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2.6
338 Reviews (338)
5 Stars
16
4 Stars
70
3 Stars
85
2 Stars
81
1 Stars
86
Conditions
1.8
Value
3.3
Layout
4.0
Friendliness
4.2
Pace
3.9
Amenities
2.9
56.5%
Recommend this course
191 out of 338 reviews
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About

Holes 18
Type Resort/Semi-Private
Style Traditional/Desert
Par 72
Length 7240 yards
Slope 132
Rating 73.0

Editor's Note: Course closed for business in 2018.

The beauty of the natural terrain and the way Jones fit the golf course into it is truly spectacular. Situated alongside the Santa Cruz River, the course meanders into the surrounding hillsides where the sunlight casts mystical purple and yellow shadows in the late afternoon. Holes 5 to 8 are considered one of the finest four hole stretches in the state, ending with the 439 yard No. 8. Teeing off from high on the hill, the fairway drops off twice before your long approach shot settles onto a green framed by a reed filled pond to the right and a gaping bunker to the left.

Course Details

Year Built 1971
Fairways Bermuda Grass
Greens Bent Grass
Golf Season Year round
Architect Robert Trent Jones, Sr. (1971)

Rentals/Services

Carts Yes - included in green fees
Clubs Yes
GPS No
Pull-carts Yes

Practice/Instruction

Driving Range Yes
Bunker Yes
Caddies No
Golf School Academy Yes
Teaching Pro Yes
Pitching/Chipping Area Yes
Putting Green Yes

Policies

Credit Cards Accepted VISA, MasterCard, Amex, Discover Welcomed
Metal Spikes Allowed No
Dress code Collared shirt required, no denim

Food & Beverage

Bar, Snacks

Available Facilities

Conference Facilities, Banquet Facilities

Available Activities

Swimming, Billiards

Reviews

2.6
338 Reviews (338)

What Golfers Are Saying

The 19th Hole is Great For:
Drinks 34
Patio Dining 21
Brunch 17
Course Challenges Include:
Bunkers 40
Water Hazards 38
Elevation Changes 19
This course/club is great for:
Locals 45
Wildlife/ Scenic Views 44
Seniors 34
This Course's Location is:
Worth the Drive 30
In the 'Burbs 18
Convenient to the City 11

Numbers based on reviews tagged with attribute.

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Overall Rating
Recommended
Handicap
Age
Type of Golfer
Gender
Played On
Reviews 8
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
1.0
First Time Playing
Good weather
Used cart

Greens were horrible

Nothing wrong with the layout of the course but the greens were terrible. Hope warmer weather and lots of water will bring them around as this could be an excellent course to play. The young man who checked me in was very friendly as were the people they put me with. Was very inexpensive to play. Hope they get things fixed up, but won't be back until they do.

Conditions Poor
Value Fair
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Average
Difficulty Moderate
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 02/03/2016

Thanks for playing at Rio Rico Resort. We appreciate your honest feedback and are working hard to bring the course conditions up to par. We hope to exceed your expectations on your next visit.

818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 02/01/2016

Thank you for leaving your review with Rio Rico Resort, your feedback is important to us. We have notified our staff and crews and are working towards the best Rio Rico possible! We hope to see you again soon.

Played On
Reviews 2
Skill Advanced
1.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

bad greens

The greens were horrible and I as well as my 3 playing partners will not return. It was a wasted trip. We play all over southern Arizona and this was not worth 30 dollars.

Conditions Poor
Value Fair
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Fair
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 01/20/2016

Thank you for leaving your review on our course, we appreciate the honest feedback. We will inform our staff and will continuously work to improve the greens here at Rio Rico Resort. We hope to see you again this season!

Played On
Reviews 5
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
2.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Billy F

The greens were as bad as I have ever played. Thought it was overpriced for the condition .

Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Friendliness Good
Pace Good
Amenities Good
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 01/20/2016

Hi Billy,

Thank you for leaving your feedback on Rio Rico Resort it is important to us. We will inform our staff on your concern regarding the greens and we appreciate you voicing it. We will work towards a better round for you on your next visit. Come back and see us!

Played On
Reviews 6
Handicap 10-14
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Previously Played
Fair weather
Used cart

management plan & efforts will pay off!!!!!

Greens are progressing only as fast as weather permits. Bent grass requires at least an average temp. of 40 degrees to be active, and its been hard to find consistency above this temp. this golf season. Tees and some fairways are much better.Stay with them, as warmer weather equals a grass explosion/

Clifford Jan 9, 2016

tees

Conditions Average
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 01/20/2016

Thanks for your review on Rio Rico Resort! We appreciate you noticing our efforts and glad you love the course and see the potential, weather permitting. Looking forward to seeing you in 2016!

Played On
Reviews 1
Handicap 5-9
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Excellent weather
Used cart

Interesting lay out

The course condition is improving from previous years. It is an interesting lay out. No private homes around the course. Natural beauty.

Conditions Average
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 01/06/2016

Thank you for your review! We have been working hard to get the greens back in shape - and we certainly appreciate your feedback. We look forward to your next tee time with us!

Played On
Reviews 8
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
2.0
Previously Played
Excellent weather
Used cart

Stunning Trent Jones design, but...

Rio Rico has been in the same condition for 3 years now and calling it rustic would be generous. It is a fabulous track, but it needs a bunch of money thrown at it. The new management company seems to be doing some things (like watering the greens), but the greens are currently in very poor condition. Bunkers are pretty good and most fairways are just OK. The aesthetic of cart paths, fairway delineation etc is non-existent.

If you can get a round here for less than $20, I think it is worth it. I am happy to pay $20 to play this great track. I have played it 3 years in a row for this price, and I'd go back again. Cheaper than a couple of buckets of balls. But Rio Rico is currently not worth more than $20.

Conditions Fair
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Difficulty Moderate
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 12/15/2015

Thank you for your review. We appreciate your note that we have been working on the conditions. We underwent a long overseed recently for which we have already seen improvements. We have brought in a specialist that has helped us build a plan of action and have followed accordingly. We will continue to have great specials to encourage course play while in recovery. We value your continued patronage and hope to see you back soon!

Played On
Reviews 7
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Excellent weather
Used cart

Give it a break...show patience!

First time playing the course since the days of hosting PGA sectional qualifying. The staff alerts you of the condition of the course and measures taking place to improve the playing conditions. Give the course 6 months to improve. It would help if players filled/repaired divots in the fairway and greens. Give the course a break...what did you expect for the price you paid?

Conditions Average
Value Average
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Difficulty Moderate
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 12/02/2015

Thank you for your review and kind words! We hope to see you back soon!

Played On
Reviews 12
Handicap 25+
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
2.0
Previously Played

Greens were atrocious

While the individual holes offer some interesting challenges, the journey to the greens was diminished by virtually "unputtable" greens. Two temporary greens were just plunked in the middle of unmanicured fairways with no yardage indicators.

Conditions Poor
Value Average
Friendliness Good
Pace Good
Amenities Good
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 11/30/2015

Thank you for your review. We have been working hard to bring the course back into top-notch condition. We feel you will continue to see improvements with each future visit, and hope to see you back soon.

Played On
Reviews 24
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
1.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Frustrating

I like the course layout, but the greens are horrible. We had 4 temporary greens in the fairways which were a complete joke. There are only about 4 greens which are puttable. I won't go back until major improvements are made. The staff is friendly. The greens fee was very low.

Conditions Poor
Value Fair
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 11/30/2015

Thank you for your review. We are working diligently to bring the course into shape. We hope to see you back for another tee time as we would like you to see its continual improvment.

Played On
Reviews 4
Handicap 25+
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
1.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Excellent weather
Used cart

Sad condition.

Needs at least a month or two of serious maintenance. Looks like they are redoing all the greens, they are unplayable now. On the fairways if you look around you usually can find a spot with a sort of playable lie.

Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Average
Amenities Average
Difficulty Fairly Easy
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 11/30/2015

Thank you for your review. Yes, we are redoing the greens and expect to see much improvment over the next couple of months. We hope to see you back for another tee time soon.

Played On
Reviews 4
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
1.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Excellent weather
Used cart

NICE SETTING

Have been playing the course for years but this time was not worth the drive down from GV. Greens were unputable . Hard to hit off the fareways with little grass. Ended up only playing 9 holes.

Conditions Poor
Value Good
Friendliness Average
Pace Good
Amenities Fair
Difficulty Moderate
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 11/23/2015

Thank you for your review. We have been working diligently to bring the course back up to the beautiful conditions it was in the past. We hope to see you back for another tee time and that you can experience the improvements.

Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
1.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Our favorite course gone bad.

We love this course but we were not informed that Tees were set up any where from 20-30 yards forward in rough fairway. What a mess. To top it off, a home above the course was playing a boom box so the entire 18 holes were treated to bad '80s tunes. Not the course problem? Well if I ran the place it would be. What do we want for $15....well we got what we payed for.

Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Friendliness Fair
Pace Excellent
Amenities Fair
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 11/12/2015

Thank you for your review. We are charging special low rates because we have been undergoing some intense repairs on the course to bring it back up to it's former, beautiful conditions. We apologize for the local noise, please let us know next time so we may address. We would love the opportunity to provide a better experience for you next time you visit Rio Rico. Please send us an email at rioricoteetimes@aol.com, we would like to offer you a promotional code toward your next round of golf with us.

Played On
Reviews 7
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
1.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Good weather
Used cart

Rio Rico

The greens are unputtable. Course maintenance is shabby. Leave it alone for another year.

Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Friendliness Average
Pace Average
Amenities Fair
Difficulty Moderate
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 11/06/2015

Thank you for your review. We have been diligently working on the course and finished overseeding mid-October, with temporary greens being in place. We are seeing gradual improvement and we hope to see you back for another tee time to check out our progress!

Played On
Reviews 2
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
1.0
Previously Played
Excellent weather
Used cart

RT Jones RIP

This once great RT Jones course is a disaster. The course is overgrown, fairways have not been maintained, sand traps are more like mud holes with weeds, grass has not been cut and greens, once the best bent greens is South Arizona are gone. Many holes you putt on dirt. Some of the reviews state that maintenance is being performed, however no workers seen this date. I would rate the course as the worse ever seen in my 50 years of playing golf. If you live in Tucson don't drive the 70 miles. If you come to Tucson for the winter there are much better courses in and around our town.

Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Friendliness Average
Pace Good
Amenities Poor
Difficulty Moderate
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 09/22/2015

Thank you for your review. We have been continually working on bringing the greens back up, we began overseeding September 7th which typically takes about a month for conditions to truly improve. We hope to see you back for another round.

Played On
Reviews 4
Handicap 25+
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
1.0
Previously Played
Fair weather
Used cart

Worried that it's not getting better

This was one of my favorites until a couple years ago. It was worth the drive from Tucson. But now, it just isn't, as much as I want it to be. It got bad, but a little over a year ago they started to work on it. But on this most recent outing, it seemed that the progress had been lost, as there had been even more deterioration. The two "greens" that had been closed and redone last year were not noticeably better than the rest. There might have been one that was almost playable. I know there was overseed coming, but I'm not at all sure that takes care of it. The rough is pretty much out of control weeds, the fairways were actually the best part, but still not even close to good, and after the monsoon I would have expected at least some better grass. I'm not giving up yet, but it will be a few months before I'm back.

Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Poor
Difficulty Moderate
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 10/01/2015

Thank you for your review. We have been undergoing intensive overseeding and have some temporary greens in place. We hope to see you back for another tee time, we are working diligently to bring the course back into the condition it deserves!

Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Advanced
1.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

being redone

The course was in very bad shape looks like someone just decided to open it all greens need to be redone or reseed all grass needed cutting 4 temporary greens staff was friendly and they were working on course I'm a 6 handicap so it wasn't for me maybe this winter it will be ready I believe I played this course back in 1994 and it was great back then I love the course design just needs lot of work

Conditions Poor
Value Fair
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Fair
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 08/31/2015

Thank you for your review! We have been working diligently to bring the course back up to its former glory, we expect conditions to continue to improve and we hope to see you back soon to see so for yourself!

Played On
Reviews 27
Handicap 15-19
Skill Beginner
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Previously Played

Course has made major improvements.

The course is still a work in progress but has changed so much from 3 months ago. It is in much better condition. We plan on going back again next week.

Conditions Average
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 07/27/2015

Thank you so much for your feedback! We have been working very hard to improve the course and are so happy to hear you have seen noticeable results! We look forward to your next visit!

Played On
Reviews 2
Handicap 25+
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Good weather
Used cart

THIS COURSE NEEDS IMPOROVEMENT TO RESTORE.

THE COURSE NEEDS IMPROVEMENT ESPECIALLY GREENS. THE ENVIRONMENT IS BEAUTIFUL. I UNDERSTOOD THE COURSE WAS RATED NUMBER TWO IN 2002. NEEDS TO RESTORE ASAP

Conditions Fair
Value Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Average
Amenities Fair
Difficulty Moderate
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 07/24/2015

Thank you for your review. Under new ownership, we are working very hard to bring the course up to its former beauty. We hope to see your for another round!

Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
3.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Needs work

The fairways and green need lots of help. The rain has helped a lot since our last time here but it is no way close to where it needs to be. Ball was difficult to locate even on the fairways due to weeds and tall grass, putting was horrible, too many burnt areas? The staff was excellent, our cart actually died on the 8th hole and they responded within 10 minutes. Lunch was provide with our deal and I it was excellent, the lady serving us was upbeat and made our tome there enjoyable. Lots of potential with this course just needs a major overhaul.

Conditions Poor
Value Fair
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Average
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 07/23/2015

Thank you so much for your review! We are working diligently and taking all measures to bring the course back up to its excellent former conditions. We are so happy to hear you enjoyed the lunch special and that you were treated very well. We look forward to your next round!

Played On
Reviews 5
Handicap 10-14
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
1.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Excellent weather
Used cart

Needing work

This course, once a gem, is now tarnished. One green on the back side was three feet high in weeds with a temporary in front of it. The fairways are no longer grass, but wild growth of varying type. The fairways were so long that it was like hitting from the rough most of the time, especially the back nine. The sand traps were concrete. Evidence of vandalism on ball washers and trash cans was everywhere, and the maintenance was just not up to par.

Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Difficulty Moderate
818d5dab-3b7f-5167-90c0-422c0088e507
Commented on 07/17/2015

Thank you for your feedback. I assure you new ownership has taken control and we are working diligently to bring the course back up to its former glory. We have even had an expert come in to advise and we are following his strategy. - and we will get there!

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