Listed below are reviews for three of the courses we played in 2014: Aguila, Sedona Golf Resort and Vistal (I had reviewed the other courses previously so there was nothing new to add). To get back to the trip journal, use the browser back button and you should return to the place you were at in the journal.
Aguila Golf Course: Great muni course; fun layout and a great value.
Played on March 10 and 11, 2014; reviewed on March 30, 2014. See this review on Trip Advisor.
For our 2014 golf trip to the Phoenix area, one of the guys in the group suggested that we try Aguila as an opening day course. Well, we did not know what to expect from Aguila, having never played there plus the fact that it was a muni course. But we were very pleasantly surprised as it ended up being a very nice facility. The club house was average, but there was a nice little pro shop and a very good snack bar where we had lunch. The practice facilities were also better than expected with a very large putting green adjacent to the clubhouse, a practice bunker and chipping green and a very nice driving range (plenty of room to work out the kinks in my swing after being on an airplane all morning). The staff we encountered were all very friendly. In fact, one of the guys gave me a quick swing tip out on the driving range as he was passing by picking up the empty buckets.
We really liked the layout of the course and the scenery. The tees were in good shape, the fairways were fairly wide, there were no houses lining the track and the greens rolled pretty well (well, except for the last three or four which had been recently aerated, but even those were not too bad). We agreed that this was a keeper and a better first day course than Falcon (which we had been using as our lead-off course since 2009) as it was a prettier course, a more interesting layout, in better condition and had better scenery with the mountains as a backdrop. Granted we did not get the private airshow from Luke AFB that you see at Falcon, but that was more than made up for with all the birds that we saw (at least I thought the birds were a bonus).
The course is fairly near to the airport, so it is very convenient for the opening day round (get off the plane, throw the clubs in the rental car and head to the links). It is also more or less on the way to the west valley area where we tend to set up our base for the trip. I’m pretty sure we will be playing at Aguila in the future.
For our 2014 golf trip to the Phoenix area, one of the guys in the group suggested that we try Aguila as an opening day course. Well, we did not know what to expect from Aguila, having never played there plus the fact that it was a muni course. But we were very pleasantly surprised as it ended up being a very nice facility. The club house was average, but there was a nice little pro shop and a very good snack bar where we had lunch. The practice facilities were also better than expected with a very large putting green adjacent to the clubhouse, a practice bunker and chipping green and a very nice driving range (plenty of room to work out the kinks in my swing after being on an airplane all morning). The staff we encountered were all very friendly. In fact, one of the guys gave me a quick swing tip out on the driving range as he was passing by picking up the empty buckets.
We really liked the layout of the course and the scenery. The tees were in good shape, the fairways were fairly wide, there were no houses lining the track and the greens rolled pretty well (well, except for the last three or four which had been recently aerated, but even those were not too bad). We agreed that this was a keeper and a better first day course than Falcon (which we had been using as our lead-off course since 2009) as it was a prettier course, a more interesting layout, in better condition and had better scenery with the mountains as a backdrop. Granted we did not get the private airshow from Luke AFB that you see at Falcon, but that was more than made up for with all the birds that we saw (at least I thought the birds were a bonus).
The course is fairly near to the airport, so it is very convenient for the opening day round (get off the plane, throw the clubs in the rental car and head to the links). It is also more or less on the way to the west valley area where we tend to set up our base for the trip. I’m pretty sure we will be playing at Aguila in the future.
Sedona Golf Resort: One of my favorite courses of all time.
Played on Saturday, March 15, 2014; reviewed on March 29, 2014. See this review on Trip Advisor.
It is hard for me to believe that I have never penned a review for the Sedona Golf Resort, as it is without doubt one of the prettiest courses I have even played, has a very interesting layout, friendly staff and really just makes for a fun day of golf. I guess I’ve only played the course about four or five times since first finding this amazing layout back in 2000, but each time has been a very memorable event. That first time playing was as part of a golf trip to the Phoenix area with 6 other hackers and we made a day trip to Sedona just to play the course as it came highly recommended. Well, that was in February and we sampled all the seasons during the course of those 18 holes, including snow and even some hail. But the day ended under sunny skies. We still talk about that round and the roller-coaster weather.
We returned to Sedona in March of 2014 as part of our now annual golf trip. This was the first trip to Sedona with the group since 2004, although I have played there at least once since then. This was the feature course for the trip. Five of us were on that initial weather-roller-coaster visit, but there were no worries today as the sun was out and there was not a cloud in the sky. The temperature was cool when we arrived, but since we did not tee-off until almost noon, we ended up with a very warm day.
This is a first rate operation. When we pulled into the parking lot, a staff member with a cart zipped in to get our clubs and gave us some guidance on check-on, etc. The folks in the pro shop were very friendly and quickly had us checked-in for our round. We had some time to kill, so we explored the clubhouse, looked around the pro shop, putted on the practice green in behind the clubhouse and otherwise just enjoyed the beauty of the red rocks surrounding the course. Once on the first tee, the start gave us some pointers about the course and passed out yardage cards. He also reset the GPS units in each of our carts. Good thing we got the yardage cards, as the GPS units in both carts in our group died by the time we reached the second green. But that was really not a big deal and I for one did not miss the GPS. The yardage card along with the markers on the course worked out well (plus a couple of the guys as yardage apps on their phones so we were well covered…not that it matters that much for a bogey golfer!).
It is hard for me to believe that I have never penned a review for the Sedona Golf Resort, as it is without doubt one of the prettiest courses I have even played, has a very interesting layout, friendly staff and really just makes for a fun day of golf. I guess I’ve only played the course about four or five times since first finding this amazing layout back in 2000, but each time has been a very memorable event. That first time playing was as part of a golf trip to the Phoenix area with 6 other hackers and we made a day trip to Sedona just to play the course as it came highly recommended. Well, that was in February and we sampled all the seasons during the course of those 18 holes, including snow and even some hail. But the day ended under sunny skies. We still talk about that round and the roller-coaster weather.
We returned to Sedona in March of 2014 as part of our now annual golf trip. This was the first trip to Sedona with the group since 2004, although I have played there at least once since then. This was the feature course for the trip. Five of us were on that initial weather-roller-coaster visit, but there were no worries today as the sun was out and there was not a cloud in the sky. The temperature was cool when we arrived, but since we did not tee-off until almost noon, we ended up with a very warm day.
This is a first rate operation. When we pulled into the parking lot, a staff member with a cart zipped in to get our clubs and gave us some guidance on check-on, etc. The folks in the pro shop were very friendly and quickly had us checked-in for our round. We had some time to kill, so we explored the clubhouse, looked around the pro shop, putted on the practice green in behind the clubhouse and otherwise just enjoyed the beauty of the red rocks surrounding the course. Once on the first tee, the start gave us some pointers about the course and passed out yardage cards. He also reset the GPS units in each of our carts. Good thing we got the yardage cards, as the GPS units in both carts in our group died by the time we reached the second green. But that was really not a big deal and I for one did not miss the GPS. The yardage card along with the markers on the course worked out well (plus a couple of the guys as yardage apps on their phones so we were well covered…not that it matters that much for a bogey golfer!).
The course was in outstanding condition. The tees, fairways and greens were all green and lush and everything was well manicured. The greens were rolling very nicely; smooth and very fast. One of the tips from the starter was to make sure and stay below the hole; easily said that done, but it is still a good thing to strive for. I think the course is very playable and right out in front of you. Some folks may thing it is a little contrived due to the elevation change on several of the holes, but I just think that makes for more fun. The course plays generally uphill on the front nine and then mainly downhill on the back. There is a lot of contour on and around the greens which makes for some interesting chipping, pitching and putting. The contours do provide a backboard at a couple of greens so that you can pitch the ball into the hill and let it roll back to the hole.
There’s not a lot of water on the course; perhaps water is in play on 2 or 3 holes. Also the fairways are generally fairly generous and there is also a nice swath of rough before running into the desert. If you get into the desert, do not expect to have much of a shot. Just take your medicine and move on. While there are houses around the course, they are not in play. The only weather issue that we had was that the wind picked up on the back nine, but fortunately the wind was behind us for most of the hole, so we were playing downhill and downwind with made for a wild ride! The highlight of the course is the setting with the red rocks the surround the layout. The signature hole is number 10, a 170-ish yard par 3 (from the tees we played) with the iconic Cathedral Rock as a back drop. It makes for a very memorable shot. There was a well-stocked beverage cart making the rounds on the course and it had a great selection of beers including some microbrews to go along with the typical, mass-produced stuff. After the round, we did a little shopping in the pro shop before hitting the clubhouse for a beer. Nice selection of brews including a pale ale for me (I’m a hop head). It was another great day of golf in Sedona. The course was fantastic, the day was beautiful and the service at the Sedona Golf Resort was outstanding. I could see this becoming a more frequent part of our Arizona golf excursion. |
Vistal Golf Club: A great value course and a lot of fun to play.
Played on Friday, March 14, 2014; reviewed on March 30, 2014. See this review on Trip Advisor.
For our 2014 golf trip, we decided to return to Vistal, a course we had not played in the past 7 years (primarily since we have been focusing more on the courses in the Goodyear area for the past few years). We had relatively early tee-times on a Friday, with our two groups starting about 8:20 AM. I booked the tee-times via their website and I booked as early as I could (about a week in advance as I recall). The rates were reasonable at $39 for the morning round and $29 for the afternoon 18 (including cart).
For our 2014 golf trip, we decided to return to Vistal, a course we had not played in the past 7 years (primarily since we have been focusing more on the courses in the Goodyear area for the past few years). We had relatively early tee-times on a Friday, with our two groups starting about 8:20 AM. I booked the tee-times via their website and I booked as early as I could (about a week in advance as I recall). The rates were reasonable at $39 for the morning round and $29 for the afternoon 18 (including cart).
The guys in the pro shop were very friendly and quickly had us signed
in. There were hot, fresh chocolate chip cookies on the counter in the
pro shop, so a nice touch. We had some time before our round, so we
were able to take advantage of the practice facilities and loosen up a
bit before heading the first tee. The clubhouse, practice green and
driving range were all well maintained looked very nice. The patio
adjacent to the clubhouse looked particularly inviting; nice to know
that we’ll have a pleasant place for lunch after our morning round.
The course was in good shape and the track was as interesting as I recalled. The course is very playable with only a few holes lines by desert that is completely unplayable (mostly the par threes). There is a little water on the course (holes 3, 9 and 18 for sure). The layout is fun and fairly open. There is a nice variety of holes and some elevation change for good measure. The scenery is pretty nice (mountains to the south and views of Phoenix to the north). The small clubhouse is also nice and serves very good food. We had lunch on the patio. They have a grill there and make good sandwiches. I think everyone enjoyed their burgers or BBQ or whatever. I know that the grilled chicken with a southwest flare was very tasty. Overall it was a very good day on the course. Pace of play was fairly fast, in part because the course did not seem to be that crowded (there seemed to be a lot of folks there, but there were no real pinch points to bog down the flow of play). I’m pretty sure that we will return during our future spring trips to the Phoenix area. |
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