Troon North
There are nearly 200 golf courses in Phoenix and its surrounding communities, and many of them are tracks that have helped define the desert-golf experience — flawless conditioning in the grassed areas of demanding routings countered by sand and cactus and rock and scrub-brush outside the manicured playing corridors.
One of the best things about this market is the variety of golf provided, and there are plenty of bucket list tracks available for the more discerning golfer, and plenty of great value options for the golfer looking to get a little more bang for their buck on their golf getaway.
When it comes to those looking for the best, than look no further than the groundbreaking courses at Troon North Golf Club in North Scottsdale and the ballyhooed Cholla and Saguaro 18-hole gems at We-Ko-Pa in Fort McDowell — are all worth traveling from anywhere to play.
We-Ko-Pa’s Cholla course
Troon North’s Monument and Pinnacle courses set high the bar
Tom Weiskopf designed both the Monument and Pinnacle courses at Troon North, and they are as vital and pertinent as challenges to your game today as they were when they opened in 1990 – maybe even more so.
Weiskopf, who is severely underrated as a golf-course architect, updated both tracks in 2007 by blending the original routings, turning both front-nines of the two courses into the “new” Monument while labeling the back-nines the refashioned Pinnacle Course.
Both courses test players aplenty with arroyos, natural washes, huge saguaros, mesquite, ironwood, and lush green fairways to navigate and conquer. Some landing areas are hidden behind boulders, high-lipped bunkers, or mounds. Many tees seem to be pedestals perched above fairways. Then there are the huge, tricky greens.
The Monument Course offers somewhat deceptive angles from the tee boxes. The real surprise to some is that Monument has the feel of a links-style course, thanks to the opportunity it creates for bump-and-run shots into greens. The course is more visually intimidating than difficult, and if you hit the ball straight the course is not overwhelming.
One of the things that makes a golf course great is versatility, and Monument has that in spades. A Weiskopf signature element, there are two drivable par-4s under 310 yards — the 306-yard sixth (which has four bunkers in the landing area and a huge boulder in the middle of your line-of-sight), and the 299-yard 15th (the approach can be tricky since the green is somewhat elevated and hidden).
A trio of Monument‘s par-3s stretch more than 200 yards, including the beautiful 16th that measures 244 yards from the tips and drops about 50 feet from tee to green.
The huge boulder that splits the middle of the fairway on the course’s namesake third hole is about 35 feet tall and has a bush growing on top of it; this rock has caught more than a few balls and spit them out sideways or backwards.
Pinnacle throws a little bit of everything at golfers, forcing them to use course management and near-perfect club selection to score well. Named after a towering peak seen miles away, Pinnacle was transformed during the remodel, with a continuous routing that doesn’t return to the clubhouse until the 18th hole.
Saguaro cacti stand sentinel behind greens, massive stones – some bearing ancient petroglyphs – dot the landscape, and raised tees provide breathtaking vistas of golf holes and the arid landscape from which they’ve been carved. Pinnacle will mesmerize you with its picturesque scenery and some amazing golf that won’t soon be forgotten.
Like Monument, Pinnacle has multiple doglegs, elevated tees and greens, blind shots, plenty of forced carries over desert detritus, tilted fairways, lots of huge bunkers and well-protected greens.
Pinnacle has a good mix of holes, and they’re all memorable. The opener, a 392-yard par-4 dogleg-left, is a good gauge of what’s to come. Keep your tee shot left of the fairway to set up a short-iron approach. The fairway ends about 125 yards from the green, where it doglegs sharply left for an approach shot over a wide and dry wash. Finding the right portion of this huge multi-tiered green is critical — if you’re left with a 70-foot putt, three-putting will be a challenge.
The 456-yard par-4 seventh houses huge boulders just right of the fairway that can completely block out your approach to the green, which is still 200 yards away. Get behind them and you could be punching out sideways or backwards. The 404-yard par-4 ninth presents perhaps the toughest tee shot at Pinnacle, with one of the longest forced carries to one of the narrowest fairways. Both the drive and approach are set up for a pronounced right-to-left shot, which will give average players fits.
The inward nine under the new configuration begins with a 407-yard par 4 that features a pinnacle-shaped peak behind the green. That’s followed by a great risk-reward 539-yard par 5, a dogleg-right that tempts long hitters to cut the corner to set up the approach across an arroyo. There is danger of being in the desert if you miss this small green on either side.
The 16th is arguably Pinnacle‘s signature hole. Maxing out at 140 yards, this downhill “postcard” par 3 plays shorter than its yardage, but with water in front and bunkers left and right, distance control is everything. The round comes to an end at the 407-yard 18th, which features an impressive glimpse of Pinnacle Peak in the background.
As great as a round of golf is at Monument, you may like Pinnacle even more. Always considered the handsome little brother of the club’s two offerings, those days are past, thanks in part to Weiskopf’s renovations and the extra years of maturity Pinnacle has enjoyed. It is fun to compare which of the two courses at the facility is the best, but you can’t go wrong with either.
There’s little doubt that the formula for desert golf established and perfected at Troon North Golf Club set the bar high for the hundreds of desert courses that followed, both in Arizona and other such locales.
Troon North
We-Ko-Pa leaves a lasting impression
The two courses at We-Ko-Pa (Yavapai for “Four Peaks”) are routed through unspoiled Sonoran desert on land owned by the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation about 15 minutes east of Scottsdale. Both courses are free from commercial or residential blight. In fact, there is not an out-of-bounds stake to be found on the tracks where endless mountain vistas provide the backdrop.
Cholla is the original We-Ko-Pa course, opening for play in December 2001. Here, nothing but distant peaks, gnarly cactus, scrub brush and desert border the fairways. Designed by renowned course architect Scott Miller, who also designed the heralded layout at Coeur d’Alene Resort in Idaho, illustrates his prowess with different landscapes and emphasizes course management over bomb and gouge.
Each hole is branded with its own separate strategic challenge, but all mesh together seamlessly.
Threading through an open expanse overlooking the Verde and Salt River Valleys, Red Mountain, and the Superstitions, Cholla looks harder than it plays. That said, be prepared as each shot asks for a high level of skill and gives no quarter.
The first hole is a par 4 playing at just 351 yards that can be attacked but do so with a warning. Some will try to drive the green thanks to the elevated tee and wide fairway that sweeps to the left, but a massive waste bunker will gobble up a shot that ends up short.
No. 4, a 469-yard tester, is the first of Cholla‘s difficult par 4s. With a tee built into the side of a hill, your drive is one of the toughest shots on the course and is usually played into a headwind. A raised desert wash keeps most of the fairway hidden from view, but the landing area is wider than it looks.
The 605-yard par 5 eighth is a true three-shot hole on which your layup must be precise to assure a clear view of the small, sunken green that seems cloaked by shadowy cactus and a dry creek bed.
On No. 11, bunkers guarding the green on three sides present the challenge on the 220-yard par 3, which is the longest one-shotter at Cholla. Take one club more than usual because the putting surface is slightly elevated.
Long hitters will love what they see off the tee on No. 15, which (at 327 yards) reigns as the shortest of all Cholla‘s par-4s. Players will be tempted to swing away to a massive green. A blind second shot and a raised green are the real concerns at the 578-yard par-5 17th, so aim to the right side of the cart path off the tee and figure it will take three shots to get home.
Cholla is visually intimidating. A lot of times Miller’s design tempts you into believing a shot is tougher than it is, but once actually out onto the fairway you realize there was more room than thought. Thanks to all the forced carries, Cholla is quite a trial but is also fun.
Cholla has through the years become somewhat overshadowed by the higher-ranked Saguaro course, which was built in 2006. Saguaro was designed by the team of Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, who excel at using the natural landscape to shape a course design, letting the terrain dictate the layout while maintaining a “just found it” feel.
Saguaro is relatively open off the tee, with a few forced carries and some hills and doglegs in play to make you work the ball both ways. There are a handful of few semi-blind uphill tee shots, but the real challenge here is once you approach the greens, with their strategic bunkering and large putting surfaces, all with plenty of undulation.
The native desert areas will come into play on wayward shots. If there’s a tougher side, it’s inward nine, which plays tighter than the outward.
Standouts here are the par-5 14th hole, which features a split fairway and a rocky creek bed winding its way up the middle for the entire length of the hole. Longer hitters may opt to go to the right fairway to have a better angle for going for it in two.
That hole is followed by the signature hole, the par-3 15th, which plays at 255 yards from the tips but is also downhill and offers a great view of the valley. The 16th hole is a short uphill par 4, with several options, and a very well protected (and small) green.
No. 17 has a fairway that sloped from right to left and begs the player to find the speed slot, which could add 50 yards to the proper drive. Then closer, a 508-yard par 4, will take its pound flesh despite a wide-open tee shot.
All the tough hallmarks of a Coore/Crenshaw-designed course are on full display here. Almost every hole has hidden dangers and requires precision off the tee. If you’re not confident off on your drives, you’re going to struggle here. The golf course plays firm and fast throughout.
At Saguaro, the motto is “less is more,” a minimalist philosophy that’s perfect for property this stunning. Add it all up, and Saguaro is pure, compelling golf in the desert. Truly, you can’t go wrong with either of the courses at We-Ko-Pa.
Saguaro
Recommendation
We’ve highlighted a few of the best courses in town here, but as we mentioned at the start here there are so many configurations and budget levels available for a trip to the Arizona desert.
One big thing you’ll find in the market is that for a market riddled with top-level golf, you’ll only find one resort, The Wigwam, that has more than two 18-hole championship courses at it.
That’s actually a great thing for golfers as it gives you tons of opportunity to create your own experience without having to be tied to staying on property at any one resort. You can certainly use these resorts and their hotels as the hub for your trip, but we recommend reaching out to the team at GolfTroop to start researching your next desert golf getaway.
GolfTroop has access to most of the top courses in the area, and they also have a myriad of properties in the greater Phoenix Scottsdale area that can accommodate groups of any size including multiple houses and townhomes, perfect for any buddies trip. They know golf like the back of their hand, and their team of experts can help you book an Arizona golf package that you won’t soon forget. To learn more about GolfTroop, visit www.golftroop.com to start researching your Arizona getaway and you’ll be in great hands.