matt175051

We played this course on the last day of our Phoenix trip. It's a great layout with a number of interesting holes. There are 108 bunkers on the course so you better be prepared to hit some sand shots. Pace of play wasn't great, especially on the back nine, but it was tolerable. Overall, I highly recommend the course. We played the Palmer course last year and much prefer this course. Only complaint I have is the price of drinks in the restaurant - $8 for what amounts to less than a sleeve of beer (served in a wine glass). Not impressed.

This is the second time we have played Estrella and definitely won't be the last! This is a beautiful course in excellent condition and an amazing value at $50 US. The pace of play on this day was fantastic. Didn't see another group until the 18th hole. It's a little out of the way if you are staying in Scottsdale or Phoenix, but worth the trip. Highly recommended.

We've been to Phoenix for the past nine years and have played this course four or five times. It's definitely a course worth playing. Interesting layout and a difficult course, requires good shot making and strategy from the tee. Fair course, provided you select the right tees (group ahead of us was playing from the tips and had no business doing so). Good value for the money too at $60 on a Sunday. Highly recommended.

This is a really cool golf course. It's a park layout with water everywhere. It's a fair course and not too difficult, unless you plan on spraying the ball. A nice change of pace if you are looking for something other than desert golf in Arizona. There's three nines (we played on White and Gold). Good value for the money and great amenities.

This was the first time we had played Starfire. The course has three nines. We played on a Saturday and only paid $40, so the price is right. The course was in good shape and had a number of interesting holes. The par threes are the selling feature of this course. It's not at the same level as the premier courses in Scottsdale/Phoenix, but is a great course to begin your trip on. Would play there again.

Third time playing Red Mountain Ranch during our annual trips to Arizona. It's not an overly long course, but requires good shot-making and strategy from the tees. There isn't a lot of room to spray the ball on most holes. A number of interesting holes with features typical of Pete Dye designs (ie Railroad ties). It's a fun course to play. The course was in good condition and the round only cost $50, so the value is there. We'll be back again.

First time playing here and what a treat. We played six rounds on our most recent trip to Phoenix and this was probably our group's favourite course. The conditioning of the course was superb. The layout is very unique - definitely not your typical Arizona desert layout. But it's not easy by any means. The native fescue grass that borders the fairways will eat up golf balls and they are a lot harder to spot than you would think. Beautiful facility, will definitely return next year.

Played this course after purchasing three green fees through the golf now deal caddy. It's nothing spectacular and there are better kept golf courses, but it offers great value for the money and is a fair, forgiving golf course with some memorable holes (I usually don't like courses that end with a par 3, but the 18th at Silverado is a great golf hole). A good course to begin your golf trip on.

This was the first time our group had played the Wildfire-Palmer course. We were really looking forward to our round, but were kind of disappointed afterwards. The course is nice enough, but very similar to many of the courses in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area. Nothing that wowed us. The conditioning was okay, but brown spots were evident throughout the course. Had this been a $50 course, I think we would have been happy, but having paid $80 in May, we won't be back. May give the Faldo course a try next year, but we'll see. There are better values out there.

This was the first course we played on our annual golf trip and it set the bar for the rest. You can always spot a Troon run facility - classy, well-run, immaculate conditioning, and a beautiful golf course. Even in May, we were amazed at how lush and green the course was. Couldn't find a brown spot on the course. The layout is great with a lot of memorable holes. It's a fair golf course and is a nice break from the desert, target-golf layouts in Arizona. Definitely a must play and for $60, it offers great value. We'll be back next year.

Tegavah is a great golf course. The course conditioning is fantastic, the greens roll quick and there are plenty of postcard worthy views. Prior to teeing off, the starter will probably tell you to pay attention to the direction of the "four peaks" (mountains) as it will influence putting on the greens. While it will influence some of your putts, it's not as big of a factor as we thought it may be. The only complaint we had on this day was with the weather. It was windy throughout the round and even rained during the last two holes. It definitely made for some challenging approach shots. All in all though, great experience

This is definitely a golf course worth checking out. The practice facility is impressive and the course is even better. Conditioning is superb and the holes are interesting. It's a bit of a hybrid in Phoenix as the desert does come into play, however it also has some holes that feel a little more "parkland". Highly recommended golf experience.

Golf course is very flat, but in great shape. Some of the holes seem to blend together; somewhat lacking that "wow factor". However, what's nice about Talking Stick - North is the fact that there are no blind shots and what you see is what you get. If you're not right down the middle, be careful though, as balls can easily bounce from the fairway into the desert (no rough to slow your ball down). Great course to begin your trip on. I wouldn't pay $100 to play this course, but for the price we paid it was a good deal. I would recommend.

This was the first time playing Estrella. We got a great deal through Golf Now. While it was a bit of a drive to get to the course, it was totally worth it. The conditioning of the fairways and tee boxes was excellent. The holes were both scenic and challenging with a good variety. The one complaint we had was with the greens - they almost seemed a little "spongy" and "grainy". There were a couple times when a good putt didn't hold it's line as it hit a rough patch. All in all though, it was a great course worth trying. Staff was friendly and pace of play was great.

This is the fourth time that we have played Las Sendas, and it won't be the last. The course is challenging, but not unfair. There's a great variety of holes, especially on the front and the conditioning of the course is fantastic. Keep your eyes open for rates on Golf Now - you can play this course for as low as $49 (we paid $69 because it was the weekend). This is one of the better values in the area.

NOTE - In order to shoot well, it's important that you make use of the yardage guide provided; there are some holes where a driver seems like the right play, but will get you into trouble.

The Duke at Rancho El Dorado is the perfect course to kick off your golf trip. The course isn't very difficult with wide open fairways and receptive greens. It's not the most scenic golf course, but the greens were in great shape. For the price ($35), I would recommend a round here, but don't expect to be "wowed. (although the 18th is a really great hole).

When considering the scenery, price, and conditioning, Ocotillo is one of our favourite courses to play. We have been coming to Phoenix annually for the last six years and have played this course three times. Unlike most of the courses in Phoenix, this is a parkland layout with copious amounts of water. There are three nines, and I believe that there is water on 22 or 23 of the 27 holes.
At $49, you'll have a hard time finding a better value. I highly recommend this course.

The conditioning and scenery was fantastic. SilverRock has a great variety of holes and forces you to play every club in your bag. It's challenging, but not unfair. I would highly recommend a round here while visitng Palm Springs.

Mission Hills - Gary Player is a nice golf course with a number of scenic holes. The back nine is better than the front, featuring a number of water features. That being said, we felt that this course was overpriced when compared to the other places we played. We paid less at SilverRock and Terra Lago - North, and both were superior courses, in our opinion. If you can play this course for $49-$59, I would recommend it; if you have to pay any more, I would recommend looking around for better value.

There's a lot to like about this golf course. The pace of play on this day was fantastic; the course offers some fantastic scenery; and the layout is interesting (can't imagine that there are too many courses in the area that feature an island green Par 3 hole).
The conditioning of the course was fair, although there seemed to be an issue with standing water on one of the holes on the back nine.
Overall, a great experience and worth playing again.