I had a work trip out there last March and was b/t Quintero and Verrado. Went with Verrado for price and distance. Had a great time but I would love to hear how you like Quintero.
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Will report back!
Hello Phoenix peeps.
I will be in town for a conference the week of Feb 17th but I am coming in a couple of days early to play golf that weekend.
Would love to tee it up with any of you that Saturday and/or Sunday. I’m open to anywhere in the greater Phoenix area.
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My line on Quintero is it is great to play once, literally a perfect bachelor party course.
Is it a good golf course? No, it is the worst of the Rees Jones penal school and there’s maybe one shot all day where you make a decision as opposed to just having a pure execution test. But it is a very pretty, very beautifully manicured execution test. And if you’re with your friends visiting Phoenix, having some pops, the first time around you’re really just going to enjoy the scenery, the downhill par 3s, being away from everything, the desert. It’s very, very hard but most desert courses are and, again, there are plenty of positives to distract you the first go around.
Now, having said that, as someone who lives here and has played it multiple times, I don’t ever want to do so again.
But even though I would play O’odham 100 out of 100 times over Quintero, I think for a first time visitor to Phoenix Quintero is the better option.
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I’d love to play with you that weekend!
Wherever and whenever.
wonderful take.
I feel like Quintero hits on the resort course vibe. As someone who just moved here, there is a wow factor to the layout - like how they can fit a golf course in this land, etc etc. The course is just extremely penal and not very fun to play IMO. Also, the hang is weak AF… they are really missing an opportunity there.
Having said that, I won’t be back unless it’s free.
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The hang is bad.
Quintero is a weird saga. It was built in I think like 2000 as a private club and I can’t even imagine how far away from everything it felt back then. But they had money. The story I have heard is that not only did they pay Rees whatever his fee was but they apparently paid Norman a large fee to lay out a second course which, obviously, never got built.
The private club churned along pretty well until the recession. I remember they first started kinda cracking the doors open a bit around 09/10 and by 2012 they were basically a public facility.
Among all the other infrastructure up there that was laid out but never built, like the weird roads and stop signs for homes that will probably never exist, is a plot for a clubhouse that was never built, right there by the driving range/1st tee/18th green and fairway. They leveled it and had some degree of services installed, as I recall walking up there with someone at one point and there are utility pipes coming out of the ground. But obviously they ran out of money at some point and have been living with that very weird vibe of the temp clubhouse by the gate and the carts that you have to drive up to the driving range ever since.
You are absolutely right that the temp tent clubhouse gives no vibe at all and even though the course is in the middle of nowhere no one wants to stick around there. It’s a massive own goal on their part to not have done more. Sure, I get building a clubhouse up top may not be financially feasible but just investing some money into making the experience of the “clubhouse” they do have more appealing so people will stay, hang out, spend some money on food, beer, etc before or after a round. Again, it’s 20-30 minutes to any other option so surely people would be happy to do so, but the facilities they have are just not appealing.
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Exactly. My dad and I (when we played) wanted to have a beer after the round. I stopped by the range not realizing there wasn’t another spot other than the check in building/pro shop. We left without spending a dime on food/beverage. I can’t believe they can’t at least invest enough for a spot with a view.
I appreciate all the feedback and insights. Penal golf doesn’t scare me, it’s just me and the groom and we are both good players in our own right. I do hate to hear that about the vibe and no clubhouse…. do they at-least sell cold beer via beverage station or cart girl?
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You can always settle down and have one in front of the flowing, totally natural waterfall on 18.
I played there once and similarly would play it again only if it was free or super cheap. It is a fascinating story and my friend pointed out that they clearly spared no expense even down to the curbs on the roads.
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I’ll be at the Wigwam again this year for a conference and I played ( and liked) Verrado last year before the conference started and played one of the Wigwam courses as well. I was really thinking about Quintero this year but after reading the last few posts maybe not so much now… Anything else in the area I need to check out?
We ko pa saguaro can’t go wrong
Nevermind say you’re at the wigwam that’s a little bit of a drive (if you want to stay close)
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Did you play both Verrado courses? Both are worth seeing if you only played one.
Otherwise, on the westside, I like Golf Club at Estrella and Trilogy at Vistancia (a little north from Wigwam but not a bad drive). Opinions are mixed on Sterling Farms. It isn’t a desert course and has some wonky stuff, but the conditions are usually pretty good.
When I was back in town I considered it but couldnt find a time that worked. Had been told it’s in the best shape ever right now
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There are some greens out there you just have to see to believe.
They are limiting public play more and more so that probably helps with the conditties.
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Sterling Groves is definitely worth checking out. It’s something different.
Not in the class of the Verrado courses or even Estrella personally, but it’s a fun time. Has been in pure condition the couple times I’ve played out there. For me the Wigman courses probably surpass it, especially the Blue.
But that’s really it on the west side without having to take a drive. Unless you are into fairly mediocre to average retirement community courses.
As of last spring there was a station on the front nine that you pass after the secondish hole and can hit again when you loop back to finish up the front. Then I believe there was a cart girl on the back 9.
Just don’t do what my brother did and exclaim “I’m gonna pound that” taking his first sip of a high noon right as the cart girl bent over to grab another out of the cooler.
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G’day everyone, I’m going to be in town from the 20th to 25th of Feb. Thanks for golf recs, I have booked rounds at Southern Dunes and Talking Stick O’odham for the Monday and Tuesday.
Does anyone have some restaurant and bar recommendations for a 1st timer to the area? Cashmere Keith’s strip mall sushi is all I have to go on so far!
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What part of town are you staying in? Also tagging in @Waffles because he knows food.
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