Desert Mountain Club: Chiricahua Course
Scottsdale, AZ • Private
Jim Mandeville/Nicklaus design
Courtesy of the club
Courtesy of the club
Courtesy of the club
Courtesy of the club
Courtesy of the club
Courtesy of the club
Overview
One of six Jack Nicklaus-designed courses at Desert Mountain, Chiricahua ranges in elevation from 3,000 to 3,300 feet, creating several dramatic dropoffs from tee to fairway. Though the landing areas—guarded by deep-faced bunkers and desert—can be visually intimidating, they often play wider than they appear. Just north of Scottsdale, the course offers scenic views of the city and surrounding mountains. Chiricahua has previously been ranked on our Second 100 Greatest list and is currently among our top courses in Arizona.
About
Awards
Ranking history:
Second 100 Greatest: Ranked 195th, 2013-'14.
Best in State: Ranked inside the top 10, 2001. Ranked 10th, 2015-'16, 2017-'18, 2019-'20. Ranked 11th, 2021-'22. Ranked 12th, 2023-'24. Ranked 13th, 2013-'14. Ranked inside the top 15, 2003-'05. Ranked 17th, 2011-'12. Ranked inside the top 20, 2007-'10.
2023-'24 ranking: 12th.
Panelists
Ratings from our panel of 1,900 course-ranking panelists
100 GREATEST/BEST IN STATE SCORES
Shot Options
Character
Challenge
Layout Variety
Fun
Aesthetics
Conditioning
Reviews
Review
“Probably the BEST of the seven courses in the Desert Mountain Club. Chiricahua is located at the highest part of the mountain which can mean slightly cooler weather with a potential for more breeze / wind. Mr. Nicklaus did a wonderful job using the native land and found a way to move very little dirt. Large saguaro cactus's and beautiful natural desert guard the firm fairways and greens. Missed shots will be costly as the desert seems to play very hard when trying to hit out of the gravely soil. Multiple tee boxes provide interesting challenges for every level of player. The back tees (Golden Bear) are very long and require a high level of skill to find the narrow fairways. The Par 3's are fun (#2 is drivable) with good risk/reward available to all players. Chiri (as the members call it) is a difficult walk due to the hills that the course is carved through. Many members choose to walk the front or back nine and ride the other. The aesthetics and conditioning of this course are outstanding. Natural beauty with views of the Valley are evident from around the course. There is abundance of wildlife that call this course their home (deer, havalinas, rabbits, bobcats, snakes, native birds) and you will see them everywhere. The day I played there was a pack of (19) havalinas on the 15th fairway.! Desert Mountain takes their agronomy very seriously and the fairways were firm and rolled true with the rough cut long and fairly thick. The greens were receptive and running at 11.2 (according to the club). I found the rolls to be consistent and true throughout the course. Chiricahua is a wonderful golf course and extremely fun to play. First timers should bring additional balls as this course will find a way to bite you."
Read More2023
Review
“Arguably the most scenic and dramatic of the Desert Mountain courses, including a clubhouse view of Scottsdale and Phoenix that is stunning. The routing brings players across some impressive elevation change. Holes 10-11 are reminders that the back nine is not easy. As with all Desert Mountain courses, the amenities are very nice."
Read More2023
Review
“A well designed community course that had something for every player. If you know someone, try playing it."
Read More2023
Review
“This might be my favorite course on the mountain. It is always in impeccable condition and has the best green complexes on the property."
Read More2021
Review
“The most scenic and highest course at Desert Mountain, and also one of the most challenging. Once again there are a lot of forced carries from the tee box or second shots here which is somewhat typical of target golf. An excellent variety of hole designs with generous landing areas on the fairways. The course is always in excellent condition with fast greens that require your attention for slope and undulation as well as paying attention to where the valley is as that is where the greens breaks to. I am sure you will enjoy your day here as this is a quality course."
Read More2018
Review
“Great course with great views and conditions. Tees, fairways and greens were in great shape and rolling fast while the rough was dormant. Mix of course layout including long and short par 3s, a driveable par 4 (more for long hitters), forced carries over desert and difficult green complexes. The course provides as difficult of a challenge as a player wants, offering tees ranging from 5,000 - 7,200 yards."
Read More2018
Review
“Fun layout with numerous risk/reward shots. In my opinion, in the top three of the best courses at Desert Mountain."
Read More2018
Review
“Very good Nicklaus desert layout. Lots of design variety and a very good test of golf. One of the best of the Desert Mountain courses."
Read More2018
Review
“Beautiful setting. Very nice set of unique par 3 holes."
Read More2018
Readers
Collection of reviews from our readers
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