The JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort & Spa in Tucson offers outdoor -- yes, outdoor -- ice skating on Arizona golf vacations.
How’s this for a unique off-course activity: outdoor ice skating…in the Arizona desert.
For those who want to escape the cold with Arizona golf vacations, but still want a taste of “home” when they’re not playing golf, a Tucson, Ariz., resort has set up an outdoor ice skating rink.
Frankly, when I’m on an Arizona golf vacation, I don’t want or need any reminders that it’s winter, but I must admit, ice skating when it’s 70 degrees outside would be a pretty cool thing to experience. Here’s where you can find it. Read more →
Previously open only to members and their guests, you can now play Superstition Mountain GC's courses on Arizona golf vacations: Prospector (above) and Lost Gold.
If there’s a Phoenix or Scottsdale, Arizona golf vacation in your future, you’ll wan to read this tip before you choose the lineup of courses you’re going to play.
The private Superstition Mountain Golf Club, located about 35 miles east of Phoenix, has decided to allow daily-fee play on both of its Nicklaus Design golf courses, called “Prospector” and “Lost Gold,” on a rotational basis. Read more →
Papago Golf Course is back in playfor Arizona golf vacations.
While we’ll all have a lot to be thankful for on November 27th, those on, or planning, Arizona golf vacations will have a little extra about which to be grateful. That’s when tee times will again be taken for Papago Golf Course, which, in the past, was one of the best bangs-for-the-buck for Arizona golf vacations.
Orginally designed by William F. Bell (of Torrey Pines Golf Course fame, among others) in 1963, the city of Phoenix-owned Papago has been closed since April to undergo massive renovations. Read more →
Even before recent improvements, Troon North has been a staple of Scottsdale golf vacations.
Troon North Golf Club, one of the 36-hole facilities that has become a staple of Scottsdale golf vacations, has been touting its “two new golf courses” lately. Intrigued as to why the golf club would monkey with its acclaimed Monument Course, a Jay Moorish/Tom Weiskopf creation, and its Pinnacle Course (1996), a solo Weiskopf effort, we made one of our usual anonymous site inspections to find out.
Specifically, the Troon North Golf Club website declares that Tom Weiskopf recently returned to create, “two new layouts” and a “completely new playing experience.” The truth is, while Weiskopf modified some bunkers, re-worked a few holes, and added a superior strain of bentgrass to the putting surfaces, his main change was transferring nines between the courses to create more cohesive routings. Read more →
Sign of the times? Hopefully not.
Many people think the worst three words in golf are, “You’re still away.” This past weekend, on my Scottsdale golf vacation, I was reminded of three words that are even worse, “Cart Path Only.”
In town to evaluate recent changes to some of Scottsdale’s best golf courses, I had to weather cart-path-only restrictions at Grayhawk Golf Club and during one of two rounds at Troon North Golf Club. Read more →
The following is an excerpt from our free, special report on We-Ko-Pa Golf Club:
We-Ko-Pa Golf Club, already one of our favorite golfing grounds in the desert Southwest, unveiled its second, 18-hole course in late 2006, the Bill Coore-Ben Crenshaw designed Saguaro Course (pronounced “suh-WAHR-oh”), it not only doubled our pleasure, it catapulted to the head of our list of the best 36-hole complexes to play on a Scottsdale golf vacation.
Located on Native American land in Fort McDowell just beyond Scottsdale’s borders, We-Ko-Pa offers an unbeatable combination of two layouts of utterly contrasting styles, a stunning clubhouse that draws on desert and Yavapi Nation traditions,
Free, special report:We-Ko-Pa Golf Club
a reasonable green fee, and a rare, pure golf setting that is utterly devoid of course-side housing. Add up all these factors and there is simply no more enjoyable place to play back-to-back rounds on a Scottsdale golf vacation.
Coore-Crenshaw’s Saguaro Course would be our choice if we had only one round to play at We-Ko-Pa
, but to make it an ideal day, we suggest playing the Cholla Course (pronounced, “choy-ah”) after lunch. To make this option more enticing, We-Ko-Pa
recently implemented a discounted 36-hole rate. During peak season, the Saguaro-Cholla combination costs $360, but those who can brave the heat from June through early September can play both for a remarkable $115.
To learn all of our insider secrets about making We-Ko-Pa
a part of your Scottsdale golf vacation, read the rest of our free, We-Ko-Pa special report. In it, you’ll learn things like: Read more →
Q: I would like to surprise my husband with an all-inclusive Arizona golf vacation. I want him to arrive and not worry about anything except where his ball landed. What do your Arizona golf packages include? Nicky A., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The Phoenician is one golf resort that may be able to offer all-inclusive Arizona golf packages.
A: Sorry, Nicky, but we’re a source of expert advice only. We often get mistaken for a golf travel provider, but we have no affiliation with golf courses, hotels, resorts, or restaurants. And I’d add that, unlike other golf publications, we do not accept advertising or free “site inspection” trips from them, either. It’s all part of our commitment to providing you with unbiased reviews that you can trust.
So, while we can’t offer you any Arizona golf vacation
packages directly, we can give you some advice when looking for them. Read more →
Whether watching it on TV or playing it on an Arizona golf vacation, the Raptor's 15th hole provides drama.
There are two golf courses at Grayhawk Golf Club, the popular Scottsdale, Arizona golf vacation venue which this week is hosting the PGA Tour’s Fry’s Electronics Open. But if you could only play one round there, do you know which golf course to choose?
We do. It’s the Raptor Course, upon which (no surprise) the tournament is being held. It’s the newer of the two layouts, and the Tom Fazio design features more stunning desert vistas and elevation changes than the Talon Course. Plus, its undulating greens are some of the most interesting and toughest to read among all Scottsdale golf courses. Read more →
