Tempting Hole 15

TPC Scottsdale: Champions

Tour-Calibre, Desert Golf in Suburban Scottsdale.

Posted by: Rick Parnham

The City of Scottsdale is widely considered one of the great western golfing destinations. Dotted with dozens of suburban golf courses and resorts the area is blessed with a variety of top-notch routings that will challenge and impress. One such facility, that also plays host to the world's best tour players, is the city owned TPC Scottsdale.  Located in the northern reaches of sprawling suburban Scottsdale this 36 hole facility is home to both  public-access, and  tour-calibre golf.

The Big Finish

Each spring the PGA is greeted by enormous and raucous crowds at the Waste Management Open on TPC Scottsdale's Stadium Course. Having played host to the tour stars since its opening in 1986 this Weiskopf / Morrish design has recently undergone a major renovation to enhance the course with updated greens, bunkers and overall playing experience. Adjacent to the Stadium Course is its sister layout, the Champions Course. Built at the same time as the Stadium Course, and formerly called the Desert Course, Champions was redesigned in 2007 by Randy Heckenkemper. This routing graces the Sonora Desert landscape filled with gulches and lined with cactus and trees. Built along the high banks of the Central Arizona Canal and surrounded by the majestic views of the  nearby mountains, this creative and well manicured course is a terrific compliment to its tour host sister. Rolling fairways and tricky green sites characterize the layout with plenty of shot making demands throughout. Our Champions Course shot maker's selections delves into a collection of par 4 holes; some beastly requiring raw power to conquer while the others dare you with a risk and reward challenge.

Location: Scottsdale, Arizona

Editor's Shot Maker's Picks: TPC Scottsdale Champions

Feature Holes Descriptions:

The course opens with one of the round's most exacting tee shots on a shorter but precise par 4. Faced with a cluster of bunkers right of the landing area and framed with a vast pond left, anything but straight off the first tee will find a hazard. The smart play is to lay back of the bunkers with a hybrid or fairway wood leaving you a mid-iron approach. Your second shot must fly over a desert gulch to a raised green tucked behind a couple fronting pot bunkers and backed by a huge hillside covered in scrub and cactus. The par 4 fifth is a beastly dog leg left filled with shot making options. The safe play is to the right side of the fairway where the forced carry over the waste bunker is shorter, but will leave you with a more daunting fairway wood or hybrid approach. The aggressive play takes on the 200+ yard forced carry to the tongue of fairway to the left. Successfully accomplishing this shot leaves you a short iron but this is still no easy task for the green is considerably uphill from this angle and guarded by a cavernous fronting bunker.  

Stadium Hole 18

The 15th is a splendid example of a grip-it-and-rip-it drivable par 4. Playing the safe way will take nothing more than a long iron or hybrid to reach the corner of the dogleg leaving a wedge or less into this elevated narrow crowned green. The daring play is to take dead aim at the flag, flying the vast waste land between you and the target.  The green is protected in front by two deep bunkers, but not a bad place to be with the drive, as this green is a small target and hard to hold no matter what shot you are presented with on the approach. The final hole is another lengthy par 4 with a large pond down the left side and framing the front of the green.  A solid drive must avoid the water left and large bunker right leaving you with a calculated approach to a green that is well protected with water in front, a bunker back right and considerable slope to the putting surface.

With a gamut of Scottsdale golf options creating a destination with vast choice, TPC Scottsdale provides a unique opportunity. As host to the final stages of Champions Tour qualifying each year, The Champions Course is an affordable tour- calibre experience with a desert feel. This challenging, creative and memorable round combined with the bucket-list Stadium Course and all the lore of a PGA tour stop provides two unique layouts and has something for everyone. 

Course Stats:

Drive Times: Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport 30mins

Contact:

TPC Scottsdale
17020 North Hayden Road
Scottsdale, AZ 85255
(480) 585-4334
toll free (888) 400-4001

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