There is no state more nuts about its golf than Arizona. Even in the warm summer months, locals still find their way onto the fairways in scorching heat. And in prime golf season, from January to April, the high-end resorts and Sonoran Desert scenery makes it internationally coveted place for a golf vacation.
To find out which Arizona golf courses delivered the goods in 2016, we looked at your ratings and reviews submitted to Golf Advisor throughout the year. If you read our Top 50 Overall Courses in the U.S. in 2016, you know that three Arizona courses made the Top 50, two of which made the Top 10.
To compile the Arizona Top 25 in 2016, we used a similar method to that of our our national Top 50 ranking. A course's score is based on their overall (50%) rating and subcategory average (%50). A review is weighted based on how prolific that reviewer is on Golf Advisor, and a course receives a bump in their rating if their score is better than that reviewer's average score.
To find out what golfers are saying about each course, click on each course guide link to see detailed data and reviews. Don't see your favorite Arizona golf course in the following Top 25? You can make your voice heard by writing a review on Golf Advisor here.
Best-of Arizona by subcategory in 2016
Course layout: Ak-Chin Southern Dunes
Course conditions: Quintero Golf Club
Value:Highlands at Dove Mountain
Off-course amenities: Troon North Golf Club
Pace of play: Los Caballeros
Staff friendliness: Ak-Chin Southern Dunes
Most improved: Dove Valley Ranch
Top 25 courses in Arizona in 2016
Mesa
Buckeye
Phoenix
Buckeye
Scottsdale
Scottsdale
Tucson
Goodyear
Florence
Tucson
Chandler
Wickenburg
Gold Canyon
Tucson
Chandler
Marana
Tucson
Scottsdale
Scottsdale
Marana
Scottsdale
Sedona
Wickenburg
No. 26 Overall in the U.S. in 2016
Peoria
No. 8 Overall in the U.S. in 2016
Maricopa
No. 6 Overall in the U.S. in 2016