It was worth playing when it opened. I haven’t been there for a few years but just from driving by, it’s been heavily built around; I doubt that you’re going to feel hemmed in by homes there but if it’s just another course with houses around vs. what it was that’s a big difference. One of their big things was always the greens, which were bent and kept pretty fast, especially given that they are pretty sloping–they are just high enough elevation there that they can keep bent alive. The course is fine but the design wasn’t great–no holes I was writing home about and a couple that were actually kinda dumb.
I liked it better than Quintero, but it is a longer drive out to Wickenburg and the comparison has changed since Quintero still is out there by itself and Wick is getting homes built up. I will say, if you have an invite to go out there, Lil Wick is quite fun so a whole day out there with some time spent goofing around Lil Wick would definitely make the drive worth it.
It’s private so you have to leverage an invite. It has zero need to be private though, I played out there on an invite without any members, and there were 2 groups on the entire course.
The houses are not really in play and you don’t really see them much honestly outside of a few holes. I found it to be super gimmicky. Every tee shot is elevated. Then you hit down to a fairway. Then back up to a blind green. And the greens have a ton of slope and you can hit a good shot into the middle of the green that was blind and then be putting with your back to the hole and guaranteed 3 putt.
You go up, then down, and up again for 18 holes. And then it does have a few Quintero like holes where you lose a golf ball by missing the fairway by 2 yards on the back 9.
Practice facility and grounds are great. You’d expect as much from a private course. But the design itself is really lacking. It’s this total mountain/desert course sensorly overload but misses the basic golf course design stuff. It was the architect’s first course and it shows. Weird drainage spots right in play too. I’m not usually a full golf architect nerd but it’s a course where the obvious misses are really obvious.
It was public but “going to be private” for so long after they opened that it really surprised me a couple years ago when it suddenly actually was private. I guess they have enough homes built and people living up there now to support it but I also wouldn’t be surprised if after some time they again start to offer public play in the summer like a ot of the other retirement community courses do.
Edited to add I’ve felt the same way about Sterling Farms so I suppose their prospects for eventually getting to fully private are pretty good, too.
For the record I called a couple weeks ago for a potential tee time and it’s still open to the public, 7 days in advance for Booking. Just in case anyone wants to see the course bacon loves.
You may have just seen me talking it up over and over TBH. I think that course is really cool. Nothing flashy about it and I think it’s just as well if they never do any major work to the bunkers because the 70s vibe fits and frankly most of the challenge out there comes from the topography anyway. Almost every hole is up or down or going over big rolls in the land. It’s a walk you will feel at the end of the day no doubt.
I don’t think it’s awful. I’d even play it again, but I do agree that there are just some things going on out there that don’t add up. In some places it’s greens that push the limits (which can be great! but…!) except they don’t really match the hole so it comes off as way more extreme than it was even meant to. 8-9 is a bad stretch of design exacerbated by the fact that they aren’t consistent with maintenance of the area that makes #8 a problem.
Overall it’s a shame. We don’t get many new courses here and it seems unlikely we will get many new ones going forward so you really hope for the best and this could have been a lot better.
That makes a lot of sense economically based on what I saw. Doing a semi private thing would make the most sense. Especially since they force homeowners into membership as part of their lot fee (or did a few years back when my Dad’s friend built up there) even if they aren’t into golf.
I went to high school with Shane’s wife. I always do a double take when the algorithm shows me her posts, “what the hell is Shane Bacon doing there,” before the puzzle comes back together.
We could take Shane in a match if all 3 of us played righty and you and I had our best stuff.
Would love to show you around some of our favorite spots. I’ll have to check the overseed schedule before advising on courses. Dicey time of year with that. Lots of courses closed. Will find some good options.
Would recommend renting a car. Phoenix is a very car-driven city. Not much as far as good public transit goes.
As far as places to stay, depends on budget. Check out the ones Erin listed but other than that I’d recommend staying in Tempe near ASU or Old Town Scottsdale for the Dobson days at least. Both within 15-20 minutes of Dobson and plenty to do around both areas.
Agree with all this. If you’re out here for a week, the golf is a tough scene that time of year. As @Jpop942 mentioned, many courses will be closed. Those that are open will not have been open from overseed long. Cart path only for courses where you need to ride (that’s … a lot of them out here) and soft conditions and slow greens basically everywhere. The best is a course that hasn’t closed for overseed yet but that’s going to be hard to find in late October.
If you have a car, you can drive about 50 minutes south to Robson Ranch. They have the tiff tuff year round Bermuda and don’t overseed. It’s not a bucket list golf course, but they did a redesign 2 years back and it’s a fine course in good condition. It does sit in a retirement community so it would be a good intro into life surrounded by large quantities of olds.
Also some killer Mexican food about 15 minutes away from Robson at Lil Sombreros in Casa Grande. An actual hut with zero indoor seating.
The mans visiting a wonderful state from Canada (like the rest of them do lol) and you’re trying to send him to abq and casa grande? Do you want him to never visit the sw again???