Phoenix area offers a great getaway from NW golfers

As you make your way out of the Pacific Northwest on a golf trip to Arizona, there are always dozens of choices to make. Here are a couple of choices if the Northwest winter weather still has you looking for a late winter break as you make your way to the Valley of the Sun.

There is plenty to like when making that winter visit and a getaway from the Pacific Northwest. The weather offers plenty of days of sunshine, the courses are dry and there are always deals to be found – even during those winter months when the Snow Birds flock to the area.

There are plenty of public golf courses to choose from when traveling for that Arizona golf vacation, but Superstition Springs in Mesa offers a challenging course in a good location with good prices. But what sets Superstition Springs apart is that it is part of the Arcis Golf Group and offers a variety of ways to keep golf affordable. There are three main plans that are offered from the Arcis Players Card to Arcis Players Prime to the Arcis Players Club. The Players Club card runs as low as $39 per month and offers full use of the practice facilities and golf discounts, the Arcis Players Prime is $64 a month and has unlimited play and range time at six area clubs and the Arcis Players Card has a series of discounts and the price varies at each Arcis course.

Superstition Springs has plenty of holes that get your attention from the fourth hole, a short par-4 with a tough approach to the 600-yard, par-5 sixth hole and finally the 18th hole, a par-4 with a stream winding through the entire hole.

Poston Butte is a little further out of town, but is worth the trip to Florence. The course stretches throughout the desert with red rock lining some of the fairways. The signature hole just might be the par-3 17th hole, which features an island green. 

Quintero Golf Club in Peoria has been at the top or near the top of every list of the top golf courses in Arizona since the Rees Jones-designed course opened. 

Quintero might seem a little out of the way, but this is a course that is certainly worth the drive. Carved out of the Sonoran Desert and nestled against some desert foothills, Quintero has just about everything you need in a championship courses. From its dramatic par-3 holes to its length from the tips (7,249 yards) to its elevation changes, there is little wonder why Quintero continues to rack up the awards.    

And don’t forget about places like Tucson and some other surrounding towns. Sewailo Golf Club in Tucson is a treat and sits next to the Casino Del Sol for a little gambling after the round. The course travels through the Sonoran Desert landscape and with plenty of lakes and streams, offers one challenge after another and is operated by Troon Golf.

In the town of Maricopa, about an hour south of Phoenix, another pair of courses are worth the trip in Southern Dunes and the Duke. Southern Dunes, operated by Troon Golf, feature over 120 bunkers around the fairways and green and winds through 320 acres for its 18 holes. The Duke sits nearby and is way to complete a 36-hole day while in Maricopa.

If you feel like traveling away from Phoenix for golf is not a bad idea, Wickenburg Ranch, northeast of town, is another must play. The course also comes with its “Little Wick,” a par-3 course that is as good as it gets.