It seems highly likely that Arizona and golf were just made to go together. Mix in luxury, and it’s simply heavenly. Read about these five golfer’s paradise resorts that may be the best in all of Arizona.
The Phoenician, Scottsdale
6000 E. Camelback Road
480-941-8200 for hotel; 480-423-2450 for golf
What has chandeliers and champagne, butler service, private poolside cabanas, and a sand-only green unique throughout Arizona? Since its opening in 1988, this gorgeous resort has featured prominently in every imaginable list of the best of the best. The setting of the Sonoran Desert in purple-hued shadows of Camelback Mountain is stunning against the verdant green of The Phoenician’s course.
This resort features nine swimming pools, 10 restaurants, 11 lighted tennis courts, a team of expert concierges, 24 private treatment rooms, 60 elegant suites, and plenty of golf.
And what about the golf? There are actually three varied nine-hole courses in 18-hole combinations, equaling 6,300 yards for 27 holes in all. The PGA-certified staff is dedicated to making your game your very best game.
Choose the Canyon, Desert, or Oasis course. All three are beautifully situated around the center of the 250-acre resort complex. A quick and easy online reservations engine makes booking your tee time easy. The golf complex is managed by Troon Golf, a leader in luxury golf management all over the world.
The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain, Marana
15000 N. Secret Springs Drive
520-572-3000
Perfection: Tucson has 300 days of sunshine per year and an average temperature of 70 degrees Fahrenheit. About 30 minutes from Tucson in the Tortolita Mountains is one of Arizona’s top three resorts as voted by readers of Condé Nast Traveler in 2011. Beautifully appointed rooms, suites, and casitas (little houses) feature feather beds with fine Egyptian cotton linens and plush terry robes. The resort features a great-room lobby, destination spa, serenity pool, two additional pools with a water slide, and American cuisine with a Southwestern accent.
New to the golf scene since 2009, the Jack Nicklaus course has already picked up a fair share of “best” accolades from a good number of golf publications. This is his first course to be built in the Tucson area for 25 years, with 27 holes at elevations of 2,300 to 3,200 feet.
There are the front nine at the Saguaro course, par 36, complemented by the Tortolita course, another par 36. Together, they serve as the venue for the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship, where the world’s best 64 players compete every February. The fifth through eighth holes at Tortolita leave the cactus forest behind and wind through a secluded tunnel. However, Nicklaus’ personal favorite is yet another nine-hole, par-36 course known as Wild Burro. Avid golfers will be interested in this hole-by-hole description found online. Room rates from $349.
The Boulders Resort, Carefree
A Waldorf Astoria Resort
N. Tom Darlington Drive
480-488-9009
Surrounded by a remarkable landscape of 12-million-year-old boulders, there is quite a lot that’s new at The Boulders, a longtime favorite boasting 36 holes on two courses located just north of Scottsdale. The resort has added tees on both their North and South courses to create a new short course.
On the resort side, the property’s adobe casitas have undergone a multi-million-dollar refurbishment. This is a top-of-the-line Hilton, so Hilton HHonors members can cash in their points or earn a good deal more. Home to the Golden Door Spa, there is nothing lacking for relaxation here after a day spent outdoors.
At 1,300 acres, this is a very large resort with a large list of awards, including Top 15 Golf Resorts by Condé Nast, U.S. Top 10 by Travel & Leisure Golf, World’s Best from Travel & Leisure, a Platinum Medal from Golf Magazine, Top Five Best of the West from Links, and Top 25 U.S. Resorts from Golf Digest.
The 6,811-yard North Course, at par 72, is considered to be one of the most challenging in the Southwest. Tee off when you are able to redirect your gaze from the stunning setting of ancient boulder formations, Sonoran cacti, and natural rugged desert terrain. The par-71 South Course has a signature fifth hole, where you stand in the shadows of a dramatic rock outcropping, overlooking postcard-perfect desert views.
Loews Ventana Canyon Resort, Tucson
7000 N. Resort Drive
520-299-2020
Consider their statement: “Value is the new luxury.” One simply cannot buy such friendly service at any price. This resort has been a personal favorite for years, from standard rooms to sumptuous suites with bathrooms one could live in: an oversized soaking tub, cushy robes, giant bath sheets, natural ingredient amenities.
I love the accommodation package “I’d Rather Be Golfing”, which includes a free round with cart and a good deal on rooms. Grab your cap and head out – tee-off is only steps from the lobby. Before too long, you’ll be at 3,000 elevation with quail, red-tailed hawks, deer, rabbits, bobcats, roadrunners, and a coyote or two.
Golf Digest placed the two Tom Fazio-designed PGA courses, Canyon and Mountain, in the top 35 in North America. How about going for a personal best at the most photographed hole west of the Mississippi? That’s Mountain Course’s third hole, which plays for 107 yards across a plunging ravine at Esperro Canyon, where the views encompass 100 miles all the way to Mexico. “The main defense of the hole is a tiny green with a cavernous front bunker, edges that drop to desert, and a rear of rocky foothills,” according to World Golf. Just left of the tenth green is Whaleback Rock, a incredible, ancient formation famous enough to have its own name.
On the Canyon course, challenging par-3 holes are Nos. 13 and 16. The course finishes with 503-yard, par-5 hole by a manmade waterfall that concludes by the hotel entrance. Sunsets burn orange on the Santa Catalina range, so keep a camera handy.
Four Seasons, Scottsdale
10600 E. Crescent Moon Drive
480-515-5700
Think pink, purple, orange – shades of the desert in bloom. Newly renovated in 2012, this property has it all. Located close to downtown Scottsdale, this luxury resort is made up of 210 balconied or terraced rooms in 25 adobe casitas. The resort’s two superb courses, Pinnacle and Monument, mean luxury accommodation and quality golf to match.
Five minutes from the hotel resort via a complimentary shuttle are two 18-hole, par-72 courses, Monument and Pinnacle. Both designed by Tom Weiskopf, the Monument course was conceived in collaboration with Jay Moorish. Each is just over 7,000 yards, and both courses are well-managed by Troon North. There are limited numbers permitted each day, giving generously measured time and space between groups.
Among the course highlights, beware large but hidden boulders at Monument’s short par-4 15th hole, where the approach to the green is blind, a Weiskopf favorite.
Salsa-making cooking classes, pizza and movie nights for the kids, star-gazing at the Arizona skies above through a professional telescope, and Pinnacle Peak sunset hikes with a guide are among the resort’s varied diversions beyond the award-winning golf.
At the end of a long day in the High Sonoran Desert, the outdoor kiva firepit beside a private plunge pool on the terrace of a suite seems the perfect relaxation formula for enjoying your far-reaching views of desert landscape.
