Membership Recommendation Request from a Future Phoenix Area Golfer

[FutureAZgolfer]

I will be moving to the Phoenix area this August and am looking for a course to join. Currently, the two locations I'm considering for housing are Camelback East and Deer Valley/Desert Ridge. As far as commute to the course goes, I'm willing to consider courses within a 45 minute radius.

I am able to play every day, am a scratch golfer, and am 33 years old. My main preferences for the course are that it be long (7k+ would be nice), difficult (140+ slope/73+ rating from the tips) and have a grass range and large practice area. As of now, I have no preference for a public or private course. Also, I don't really care about amenities outside of golf or how active the membership is.

My total budget for the year is $8,000 max, but I would like to keep it closer to 5-6k to free up money for gear and tournaments. Since I can play so frequently, I don't want to have to pay a cart fee each round.

Can anyone help me with suggestions? Thank you in advance!

[az2au]

You were doing good until you gave the $8K max. I'm not sure what Tatum Ranch dues are per month these days. It may work fro you but I can't remember what the distance/rating/slope is from the tips off the top of my head. If you were willing to get up to $1100/month you'd have a better range. Actually I just noticed you're 33. How much are you thinking for initiation? If you're talking in the $40-$60K range (even if it can be split up over a few years) then there are some other options but very few private courses are going to: 1. Be in your price range 2. Have the quality of range and course you want and 3. Allow walking. You'll likely have to compromise on one of those things to make it work. The you can start looking at places like PCC, AZ CC, Mesa CC and a few others assuming the walking part is a higher priority because those cart fees would impact your budget greatly.

[ferrispgm]

Unless you are willing to fork out more money then memberships aren't really worth it out here. I was at Mesa CC for a bit and while the course is nice and the people are great, I don't find it as a good course for working on your game unless you like hitting a draw off almost every tee box. Moon Valley would fit but the conditioning there is spotty and the practice area isn't that good. Arrowhead CC is offering a good rate now on memberships but I have never been there so I can't comment...Idk if anyone has recently but I know in the past it has been pretty bad...maybe it got better? If so it looks like they have a decent range and shortgame area and the length/rating would meet criteria though slope would not.

[AzSuperHack76]

Arrowhead CC is a decent option for the price right now, actually price wise it can’t be beat. I have played it a few times this winter and it’s defiantly in better condition from years past, good condition overall right now. in the past it’s been a bit of a mess. It’s fully private. $299 a month for a single including cart fees, no initiation fees, $399 for a family. I believe gym, tennis and childcare is included. It comes in just at 7k from the tips. They have a good group of scratch players including some mini tour guys. There is usually a game everyday. There is a member that constantly sends out emails organizing games which is nice. With the membership prices and membership drive the tee sheet is pretty dang full all of the time with some pace of play issues at times. I have buddy who is a member and that’s been the biggest thing I have noticed when I have gone out there this winter. It has a few goofy holes, especially 18, it’s not going to win any awards for its layout. There have been a few guys on this board that have been members in the past, hopefully they can chime in.

[FutureAZgolfer]

Thank you to everyone who has responded so far. I very much appreciate your detailed responses and suggestions. My post is definitely more along the lines of a wish list, and I'm willing to compromise in any and all areas to reach my budget.

My wife will be working in Glendale, and the locations I've listed for our residence are her preferences. I am very much open to living farther west and north to make golf more affordable.

Are there cheaper options out in that direction that you know of that meet my quality of course preferences, other than what NotromJRH has already mentioned and Arrowhead CC that AzSuperHack suggested?

Ferrispgm, regarding Mesa CC, that is the only course in the original locations I mentioned that I've identified as being decent and feasible with my budget, given I qualify for the junior executive membership option. Thank you for giving me your opinion on the course.

[azgolfer44]

I am essentially the same situation as you. 34 and similar budget I have looked at joining a bunch of clubs (Mesa, Phoenix, Arizona, Moon Valley, DF, Alta Mesa) but have yet to find one that checks all of the boxes. Plus, there are so many good men’s club in the valley that there is never really an issue finding a game or tournament.

Someday, I will eventually join a private course but for now, I enjoy playing all of the different courses in the valley and even throughout the state. I do miss playing 9 hole rounds and sometimes tee times are tough in prime season, but not an issue the rest of the year.

 

good luck!

 

 

[Shilgy]

Tatum Ranch has what he needs except length, difficulty and maybe price. Ha! Other than that .....Dues ( I believe as I don’t pay them-have a lifetime plan) are mid $600 per month so would eat most of his budget. And it is “only” a bit over 6800 yards and 130 plus slope.

[Bonneville85308]

I have nothing to add other than to chime in as another guy in his 30s who hasn't joined a club in this area since moving here a few years ago, despite always being a member of one my entire adult life when I lived elsewhere.

The clubs that are close by to home/work and affordable to me are not courses I'd enjoy playing most of my 120+ rounds per year on. Not bad courses, just not special enough to play almost exclusively. They also strike me as being very crowded with possible pace of play/early tee time availability issues from the anecdotes I've heard. The clubs with the better courses and smaller memberships are either too far away (far N. Scottsdale), initiation fees are too much for my modest income, the atmosphere seemed a little too stuffy for my tastes in two instances, etc.

I have about 10 public courses that are in my core rotation now. I've figured out what I need to do get my preference of tee time everytime, what days/times to avoid, which courses are best to play fast on weekday twilight during summer and which to avoid during those times, etc. It makes for a lot of thinking before even putting a tee in the ground, but it's worked out fine so far. My annual greens fee spend is a little less than what I was spending on annual dues/fees to play a similar number of rounds where I used to live. (I do refuse to pay over $80/round in PHX which mostly restricts me to muni and retirement community courses during winter). I do miss the consistency and camaraderie of the club environment, honestly.

 

[AdExec]

I looked at Tatum Ranch and Moon Valley mainly. I joined Moon Valley and also added the TPC annual pass and Troon annual pass for friends and relatives can play a variety of courses at a decent rate. Desert Forest had a waiting list for Junior Members, and Phoenix CC is too far from me to be ideal although Ive heard they have a solid membership and junior option. Moon Valley is $600/month all in (including food minimum) for a junior. Cart Fees included. It’s got everything I need and I enjoy the course although its not perfect. I think the layout is much better than Tatum Ranch. I actually think Moon Valley has one of the best practice facilities in its price range. The owners have been investing some real money into the course. Bunkers have been redone, water issues resolved, new range balls, new carts, etc. Tatum Ranch had an insane deal going for juniors a few months ago. $300/month with 5k initiation, but that could be spread over a couple years if you needed to. Cart fees and food minimum on top of dues. Let me know.

[az2au]

If anyone really wants details about Phoenix Country Club, Troon Country Club or Desert Forest let me know. I'm a member at all 3. At DF I'm in the full status (45+), at Phoenix we paid off our initiation for full when they switched over to Troon for various reasons but we only pay "Young Exec" or whatever they call the under 45 category because my wife is a the primary member. At Troon they use the oldest of the couple for membership category but full dues don't start until you hit 50 so I have a couple of years left. I have no plans to drop any of the 3. They all have their different uses and benefits.

[ClarkGrswld4]

I rarely see Terravita mentioned, is it any good az2au?

[az2au]

It is fine but it is retirement age only so not a lot of play from the people here. I haven’t played it in at least 15 years. Found it to be an above average neighborhood course but nothing special. Perfectly fine place to play if you’re 60 and want to ride in a cart all of the time.

[vallygolf]

I seriously need to move from Gilbert or stop being addicted to golf. Your current scenario looks so ideal to my current time circumstances I kinda want to punch you a little bit...:)****

 

***** No threat of punching or bodily harm should be construed or implied in this post.

[fore_life]

I think he’s operating at a considerably higher tax bracket than most of us on here.

[AZGolfAddict1]

Not sure if you found a club to join but I would tell you I just relocated to North Scottsdale and had a chance to check out a few clubs in the PHX/Scottsdale area. While I am new to the area I don't pretend to know if all about golf options in the greater PHX area (those who have lived and played here for years please comment). For reference I am 37 years old, no care for anything other good golf and practice areas at a club, have been a member at 5 other private clubs around the US (I am relocated frequently for work) Here is a summary of what I found when searching for a club-

Public golf is really good and there are a lot of options- a few drawbacks especially during the "snowbird" and spring training season golf is absurdly expensive; I am not cheap and I am blessed with the compensation from my career..... but I'm not paying >$125 for a round of golf at an average daily fee course. On the flip side of this Summer time rates are significantly lower; good course can be played for $35 in well under 4 hours.

Private golf has a huge range in price- as mentioned above I relocate frequently and buying into a heavy initiation isn't a smart move for me so I focused on clubs that have minimal upfront cost. When I filtered out the options and proximity to where I was living (I live across the street from TPC Scottsdale) 3 clubs came to the front of the line. Arrowhead (23 mins away on the 101); Tatum Ranch (12 mins away), and Moon Valley (20ish mins away based on traffic).

Arrowhead- the price can't be beat $0 initiation and $299 a month with unlimited carts ($399 for family)- nice facility great looking club house and restaurant- solid course Arnold Palmer design. But with a $299 price tag there has to be something wrong and there clearly is. I join a private club because I want to be able to roll up and play anytime I want without much delay- aint gonna happen at Arrowhead. They have overextended the membership and tee sheet is full everyday....... No offense to anyone who is a member there but its not for me.

Moon Valley- Solid Deal normally $7500 initiation now dropped to $3750 with dues @ $550 a month all in (includes carts, locker, bag storage etc). Club itself is fantastic as well- practice area has short course that is currently being updated and improved. The course had some of the slickest greens I had played in a while (they had just hosted a mini tour event before I played it). Course also has some unique PHX history as Karsten Solehiem of PING lived there for a number of years and PING owned the club for a bit. I thought the front 9 was fantastic but when I got to the back I was a bit disappointed especially with the closing closes 17 & 18. Clubhouse and facilities were a bit dated but overall a fantastic set up and I am still questioning if I should have joined. Club has had some water issues in the past and caused the club to go bankrupt- I am told they just invested almost $4MM into a pipeline to pull water from a local canal which will result in virtually no cost for future water needs.

Tatum Ranch- Another solid deal- normally $7500 initiation now dropped down to $6000 @ $345/month. Also was given 5 Months of dues free, first 6 months of cart, and 7 guest passes- after all is said and done upfront is more like $3000 consider the freebies. Club has a decent gym, clubhouse restaurant, etc- I am here for golf none of those things matter to me at all. Locker room area is solid and clean. The practice area is good- two large putting greens plus an additional double sided short game area. Practice range is grass and in good condition- mats on one day a week but the mat set up is good as well. Tons of good players especially juniors- apparently the junior program is one of the better ones in the area. Its frankly frustrating to watch these kids play so well hahah. Course it self is solid- best condition of the 3 IMHO. Not long @6800 yards but the distance is spread out well- from the tips you have multiple par 4's with two that reach closer to 500 yards. The course should be played as a par 71.

I hope some of this helps you in making a decision- send me a private message I can answer some other questions you may have. If you do want to join Tatum also let me know there is a pretty good referral deal for both the referrer and referred member.

[fore_life]

^^^^^

mesa cc is 24 min from tpc but you could prob make it in 15 on the 101 lol

[Chomper]

If your wife will be in Glendale, I would check out Blackstone CC as well as a new Nicklaus course which will be opening this year, Sterling Grove I think it is called.

I play a lot of golf at Blackstone, it is a fun course, a decent practice area, but it may fit your budget. I certainly wouldn't put it against the top courses in the area, but there are a bunch of fun guys there, and the course is walkable.

 

[Bonneville85308]

I played Blackstone a few years ago when I moved to the area and liked the course, but for over age 35 the initiation fee was like $20k-$25k with dues of $10k. In my opinion the initiation fee was unrealistic for the location and caliber of the course compared to other options elsewhere. I don't know if the initiation has been decreased or even increased since then.

[AZGolfAddict1]

Whats the deal with Mesa CC I believe I emailed them but the meeting never quite worked out?

 

[az2au]

@ferrispgm was a member there for a while. Fun course overall, definitely some good players as well. They used to be priced appropriately as well. Not sure if they still are. During spring training it you'd often see tons of MLB players out there (or used to back in the early 2000s) as they do (or did) some deal where professional athletes have playing privileges.

[Twinsgroupie]

You hit the nail on the head with Arrowhead. Over the last year the course has gotten better but now they are at the point of having too many members. I heard they added around 250 member from Oct (when they went to the new pricing) to now). If your a single you can fit on pretty easy beyond that its hard unless you are flexible. With that said if you are on the NW side of town it's hard to find a better deal at a decent course. If you play everyday (not open on Mondays) you are down to about $12 a round...

[Twinsgroupie]

I looked at this last fall and it was still about $25k with dues around $800 a month +++. Course is nice but not $25k down and $10k a year nice for where it's located.

[angartsg]

Long time follower of the southwest forum- First time poster!@AZGolfAddict1 I joined Mesa CC about 6 months ago and overall it was good decision. I don't regret it one bit. Surprising that you never heard back from the membership director...
Location for me is really good as it is striking distance from Tempe and old town.
Course layout is very good- difficult/fun par 3's, risk/reward par 5's and several interesting par 4's with strategic bunkering. The course has a strong emphasis on ball striking as the greens are small and is easy to short side yourself.
Membership is awesome - lots of good players, always easy to show up randomly and find yourself into a game.
Conditioning- pretty good expect a couple of greens are struggling. Those select greens still roll fine and keep getting better as the temperature warms up. They hired a new superintendent late last year. He has a improvement plan in place with tree removal, some more drain etc etc I bet after a year he will the greens them dialed in.

[Bonneville85308]

It never surprised me that Arcis runs Arrowhead like this, since their business plan at the public courses they own seems to be "price it cheap, and stack 'em deep." Personally I'd rather pay more and not have the tee sheet look like the one at Cave Creek every day.

[BobbyLite]

Hijacking this thread since it is relatively recent. Moving back to the Phoenix Area from Dallas. Currently looking at housing in the upper 101 loop area - Glendale / Peoria looks likely. From what I've gathered the only clubs within reasonable driving distance (20-30 min) are Blackstone and Moon Valley. GCU's course and remodel look pretty nice - though not private, I wonder if the area is just better for roaming around. Im 28 - married, no kids. Wife isn't a golfer. Id like 7,100 +...but really I just want to find a solid hammer game.

[Chomper]

Check out Sterling Grove - it is a new club, should be opening at the end of the year. Membership is reasonable, it isn't terribly far from you.

[puttnforthe8]

Arrowhead Country Club is going to be right there. A little farther (talking 5-10 min more) is Anthem with 2 courses. 73rd/100 to Blackstone is 18miles and Anthem is 23miles. That would be worth the drive imo. As a member Anthem - you are a member of Club Corp courses.

[az2au]

Blackstone, Sterling Grove (assuming it is what they say it will be) and Anthem are the best bets. Both Anthem courses are solid, above average neighborhood courses that will provide plenty of challenge. Blackstone is also in that category.

[BigSky59]

I’ve heard Sterling Grove should be the best course in the west valley once it’s done, and also have heard it won’t be your “typical desert layout” with the amount of trees that will be planted. Supposedly it’ll be daily fee in the $130-150ish dollar range until the year 2025 when it goes completely private.

[BobbyLite]

Thanks for all the input!

Didnt even think of Anthem - will have to look into it! Anyone know what those numbers look like?

Blackstone is more likely than Sterling Grove. My reference point is roughly 22 miles to/from SG which isn’t horrible but not ideal.