jja79 said:

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He played golf as a little kid but lost interest when he got to HS. To get out after Covid he took it back up last May and got pretty good. Started playing junior golf last September. Missed by one shot qualifying for the Texas Junior Amateur so that's now his goal. Roger Sloan has been very nice to this kid and shared with him his path from new to golf at 16 to PGA Tour card and even invited him to play last Sunday.

Short story made long (TLDNR) so sorry for that. He had no HS or junior resume' so I started emailing college coaches. He's signed with a JUCO where he will play next year hoping to transfer after the year. One coach at a small 4 year school here in the Phoenix area got on him and has stayed on him from the jump. He's got a top junior player from Norway signed and told us he'll take a raw kid who can shoot or break par and see what he can do with him. We're meeting him face to face for the first time Wednesday after they get back from a tournament in San Diego. He wants him to get some tournament experience at JUCO and come here to play 3 years.

Pretty easily got his index to or 4 but couldn't get any better so he started taking lessons in December and is now in plus index territory.

Are you sorry you asked?

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Not at all. I love stories of the grind. About three years ago I made it a goal to qualify for the US Mid Am and dedicated a good bit of time to practice and play. Got down to a 1.8 handicap but missed qualifying by 8 strokes because +2&3 handicaps are a lot better.

Anyhow, glad to hear he's giving it a go. He won't regret it!

Quintero is fantastic! #6 is great but I love the par 5 up the hill (#8 I think). Very jealous!

Sun Ridge Canyon today. Greens are much better than Quintero where the greens weren't good at all. I would play Sun Ridge over Quintero next time. Great views, good conditions and a very interesting course for half the price.

We only saw one 4some all day and they were all wearing masks while playing.

You playing we ko pa JJ?

told ya

Can't get them all in unfortunately so we won't check that box. Next time hopefully. I said before but Sun Ridge Canyon is probably overlooked but it's really good and not nearly as busy. Food is good too.

Seems like a great trip. It's got me pumped for my trip there in May.

So I take it he's going to go to a JuCo there in Scottsdale?

Plan is 1 year at JUCO and 3 with the 4 year school that offered him yesterday.

I have no idea what conditions will be in May but seeing Quintero once is enough for me. We talked to the starter there and asked what percentage of their play is local and he said very seldom do locals play there. I can see that. Great views but honestly other than the par 3's very few really memorable holes. There's a great uphill par 5 but the rest all run together. Sun Ridge Canyon is by far my favorite.

That's the impression I've got as well. I've got friends who've played it who said it's the best they've ever played, then I've talked to people who've said similar to what you have.

I think the price we are paying is like $80 so I figure it is prolly worth that considering it's a golf trip and we aren't locals with all the options.

jja79 said:

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Plan is 1 year at JUCO and 3 with the 4 year school that offered him yesterday.

I have no idea what conditions will be in May but seeing Quintero once is enough for me. We talked to the starter there and asked what percentage of their play is local and he said very seldom do locals play there. I can see that. Great views but honestly other than the par 3's very few really memorable holes. There's a great uphill par 5 but the rest all run together. Sun Ridge Canyon is by far my favorite.

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Congrats on the offer after JUCO - that is awesome news!! Enjoy the rest of the golfing trip in AZ, and the pics are very much appreciated. AZ is a special place this time of the year. I hope you caught a spring training game or two in the evenings.

Camelback Ambiente yesterday. Near Old Town Scottsdale so very convenient. Bunkers weren't primo but the fairways and greens were. This would definitely be one we'd play again.

Give us a report when you get back please. Seems Arizona will be a frequent destination for me with the boy playing golf out there. He wants to go ahead and move in and take a summer class so he can play and get acclimated. Only times I've been to Az are early spring and in the fall. I'd be curious what course conditions are after the overseed dies out.

Has anybody played Grayhawk recently? I am headed to Scottsdale in the morning and made a last minute tee time while I wait on my buddies to get in. Going straight from the airport to the first tee! Does the course have a place to store my luggage?

OilandGasAg2014 said:

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Has anybody played Grayhawk recently? I am headed to Scottsdale in the morning and made a last minute tee time while I wait on my buddies to get in. Going straight from the airport to the first tee! Does the course have a place to store my luggage?

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They stored my luggage in 2015 when I was leaving.

Played Wickenburg Ranch yesterday and Grayhawk 36 today (2nd time playing GH, always a must) but I will say this.....make the hour drive to Wickenburg Ranch.....oh my god what a piece of property and I'm talking best conditions I've ever been on in my life. Such a hidden gem


We Ko Pa 36 tomorrow and Gold Canyon 36 Saturday

Never heard of Wickenburg - have to check it out.

Hope you like We Ko Pa - Saquaro was great when I was there some time back.

Wickenburg is out past Quintero on highway 74 maybe 25 minutes. They have a little par 3 course built around a bar.

bumping this thread. we fly out early Thursday. looking forward to some cold beer and good golf

Played both Cholla and Saguaro in one day last year at We Ko Pa and absolutely loved them. They were in pristine condition and just the fact that you're not surrounded by homes, condos, etc. just made it even more pleasant. My buddy got buzzed by a rattlesnake trying to hit his ball out of some scrub brush on one of the holes. The rattler didn't like him taking a few practice swings so close. I offered him a free drop and he took it! Can't wait to go back.

Gold Canyon Dinosaur Mountain is the most underrated course I've played in Phoenix area imo. Unbelievable elevation changes and conditions were awesome. Typically more affordable too. Can't go wrong with Troon, GHawk (although likely closed due to NCAA) We Ko Pa was nice I thought Cholla was meh but Saguaro was worth it. Wickenburg out of the way but absolutely incredible

Wife and I are booked to head out next week before baby #2 gets here. Now she's worried about the 100 degree weather and fears its going to be miserable.

I've tried to tell her that I'll be fine but she keeps talking about being pregnant by the pool and baking in the sun.

In all seriousness, how was getting around Scottsdale? Ubers and rental cars seem to be ridiculously inflated with everything going on.

Adding that to the list. Looks fantastic.

investorAg83 said:

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Wife and I are booked to head out next week before baby #2 gets here. Now she's worried about the 100 degree weather and fears its going to be miserable.

I've tried to tell her that I'll be fine but she keeps talking about being pregnant by the pool and baking in the sun.

In all seriousness, how was getting around Scottsdale? Ubers and rental cars seem to be ridiculously inflated with everything going on.

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We were able to get a rental in early March. Not sure how it is now. Did not try UBer. You may look at Turo. It's an air bnb for cars. Have had good luck with it.

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Played TPC champions course on Thursday after we landed. Course conditions were excellent. Fairways were narrow and fairway bunkers made you think on every tee shot. It was a great into to desert golf but also had a parkland feel to it with more shins and trees than expected. Plenty of green grass on the course. For $100 it was well worth it.

Played we ko pa yesterday. Both courses. I honestly don't know if desert golf gets any better than it. Absolutely unreal. Course conditions were excellent and the views and layout of both courses was unique and completely different. For me I enjoyed cholla course the most. Yes it had a lot of blind tee shots but the uniqueness of the course made it awesome. A lot of elevation changes, raised greens, etc. you had to excite your shot and play different shots. I like those kinda courses were you have to think around.

Saguaro was easily the more forgiving course but more scoreable as well. Had a couple risk reward par 4's. Greens were raised and you had more landing areas around the greens to work with. I could see a regular enjoying the course more simply for the fact is right in front of you for the most part.

The worst part of the day was the two groups in front of us slower than molasses. They were playing a scramble which made it even worse as they had no concept of ready golf. Tons of fiddle faddle in between shots. If they hit a fairway of the tee box they would tell like they just sunk a 100 ft putt.... oh well. We had nothing else to do lol.


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As wet and miserable as it's been here this week I'm probably not the only one that's jealous. You could probably play any of a 100 courses in the Phoenix area and not go wrong. Throw in Tucson, Parker, Prescott and Flagstaff as well. Looks like you caught a break on the weather too with it in the 80's.

Where to today?

Yeah it worked out great getting away from the crap wet weather we've been dealing with.

Thursday it was 97, but yesterday and today should be mid 80's. I even wore a rain jacket for the first hour yesterday morning.

We got quintero today and possibly a late evening muni round somewhere.

From where you played sounds like you're staying in north Scottsdale. Mountain Shadows is a really nice par 3 course in Paradise Valley. One of my grown sons and friends play it every time they go.

Quintero is a gem

Playing Talking Stick on Friday. Quick turnaround so I can only get one round in.

Quintero was an absolute beat down today. On the back nine winds were a steady 30 mph the rest of the round. It was brutal. The greens were burnt out and running quick which made it even tougher. Overall the par 3's were unbelievable but besides that I found it to be "okay". Great course, but not as good as we ko pa IMO. Granted, it's all subjective.

We ended up just hanging out after the round there having a few drinks and watching Phil. Decided against rushing back into town trying to fit another 18 in.


Overall it was a fantastic buddies trip. Like others have said you really can't go wrong with any of the courses. Condition wise all the courses we played were excellent. I'd highly recommend coming in May instead of the winter time.

Thanks everyone for the tips and pointers.


Ps Quintero had the best talent by far working the beverage carts.


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