Overview: The Phoenician Golf Club is located at the Phoenician, a Luxury Collection Resort, which is on the border of the City of Phoenix and Scottsdale, AZ. The beautiful landmark of Camelback Moun... Continue »

Overview: The Phoenician Golf Club is located at the Phoenician, a Luxury Collection Resort, which is on the border of the City of Phoenix and Scottsdale, AZ. The beautiful landmark of Camelback Mountain sits just north of the course and resort. The course was a 27 hole facility for a long time, but a 10 month redesign and renovation by architect Phil Smith was completed on November 1, 2018. This changed the course to an 18 hole facility.

Clubhouse/Pro Shop: Very nice clubhouse and pro shop that were both redone during the remodel. The pro shop was very well set up and spacious, but the clubhouse area, as well as the rest of the resort was still closed due to COVID-19. The player assistant was very cordial, and dealt with a difficult member in a very professional manner. I bought a shirt, and the price was right in line with other retailers.

Course: As stated earlier, the golf club was previously a 27 hole facility that was changed to an 18 hole facility. Mr Smith used previously existing fairway corridors to reroute the course and developed some new golf holes. Fairways were re-contoured and greens were rebuilt and resurfaced with TifEagle grass putting surfaces. I felt that greens were more contoured than before and this allowed for the possibility of some very difficult pin positions. The front nine went out to the east and for the most part away from Camelback Mountain. As previously mentioned before in another review, it was mentioned that the front nine felt like a "Palm Springs" golf course ... I definitely got that feel too. Fairways were pretty wide open and with a fair amount of bunkering around the greens.
On the other hand, the back nine was definitely different. The last nine played for the most part directly south of Camelback Mountain, and from holes 12 - 15 played up and parallel to the mountain. Fairways were definitely more narrow and the views were amazing with Camelback Mountain right there, a view of downtown Phoenix right behind hole #14 and the view of the Papago Buttes in the distance on the beautiful par #3 11th hole.
The course was in excellent shape for the time of year. Once again, it has been very warm in Phoenix and got up to 112 degrees on the day that I played there. So, they had watered a lot and in spots it was definitely wet, but not a big deal. The greens rolled true and were very consistent in their speed. The fairways were starting to turn a little brown in certain areas, but there was a lot of grass coverage. Rough was non-existent, and the bunkers were probably in the best shape/condition that I have played from since playing at Rams Hill.

Final Thoughts: I have wanted to play at the Phoenician since the renovation, but have not had the opportunity to play there. The price was a little steep for the time of year ... $89, but I enjoyed the course and would suggest that the GK community should come out and play there. The course is managed by Troon Golf ... that alone means that the customer service at the course will be excellent.

This was my second round on Thursday. I had booked the tee time in advance using a TeeOff promo code and it ended up only being about $28 for a noon tee time. Hard to beat that kind of deal on a cours... Continue »

This was my second round on Thursday. I had booked the tee time in advance using a TeeOff promo code and it ended up only being about $28 for a noon tee time. Hard to beat that kind of deal on a course that is very expensive in season. They moved me up to 11:40 and I played with three other singles. Two of them left early and the back nine played a bit slower after we caught up to more groups and were stuck behind as a twosome. Still, a great overall pace around 3.5 hours. Course conditions were good and it's definitely starting its transition into summer. I felt the front nine was getting a bit more brown than the back, which is still pretty lush throughout. Firm conditions with plenty of roll-out on drives, but great lies to hit from in fairways. Tee boxes good. Rough not much of a factor at all. Bunkers very nice. Greens pretty much healed from the recent aeration, but still maybe a tad bumpy in spots with the bermuda starting to take back over. Very firm and rolling at medium speeds. I hadn't played the previous version of this course when it was 27 holes, but I know it underwent a massive renovation and most reviews I've read seem to prefer the new layout that was supposedly completely redesigned. I could see some dead holes that looked interesting along the hillside, though. The front nine is more resort/residential and not terribly exciting. The back nine, however, is definitely fun and scenic with a lot of great views of the city and some neat holes along the rocky hillside. The routing on the back nine is quirky and confusing at times, so definitely pay attention to the signage because it twists up and backtracks at certain points. Overall recommended, but I personally wouldn't pay top dollar in season compared to some of the top courses in the area. For $28, a steal!

Had the pleasure of being invited to play here yesterday. I have been dying to play this re-designed track once the prices fell for summer. Wow this course is awesome.

This course is Troon Manag... Continue »

Had the pleasure of being invited to play here yesterday. I have been dying to play this re-designed track once the prices fell for summer. Wow this course is awesome.

This course is Troon Management at its finest. Suburb customer service, amenities, plush new carts. They have done a lot of smaller touches that dont go unnoticed. Such as retro ball rollers on the practice pitching green. The new resort is immaculate and the course pairs with it perfectly and like a fine Chianti Classico.


This course is a tale of two distinct nines. The front nine is more open and reminiscent of a Palmer design in Palm Springs. The water elements, plam trees, beautifully manicured bunkers and aprons were a welcome relief from the harsh desert landscape in Phoenix. The tee boxes were immaculate. A little firm due to being knew but flat as a pool table. Fairways were great. Some yellow patches but overall manicured perfectly and consistent throughout. The bunkers were outstanding. A nice consistent fluffy soft layer of premium crushed granite made for easy shots. The only downside were the greens are new and firm so you have to be very strategic with your approaches. You cant pin attack and spin it close here a lot like a US open greens. I relished the challenge and was able to test my short game touch and imagination.

The greens are very undulated and had very difficult pin positions today. While the holes seems straight forward here I is difficult to score and the green complexes are the course' primary defense. And a stout defense they are. Great mix of dog legs and elevation changes coupled with fun reachable par 5s.

While the front nice is a pleasant resort course. The back nine is special and where the Phoenician shines. Amazing views of the city with holes nestled along the base of Camelback Mountain. It features some challenging elevated par threes with some shorter attackable par fours. The greens on the back have some serious slope and there are no gimmie putts. The final par 5 18 is a blast to play. It's a risk reward dogleg you can cut the corner of to a water protected green with water running along the entire right side of the hole. It reminds me of Indian Wells very much which is not bad company.

A must play and I cant wait to get back with course knowledge of the greens.

Played the always interesting Desert/Canyon 9s this time around. Conditions were impeccable. Even with recent different timing of aerification of greens, both 9s rolled true and moderately fast. Th... Continue »

Played the always interesting Desert/Canyon 9s this time around. Conditions were impeccable. Even with recent different timing of aerification of greens, both 9s rolled true and moderately fast. The fairways on the Canyons were a bit fluffy so less roll out there. Staff was friendly as usual...had a couple waters in my cart for use around the course. It was a seasonably cool 100 here with a nice breeze. The GPS which they have not always had, is a good addition here (unless you already have a gps app going for you) as there are some places you simply cannot go on this relatively short course. It isn't a course to just go around hitting driver all day, not by any stretch. Happy to say I missed every bunker today so yeah to that. The fellas who found them hit some nice shots out so they must have been excellent...haha! Next stop is a Vegas trip...yeah!

I played the Phoenician Canyon/Desert combo on Friday, 6/1, around 1015. The course was not busy but not empty. Pace of play was good.
Range balls are included in the rate and the driving range w... Continue »

I played the Phoenician Canyon/Desert combo on Friday, 6/1, around 1015. The course was not busy but not empty. Pace of play was good.
Range balls are included in the rate and the driving range was in good shape for warm up.
I have reviewed this course a couple of time previously and the day I played it was in the best condition I have seen it for this time of year. As I have said before the course is fun to play because of the views. Each hole requires different clubs and shot types to play. I enjoy playing courses where driver isn't always the play off the tee.
Customer service is always good and should be at a Troon managed course within a high end Phoenix resort.

I played the Desert/Canyon 18 hole combination on at 2:30 pm on July 8th. GN's rate was $22 including range balls. The course was not busy at all and we were able to play at a fairly good pace.
Th... Continue »

I played the Desert/Canyon 18 hole combination on at 2:30 pm on July 8th. GN's rate was $22 including range balls. The course was not busy at all and we were able to play at a fairly good pace.
The driving range pretty chewed up where they had it set up. Finding enough grass to hit off of was difficult. "Chewed up" is actually a good way to describe most of the course. Many of the tee boxes, especially on the par 3s, had a large amount of divots and bare spots and a few were not level. One tee box on a par three was unplayable because of so many divots. The fairways were in decent shape but again with a lot of divots and bare spots. The greens were also in similar condition with a lot of un-repaired ball marks and bare spots. They didn't have a lot of grass on them and were fast. The strong winds we had that day really affected putts. I know it's summertime but the course was in rough shape overall.
The views on the course are pretty awesome and you don't realize how far up the side of the mountain you go on the desert 9. The course is fun and challenging without a lot of length. Shot placement and proper yardage will help you score here.
Given the conditions I experienced I think better values exist within the same area of Scottsdale/Phoenix.

I played the Phoenician Canyon/Desert 18 on 6/17.
The course was surprisingly busy with quite a few groups out. I have played here before and enjoy this set of 18 holes. The set up isn't long even ... Continue »

I played the Phoenician Canyon/Desert 18 on 6/17.
The course was surprisingly busy with quite a few groups out. I have played here before and enjoy this set of 18 holes. The set up isn't long even from the tips but will challenge you with some tight areas to hit the ball.
The overall condition of the course was good. I wouldn't say it's the best in the Valley but it was in end of July shape.
The greens were good but hard to get a good read on the speed. Fairways were good with a few bare spots. Bunkers were easy to hit out of and all consistent. My only complaint was some of the tee boxes on the par 3s looked like they hadn't been mowed in a month. The last downhill par 3's tee box was shaggy and looked more like rough than a tee box.
This group of 18 holes has some of the best views on the course. The Desert 9 has some elevated tee boxes and you get some good views of the Valley. Overall, for the price I paid I enjoyed playing Phoenician.

Played Monday 5/7/12 9am. It's a beautiful 5 star resort course with service to match. Wife really loved the whole ambiance. Played Desert & Canyons. Would have played Oasis also but told it was c... Continue »

Played Monday 5/7/12 9am. It's a beautiful 5 star resort course with service to match. Wife really loved the whole ambiance. Played Desert & Canyons. Would have played Oasis also but told it was closed due to maintenance. No complaints at all about the playing conditions. However, this course is more of an eye candy but not really a typical golfer's course. It's a course to play once during your vacation but not sure of a repeat.

Phoenician Golf Course Review
Scottsdale Arizona Golf Course Reviews

Beautiful resort course with nice views from some of the tee boxes. I loved the holes that took you away from the resort, up and around the mountain. Greens in good shape, rolled very well. Service... Continue »

Beautiful resort course with nice views from some of the tee boxes. I loved the holes that took you away from the resort, up and around the mountain. Greens in good shape, rolled very well. Service was top notch as well. The course is short but fun and has some challenge.

Phoenician Golf Course Review
Scottsdale Arizona Golf Course Reviews