The Rim GC, Prescott. Jay Morrish and Tom Weiskopf, 1999.
The club’s web site features a quote from the designers talking about how great they think the stretch of holes from 7-18 is, which strikes me as odd on a couple levels, not least of which because two of the holes I liked best here were in the first six holes (the 2nd and 5th).
The 2nd is an uphill brute bending through the pines, a good, natural hole that follows the land. The 5th is a short par 4 (at this elevation maybe driveable) with a ton of options (maybe even too many). But what I really liked about it was the tee box, which is nearly 30 yards wide and all available for teeing within the markers. It’s novel enough that it would seem to demand even the least thoughtful player stop and make some kind of choice. To paraphrase Pete Dye, the goal is to get ‘em thinking.
The course is very good from the 7th on. I wasn’t a huge fan of the 10th or the alternate route 14th but those small misses are not terrible by any means and are more than countered by all the really good holes and shots here—the blind drive at #7, the peaceful one-shot 8th, the 9th, the par-5 13th that finishes with a green in front of a huge rockpile, the wide-then-narrow 16th, and the drive at the last.
I have a soft spot for mountain courses played through tall pines—the result of years walking Castle Pines while watching the pros, but happily this course is more than just ambiance and location.
Arizona 1st Decile [2010]
ardentgolfer.com 