
This challenging duo of golf-ball-devouring desert courses may drive you wild, but so will the drop-dead gorgeous setting among copper-toned boulders, Jay Morrish’s GOLF Magazine Gold Medal Award-winning layout and the occasional bobcat sighting.
14915 E. Eagle Mountain Pkwy., Fountain Hills, 480-816-1234, eaglemtn.com
The elevation changes offer striking views of the saguaro-striped Sonoran Desert at this Fountain Hills golf course. Pristine greens and memorable holes make this top-ranked course a winner.
6100 S. Kings Ranch Rd., Gold Canyon, 480-982-9449, gcgr.com
The Dinosaur Mountain Course gets the accolades at this 36-hole club in the Superstition Mountains. Elevation changes and undulations make this a thinking person’s course where club choice is key, but you’ll be rewarded with eye candy in the form of cactus-studded scenery and mammoth monoliths.
8620 E. Thompson Peak Pkwy., Scottsdale, 480-502-1800, grayhawkgolf.com
If it’s good enough for Phil Mickelson, it’s good enough for the rest of us. “Lefty” has been the ambassador for this award-winning club since its inception. After you play the Raptor course, dine at Phil’s Grill and check out his memorabilia from ASU.
11800 S. Golf Club Dr., Goodyear, 623-386-2600, estrellagolf.com
This highly ranked course in far-flung Goodyear makes a great precursor to an Indians or Reds spring training game at Goodyear Ballpark. But even if you’re not a Buckeye State fan, this Jack Nicklaus Jr.-designed desert course is worth the drive, for its lush desert setting (not an oxymoron), mountain vistas and epic closing stretch.
7555 E. Eagle Crest Dr., Mesa, 480-396-4000, lassendas.com
With contoured fairways leading to elevated greens that slope into bunkers, this course requires a bit of strategy. But it prides itself in its nature-respecting, artifice-free Robert Trent Jones Jr. design as much as its views of Mesa’s Usery Mountains.
7505 E. McCormick Pkwy., Scottsdale, 480-948-0260, mccormickranchgolf.com
McCormick Ranch’s two resort-style courses boast breathtaking views of Camelback and McDowell mountains. The Palm Course features 10 water holes that give golfers of all skill levels a challenge, while the Pine Course is a regional qualifier site for the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Ideal for guests of the nearby Scottsdale Resort.
5445 E. Lincoln Dr., Paradise Valley, 480-624-5433, mountainshadows.com
In the mood for a quickie? Mountain Shadows’ 18-hole boutique “short course” is a 54-par charmer that’s tailor-made for beginners and duffers on a schedule. Set at the foot of Camelback Mountain, it also affords grand views of Paradise Valley, aka “PV.”
11111 N. Seventh St., Phoenix 602-866-6356, pointegolf.com
A Troon Golf Experience, Lookout Mountain Golf Club at Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort offers excellent views of both its namesake and Piestewa Peak. Twelve holes on the course play through preserve land, giving golfers uninterrupted views.
5595 E. Moreland St., Phoenix, 602-275-8428, papagogolfcourse.net
As Caddyshack star Rodney Dangerfield would have said, city-owned courses get no respect. The exception is Papago. As the Valley’s best muni, it was deemed worthy of hosting an LPGA championship in 2009. Designed in 1963 by Billy Bell of Torrey Pines fame, this challenging traditional course got spruced up to the tune of $5.8 million in 2008. Now it’s as stunning as its views of the Martian-like Papago Buttes.
6000 E. Camelback Rd., Scottsdale, 480-423-2450, thephoenician.com/golf
Akin to a golf-themed Biosphere, The Phoenician’s 18-hole course – recently redesigned by architect Phil Smith – name-checks several ecosystems, featuring vertiginous elevation changes, holes carved out of Camelback Mountain’s foothills, palm trees, saguaros, fountain- and flower-decked lakes, and Arizona’s only sand-island green.
13100 N. Sunridge Dr., Scottsdale, 480-837-5100, sunridgegolf.com
This saguaro-dotted course offers expansive views of surrounding mountain ranges. Water hazards won’t pose much of a problem, but desert wash areas rippling across several fairways will keep you on your toes. You may want to chug an Arnold Palmer before tackling the final sextet of swing-testing holes, dubbed the “Wicked Six.”
10320 E. Dynamite Blvd., Scottsdale, 480-585-7700, troonnorthgolf.com
Tom Weiskopf carved the Monument and Pinnacle courses out of the desert. His ingenious design, plus pristine greens and stunning views, is the reason these boulder-strewn beauties consistently get ranked as some of the state’s best courses.
17020 N. Hayden Rd., Scottsdale, 480-585-4334, tpc.com/scottsdale
Every year the pros and crowds throng the TPC for the Waste Management Phoenix Open (see pages 84-85 for more information and tips). Re-create their glory on the Tom Weiskopf- and Jay Morrish-designed Stadium Course, or the equally eye-pleasing Champions Course. Pro tip: Look for the odd 13th-hole bunker.
18200 E. WeKoPa Way, Fort McDowell, 480-836-9000, wekopa.com
Saguaros and mountains ripple away from the undulating fairways at this award-winning pair of 18-holers on the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation. Thanks to a lack of view-marring buildings, the original Cholla Course and newer Saguaro Course make golfers forget they’re close to civilization.
15636 N. Clubgate Dr., Scottsdale, 480-922-9283, kierlandgolf.com
With the options to tool around on a Segway or a Kierland TurfRider (two-wheeled scooter), these three Scott Miller-designed nine-hole courses are perfectly calibrated to the modern golfer. It’s also in the center of Scottsdale’s shopping and dining scene, with easy access to Kierland Commons.
5350 E. Marriott Dr., Phoenix 480-473-0205, jwdesertridgeresort.com
Nick Faldo and Arnold Palmer each designed a lush, 18-hole desert course at this JW Marriott club. The Palmer course is longer and perhaps more challenging; the Faldo course sports generous fairways but profuse (108, to be exact) bunkers so strand-like you’ll feel like you’re on a beach course.
300 E. Wigwam Blvd., Litchfield Park, 800-909-4224, wigwamarizona.com/golf
These resort greens offer a trio of 18-hole championship golf courses (including two courses designed by the legendary Robert Trent Jones Sr.), dubbed The Gold, Blue and Red courses. The Gold course is a favorite, stretching 7,430 yards from the tees and presenting myriad challenges, including copious sand traps and ultra-narrow fairways. The easy part? Enjoying the palm-dappled views.
This article first appeared in the 2023 City Guide, published by PHOENIX magazine in November 2022.
Newcomers’ Guide to the Best Golf Courses in the Valley
Editorial StaffNovember 1, 2022
