Winter is coming…and as golfers we know what that means: it’s time to head South! The beautiful thing about the Sunbelt of the United States is that we know it consistently brings warmer climates in those winter months where we know that a good majority of the country is starting to break out their winter coats and bundle up for that inevitable white stuff that will soon cover the ground.
The good news for us is that there is a desert oasis available for us in the form of the Phoenix and Scottsdale area of Arizona.
This area is unique in the fact that there is only one resort, The Wigwam, that offers more than 36 holes under one roof. What does that mean for you? It means that the options are limitless when it comes to making any budget work for you and your group. Here’s a quick breakdown of the market along with some of our suggestions on how to maximize your trip.
TPC Scottsdale: Champions (top); Stadium (above)
The Golf
With more than 200 golf courses in the greater Phoenix Scottsdale area, there is nothing but variety for golfers looking to put together a vacation to this desert oasis. We would have to write a small novel to cover all the golf here, but we’ve featured a few of our favorites for you to consider during your golf getaway to the Phoenix and Scottsdale area.
TPC Scottsdale: The home of the Waste Management Open and the most fun event on the PGA Tour, you’ll want to cross this one off your list during your visit. The Stadium Course is clearly the star of the show here, but the Champions Course is also worth your time and provides a fun round. Not to mention, the conditioning here is superb.
Talking Stick: Talking Stick provides golfers with two Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw designed golf courses, the Piipaash Course and the O’odham Course, that provide two distinctive tracks for you to experience. With a nice resort onsite that features a casino and a Topgolf at the entrance, there is plenty to do off-course if you tee it up here as well.
Troon North: Featuring the Pinnacle and Monument courses, Troon North is the namesake golf course of the largest golf course management company Troon Golf, and that alone provides you with a symbol of excellence that lets you know you’re in store for a great round. Huge boulders, cactus, sprawling desert, and lush green fairways await you on these must-play designs.
The Wigwam: As we previously mentioned, The Wigwam is home to the only 54-hole course resort in the greater Phoenix and Scottsdale area with the Gold, Blue, and Red courses.
The Boulders: Visually stunning. That’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think about golf at The Boulders as the North Course and the South Course provide the type of experience that your desert golf dreams are made of.
We-Ko-Pa: We-Ko-Pa’s Saguaro and Cholla golf courses will keep you on your toes from start to finish, and you’ll often hear groups say that these end up being one, if not the, favorite course they played during their golf trip.
Grayhawk Golf Club: With the Talon and the Raptor onsite here, this 36-hole facility has played host to the NCAA National Championships, and as you can imagine, you don’t get to host that kind of event unless the conditioning and layout are worthy of such a task.
The Phoenician: Located at the base of Camelback Mountain, this is a really fun and fair design that Phil Smith transformed from a 27-hole design into an 18-hole design utilizing the best areas to maximize the golf experience here.
Ak-Chin Southern Dunes: This Schmidt, Curley, and Fred Couples designed course is authentic Arizona golf. The course features the desert feel alongside well-placed bunkering and a multitude of native grasses throughout that creates an experience unique to the market.
Camelback Golf Club: The Ambiente and Padre courses at Camelback Golf Club provide golfers with incredible desert golf and mountainous backdrops creating a wonderful setting for a round or two during your getaway.
Kierland: Part of the Westin Kierland Golf Resort, Kierland Golf Club provides 27 holes of well-manicured Scott Miller-designed golf — Acacia, Mesquite and Ironwood — that provides more green than desert than some of the other courses mentioned here. Don’t take it to mean this course is easy by any means though, as it’s a fun, challenging layout.
Quintero Golf Club: Known as one of the most “pure” desert golf experiences in Arizona, Quintero Golf Club is usually a little bit of a drive for golfers to get to, but it’s worth it in our opinion.
Wigwam Gold
Accommodations
As you can imagine, there are a ton of options for your stay and play getaway here in the Phoenix and Scottsdale area. What we tend to hear from groups considering a trip to this area is that they often want to rent a house or stay in condo/townhome units in this area so they can be close to the action of the city. When it comes to this, we suggest visiting our friends at GolfTroop.com for these needs. We’ve found its pricing to be incredibly fair, and it has multiple lodging options that can suit your group’s needs.
Worry not, because even if your crew prefers more of a resort setting, they have you covered here as well as they can assist you with bookings at many of the best resorts in the area including The Boulders, Camelback Inn Resort & Spa, Pointe Hilton Tapatiio Cliffs Resort, Talking Stick Resort & Casino, We-ko-Pa Casino Resort, and the Westin Kierland Resort & Spa to name a few.
The other thing we love about GolfTroop is that it can book at a majority of the courses that we listed previously, so it provides a nice, easy, one-stop shop for trip leaders looking to plan your Arizona golf stay and play package.
Boulders
Packing for the desert climate
Whether you are looking to book a package in the next few weeks, or if you are waiting to book in the “cold season” here, you can pretty much guarantee your days are going to be warm during your visit to Arizona. This makes packing for the trip a massive priority, and we suggest (click on any image to purchase or learn more):
ProDry Polo Shirts: Staying as cool as you can in the desert heat is a must, and FootJoy provides polos that feature their ProDry technology alongside antimicrobial fabrics to keep you cool and fresh during and after your round. These materials are also wrinkle resistant, and it makes travel so much easier if you don’t have to pull out your iron every morning, which no golf trip participant really wants to do.
ProSL Sport: This shoe provides an easy to clean synthetic upper allowing you to easily wipe off any desert remnants off your shoes post-round keeping them as good as new so you look fresh and keep your travel gear clean. The shoe is incredibly comfortable, stable, and works whether you decide to ride or sport a caddy.
FJ Fuel: This lightweight, easy care golf shoe is incredibly well-priced and super comfortable during those days where you try to squeeze in 27 or 36 during your trip.
FootJoy Lightweight Short: These shorts feature easy care fabric, even though it’s a woven material, and provide a gripper waist so your shirt stays tucked in all day. These shorts keep you cool all day during your round, and pair perfectly with the previously mentioned ProDry Polo Shirts.
Performance Sun Sleeves: Somehow, adding a level of 50+ SPF protection to your arms can keep you cooler while keeping you protected as these sun sleeves feature a moisture wicking material. If your body hasn’t seen the sun in a while, these little babies might just save your skin!
StaSof Gloves: For such an inexpensive product, we are always surprised how golfers will go on a multi-day golf trip and bring one glove with them, especially in tropical climates. We are huge fans of creating a rotation of gloves during your trip as the climate is inevitably going to have you sweating, and you’ll want your connection with the club to be at peak performance as you come up the 18th hole with the bet for the whole day on the line. The StaSof glove is the Gold Standard when it comes to fit and performance, so pick up a few of these before you head out or snag one or two from the pro shop before your round.
Recommendation
Phoenix and Scottsdale provide golfers with one the best golf destinations in the country for a golf getaway. You can visit repeatedly and never experience the same trip twice. In addition to the exceptional golf, there is so much to see and do in the area and we are big fans of the Old Town Scottsdale area if you can set up your base of operations near there.
Be sure to check out GolfTroop.com when you start your planning process as we’ve always found their pricing to be exceptional for what it provides, and its market knowledge is second to none. Also, be sure to pack appropriately as we provided some of our favorite options from FootJoy to consider as the last thing you’ll want to make sure you look and feel as good as possible in this legendary destination.