Phoenix/Scottsdale area. Where to play 4th July?

[drprecision]

Hey guys,

 

Wife and I will be in Scottsdale for 4th July weekend and we are looking to play a couple of courses.

 

Right now I'm off about a 3, and she is around a 26.

 

Been to the area once before (last thanksgiving) and played Quintero + WKP Cholla. Quintero was in better shape, preferred the layout of WKP.

 

We both ended up loving the area (hiking + golf) and we are considering moving there next year.

 

That said, we will already be booking a round at The Rim, and are looking to play 1 other course. Here's my shortlist (but I'm open to other suggestions):

 

* Southern Dunes (Looks pretty similar to a couple of FL courses I've played, but gets high praise)

* Dinosaur Mountain (Looks good, but we are already playing a scenic course)

* Troon North Pinnacle (Layout looks terrific, not sure about location/setting)

* WKP Saguaro (Don't think it looks as good as Cholla, but everyone raves about it)

* Wickenburg Ranch (Layout looks good, conditions look fantastic)

* Victory at Verrado (Feel similar about this as I do about Wickenburg)

* Verde River (Kind of looks like a worse version of WKP)

 

I arrived at this shortlist after looking on golf advisor, youtube, this forum, club websites, and google images. I've also looked at all of these: [https://flickr.com/photos/golfcoursepix/collections/72157631875831171/](https://www.flickr.com/photos/golfcoursepix/collections/72157631875831171/ "https://flickr.com/photos/golfcoursepix/collections/72157631875831171/")

 

Right now I'm leaning towards (in order): Troon North Pinnacle, WKPS, Victory at Verrado, or Southern Dunes. But I'd like some help making the final decision.

 

I know I probably can't go wrong choosing any of these courses. But I'd appreciate some up to date insight on which course you'd pick to play.

 

Thank you!

[az2au]

You can go wrong. Dinosaur Mountain is a tricked up joke of a course with the only redeeming values tied to the views. Given when you’ll be here I’d eliminate Verrado and stick with either Pinnacle or Saguaro. Saguaro is the best public course in the state IMO and I honestly don’t believe it is close. Southern Dunes is likely second but the weather is definitely not optimal for it in July. Pinnacle is very good and will be the coolest due to the elevation. If you get a good day with very low humidity Pinnacle could legitimately 5-7*+ cooler than Verrado or Southern Dunes depending on time of day and various other factors. Less so for any other course on your list.

 

If you’re into hiking I’d recommend Tom’s Thumb as long as you go early. It is very near Pinnacle and the base of the trail is going to be around 2700’ which will make a huge difference. A tough trail for beginners but not for anyone that hikes a lot. My house is within walking distance of the trailhead and thus I might be a bit biased but I also think it is the prettiest hike in the immediate area.

 

Back to courses I’d go Pinnacle-Saguaro-Wickenburg Ranch-Southern Dunes-Verde River-Verrado - < about 100 other courses >-Dinosaur Mountain

 

If you were coming a different time of year the rankings would shift a bit. Wickenburg Ranch is very pretty, very easy and fun but it just so far away from everything that it drops simply because you waste a lot of your day driving.

[BUCKEYERBALL88]

I recommend wkp saguaro

[DrSchteeve]

Saguaro or Pinnacle, but a 26 will struggle more with Pinnacle than Saguaro. Southern Dunes I agree with az2au that the heat (and flies, and conditions) for Southern Dunes, normally a great option, not 7/4. Dinosaur Mountain doesn't belong on this list.

[golfandfishing]

I love Southern Dunes but hot summer rounds out there can be taxing - high potential for smell from nearby farms, flies galore and little relief from the sun. I’d choose WKP or Troon: higher elevation than Maricopa buys you a few degrees and a much better place to spend 4 hours in the summer.

[thewral]

Realize early is the name of the game for summer AZ golf, but how about late afternoon rounds around 4-5PM? Any relief?

[vallygolf]

> @thewral said:

> Realize early is the name of the game for summer AZ golf, but how about late afternoon rounds around 4-5PM? Any relief?

 

No. Late summer it is still well over 100 degrees after sunset.

[Bonneville85308]

...

[puttnforthe8]

> @thewral said:

> Realize early is the name of the game for summer AZ golf, but how about late afternoon rounds around 4-5PM? Any relief?

 

adding to above...late afternoon is often the hottest part of the day....for example it was 101 at noon and it is 104 at this very moment!

[teejaywhy]

What did your wife, the 26, think about Cholla and Quintero? Both courses are pretty, but can be punishing to a less skilled golfer. Saguaro however, fun for all.

[drprecision]

Thank you everyone for your replies. Heat doesn't really bother us. We golf in ~100f heat just fine in TX, and close to that in FL. But the flies etc at Southern Dunes would certainly be off putting.

 

Given that, it sounds like we will be trying for Troon North Pinnacle, if there are no acceptable tee times we will play WKPS instead.

 

My logic is that I very much like playing the hardest courses, so tight fairways and firm/fast greens. I understand Troon North Pinnacle's greens are pretty firm since they recently resurfaced them - and it looks the tighter course in comparison to WKPS.

 

Tom's Thumb also looks like a great hike and we will be adding that to our itinerary, thank you for the suggestion @az2au

 

> @teejaywhy said:

> What did your wife, the 26, think about Cholla and Quintero? Both courses are pretty, but can be punishing to a less skilled golfer. Saguaro however, fun for all.

 

We both thought Quintero was harder, but she got on fine at both. I think her score was slightly lower at Cholla, but Quintero was her first round in a while (we played it first) and we got in far more warmup at Cholla (20 mins vs 70 mins). She's pretty accurate off the tee and loses most of her shots on putting/chipping. I'm the opposite, so tight courses will always tend to punish my scores.

 

As an aside, what is Boulders like? In the same league as WKP/Troon North?

 

 

[DrSchteeve]

Sounds like you will both enjoy Pinnacle. If you do play WKP Saguaro, I can tell you it is in near perfect shape right now.