We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort

I recently played the Cholla course and absolutely loved it, especially the front 9. The layout is spectacular and the setting is beautiful. The conditions were perfect as well, the greens were pretty firm but i wish they were a little faster considering how firm they were. My only complaint was with the bar at the turn. We quickly went up to the bartender and asked if there were any quick meals specifically made for golfers at the turn. He said yes, breakfast burritos and breakfast sandwiches. We ordered 4 breakfast burritos and I kid you not they took close to a half hour. We were getting relatively impatient and when we finally got them we had to slyly cut in front of another group making the turn which is a complete pain and rude to do but we didn't have a choice.

We played this a day after playing another Coore Crenshaw design, Talking Stick, and although this cost a bit more, it was a HUGE upgrade. The layout was really enjoyable - short par 4s, long par 4s, same with the 3s and 5s. Just a good mix of holes and tee boxes for all skill levels. The condition of the course was nearly perfect, the staff was really great, the views were awesome - it was just a really enjoyable experience. This is one of the best and most enjoyable courses I've ever played - I would love to play it again one day and if anyone is choosing between this and other Scottsdale courses and especially if money is a consideration, just trust me and pay a little extra to play this place, because it's worth it.

Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore are certainly not prolific, by any stretch. They create golf courses judiciously. The Valley of the Sun is blessed to have three of their designs - 2 at Talking Stick and Saguaro at We-Ko-Pa. All three have particulars that draw me to them... But THIS course has a profile and cadence that truly is quite special for the generally cookie-cutter-esque considerations that attach to Sonoran golf. Former Nicklaus Senior Designer Scott Miller's Cholla (he also did Eagle Mountain, just down the road) is the original design at We-Ko-Pa, but, in my opinion, it is NOT the best. Saguaro looks like it was softly blended into the landscape with a master's palette knife and and air brush. VERY low profile. Holes 4, 7, the brilliant short (137 yds) 9th, a split-fairway par five 14th, the spectacularly canted uphill dog-leg right 16th and the huge finishing hole (508 par four from the back) will all make a strong lasting impact. While I love both tracks at Talking Stick (especially the North now known as the O'odham Course), the Saguaro Course at We-Ko-Pa has more elevation change and greater shot requirements. Play it and find out!

First off, I've never played a Coore-Crenshaw course I didn't like and this is among their very best. I rated this a notch over the Cholla Course, which I also love, simply because the holes are a little more memorable. They both share the incredible views of the Sonoran Desert and mountains and are impeccably conditioned. Depending on the set of tees you play, it can be incredibly challenging, too, but never boring.

I was tempted to give the Cholla Course, which was recently renovated, five stars, but in fairness to the Saguaro Course, which I like a little better, I'm giving it four, but it's really 4 1/2. It's obviously one of the best conditioned courses in the desert, and like its sister course, the views are amazing. This a course that never gets old, from the tee to the terrific greens complexes.

Got to do 36 holes on both the Cholla in the morning and the Saguaro in the afternoon. Both tracks have beautiful picturesque views as well as just about perfect course conditions. The facility is top notch from the pro shop/clubhouse to the practice range. Despite the wet morning round, greens still have speed. To me the Cholla plays a little tougher because you must pick your tee shots (target golf) as well as the undulating fairways. The Saguaro to me is a little more forgiving with wider and flatter fairways. Price is a little steep but you definitely get what you pay for.

Got to do 36 holes on both the Cholla in the morning and the Saguaro in the afternoon. Both tracks have beautiful picturesque views as well as just about perfect course conditions. The facility is top notch from the pro shop/clubhouse to the practice range. Despite the wet morning round, greens still have speed. To me the Cholla plays a little tougher because you must pick your tee shots (target golf) as well as the undulating fairways. The Saguaro to me is a little more forgiving with wider and flatter fairways. Price is a little steep but you definitely get what you pay for.

A few years ago when I first played the Cholla and Saguaro courses at We-Ko-Pa, I curried slight favor towards the Cholla. I don't agree with that anymore at all. I like Cholla, and it is worthy of any area Top 10 list. But the Saguaro is just too good. The pace of play is quicker thanks to the design and more walkable routing (I wouldn't walk Cholla) and the holes roll naturally up and down the landscape. We managed to squeeze in 36 last week in waning twilight. I loved every shot. My favorite holes are the 1st, 8th, 10th, 15th (where I won a closest to the pin -- sorry for bragging but my golf game hasn't had many bright spots lately), but each hole is different. It's truly one of Coore-Crenshaw's best efforts and absolutely worth the jaunt east from Scottsdale.

The original course at We-Ko-Pa, the Cholla, is back open after a summer under the knife. With the exception of the 8th hole, there really isn't all that much of a noticeable difference besides about 7 acres of turf removed (all in areas where balls don't normally go - like around tee boxes and behind greens). New sand and greens were installed as well as a brand new irrigation system. Also worth mentioning, the golf carts for both courses now have GPS and USB plug-ins.

The Cholla is indisputably among the ten best public courses in the valley, and when you consider that peak rates are closer to $200 than $300, it is very good relative value. I like the Saguaro more for a few reasons, most notably the pace of play. Cholla seems to have a few more bottlenecks on it, particularly early on. That said, there are as many candidates for signature hole on Cholla, like the 8th and 17th holes among many others, as on Saguaro. It would be silly to come here and play one and not the other.

Played Saguaro Thursday and Saturday on the 36-hole package.

Saguaro has a lot more grass than Cholla, making you think it will be easier - but there several long par 4s (18 was 490!) and some seriously uphill approach shots. A very interesting layout, much different from Cholla. Great fun to play. The only negative regarding the course is the bunkers, which were firm to the point of being packed dirt. Note that the bunker at the practice area has the very different sand from Cholla. There is no way to prepare for the bunkers on Saguaro.

Two notes for management:

1 - Get a ranger out on weekends. An 8:00 am Saturday round should not take 5 hours on Saguaro. We later quit our afternoon round on Cholla after 3 hours, 10 holes, and views of the drunks in front of us driving across #9 green and hitting wedges off #10 green. Kudos to the staff for issuing a credit for that round.

2 - Get some training for staff or hire some friendlier people. Staff does their job OK, but few seem to enjoy being there or try to make your feel welcome.
The beverage cart ladies were a notable exception.

Played Cholla Thursday morning and Saturday afternoon on the 36-hole package.

The new greens seem to be coming in well, but they are quite fast and won''t hold even well-struck approach shots. Had to play every approach to the front edge and hope for the best.

Tees and fairways were uniformly excellent.

The changes to #8 make the hole much more playable.

The course does take some getting used to. Given the absence of GPS on the carts, a more robust yardage book would be a great help.

Range has no distance markers. A board with distances would make warm-up better.

Clubhouse staff on Thursday was professional to the point of coldness.

The Saguaro course is extremely pretty with great vistas and views Unfortunately, my experience was marred by an extremely unfriendly staff. The man in the pro shop had a grumpy disposition. The cart guy manning the bag drop was extremely rude and made jokes about my diminutive disposition. The range was inexplicably closed and the snack bar was closed despite what the man in the pro shop told me.

This course was absolutely beautiful and a fun course to play! It had some challenging holes but the layout made them interesting. There were 360 degree views from almost every hole of the Arizona desert and mountains. The staff was very friendly. This course can be a bit a pricey but if you are coming from our of town it is definitely worth paying the money. Arizona resident rates is very reasonable.

Few destinations have as many courses as Phoenix-Scottsdale, and yet We-Ko-Pa's Saguaro Course remains in a world of its own. The design team of Coore-Crenshaw laid out this rippling and dramatic course, full of risk-reward holes and gorgeous views, and it's about as fun as a layout the desert can provide. It's not as long as nextdoor Cholla, which is also a little more artificial in shaping compared to Saguaro, but about as fun as it gets. There are some really tough holes, including a few long par 3s and par 4s (and on the windy afternoon we played, was a real beast). But reachable par 5s and drivable par 4s even things out wonderfully. Its' a great match play course, or course for larger groups playing team or skins games.

The overall facility is great, with a huge driving range and a clubhouse with indoor/outdoor seating. Drink prices seemed reasonable as well compared to the higher prices in Scottsdale. All-in-all, it's worth the drive and then some to play one of the best Native American designs in the west.

Went with my 3 best golf buddies to play for 4 days in the Phoenix area. Played at the Whirlwind golf club, Southern Dunes, The Wildfiret golf club and then he Saguaro course for my birthday after hearing about how great the course was. The turf grass and greens were great.
The other courses all had GPS on the carts and had good sand on the bunkers.
I can't understand why We-Ko-Pa doesn't have those also. The bunkers are just dirt with lots of small pebbles and not well maintained . The course is rather difficult from the purple tees, so having GPS would be very helpful. For $155.00, I was expecting more.

I can be rather critical of golf course but this track is terrific. You'll enjoy wide open views of the surrounding Sonoran Desert, Tonto National Forest, and 4 Peaks Mountain (We Ko Pa). Golf holes contain outstanding strategy and difficult scoring conditions. The fairways and greens are always exceptionally maintained (although you can find faster greens). The bunkers currently need more sand. The course is very walkable and straight forward. All obstacles are visible but plenty of course knowledge can be gained by playing this course a few times. The course plays more difficult than the course rating may suggest. The desert is unplayable in most cases and if it were water this course would have a slope of 160. #18 is perhaps the most challenging finishing hole I have ever played. Par here will make your day!

Play Cholla too but be careful to check your yardage book on the Cholla course.

A great place to enjoy the day. With mountain views everywhere and not a home in sight, it is a great setting for a relaxing day.

Coore/Crenshaw seem to pride themelves on using the land as is with very little earth moving. The advantage is that the course looks like it has always been there. The downside is balls run from the fairways through the rough and into the desert without mounds or hills to keep your ball in play, and the sightlines off of the tee are a little more challenging.

The conditions were great, as the greens were fast and smooth. The bunkers were just ok. Not nearly as bad as the Cholla course (rocks, stones and pebbles), but they are still not stellar.

The only thing I did not care for regarding the layout was that the holes were either very short (300-320 yards par 4's) or crazy long (470-500 yard par 4's). I played the 6800 yard tees while my son played at 7,000 yards. One par three was an easy wedge at
115 yards, while another was 256 yards.

I know this is nitpicking, but I did find it a little unusual. Otherwise, a great track that is fun to play and worth a vacation round in great weather.

This is a great golf course. The scenery is stunning, with mountain views everywhere. It is the kind of course you want to play while in Arizona. The condition of the course was excellent from tee to green with the exception of the bunkers. The bunkers were hard and full of stones, pebbles and rocks. An unacceptable condition given the price you pay to play. I have heard they plan on a bunker refresh later this year, but it is too late for me. This would be an easy 5 star rating with good bunkers.

The layout is fun to play, and yet very challenging. It has a great mix of holes with tremendous variety. The greens were a joy to putt, as they were 12 - 13 on the stimp and very smooth. Have fun.

Favorite course in the valley as its a walkable course, forgiving fairways and stunning scenery. One of few courses where when waiting to hit or to putt you can stand back and just look around at the landscape for miles (or if an apache helicopter flies by or this time a couple of jets). Greens aren't the fastest but roll nicely, at least 3 holes are risk/reward par 4s, par 3s face all four directions and play different distances. (Hole 15 I could stand on that tee box and hit shots all day.) Booked using the We Ko Pass while its tougher to get a tee time we paid $99. Have played courses (including Cholla) at least a dozen times and we always know what we are going to get which is a great facility and a great golf experience. My only criticism is the sand in the bunkers was sparse in some areas which caused the club to bounce off the bottom of the bunker. Our family looks forward to playing this course every year. If you are looking to play a great desert course this it!

I prefer the Saguaro course over the Cholla. The Cholla is a bit too gimmicky with all sorts of target shots and hidden views. There are several holes that are just bad designs. Where you are penalized for great tee shots. If this is your type of golf, then you'll love the Cholla course but if you like to actually see where you're going, have a decent chance for risk/reward and like to play at a decent pace, the Cholla is not the course for you... I think the biggest problem with WeKoPa is the number of mediocre and / or beginners who play out there. They are both very difficult golf courses but they seem to attract a lot of tourists and beginners who really should not be playing a course of this caliber. And the result is 5 hours rounds and a whole lot of waiting... On the plus side, its fairly open in the summer as the tourists are elsewhere.

Bottome line: Nice course, great conditions, bueautiful views and a real challenge but not for the begniner or the short hitter.