Camelback Golf Club - Ambiente Course

Played Ambiente on Friday, May 1st with an 11am tee time. Paid $250 per person, which turned out to be a terrible value for what we got.

Course Conditions:

The course itself was in decent shape. Nothing spectacular, but fairways and tee boxes were acceptable. The greens, however, were subpar—especially disappointing at this price point. The course lacks any real signature holes that make it memorable. It's a straightforward out-and-back routing without anything that really stands out.

Practice Facilities:

The driving range was crowded and the hitting area was in poor condition. Not what you expect when you're paying premium prices.

Service - The Real Problem:

This is where the experience completely fell apart. We played the entire front nine without seeing a beverage cart once. Not a single time. The halfway house was closed—no explanation, no notice. We actually had to call the clubhouse to ask what was going on. They told us they'd send the cart our way.

The beverage cart finally showed up at hole 13. Then we didn't see her again until hole 18, right as we were finishing. In May in Phoenix, this is completely unacceptable, especially at $250 per person.

Value Assessment:

You're paying for location, plain and simple. This is what happens when a course can charge whatever they want because they're in central Scottsdale near the resort. The golf experience doesn't justify anywhere near $250.

For comparison, I played McDowell Mountain the next day and it was a MUCH better experience across the board. More scenic, better maintained, and the beverage cart actually came around regularly.

Bottom Line:

Unless you absolutely need to play in this specific location, skip it. There are too many better values in the Phoenix area that will give you a superior golf experience for less money.

We had a great day out on the course and finished our round around 6:00 pm. We returned to the cart area and let the staff know we were going inside for a drink before departing. They let us know the entire clubhouse was closed. It was 6:00 pm on a Saturday evening, the course was jammed with players, and the clubhouse is closed. What a huge disappointment as one of the reasons we specifically played at Ambiente was for the amenities.

We have a choice around Scottsdale as to where we play for a total golf experience. It starts when we arrive to the course, and the greeting we receive. Next is the pro shop experience and then practice range. Everything from the time we arrived to the end of the round was great. The 19th hole is part of the experience. Perhaps one area could remain open until course play ends and folks have an opportunity to close their day.

This was my 2nd time playing this course since the renovation. My opinion is essentially the same. The course was in average condition, although the greens very in very good shape.

This course has potential to be much better, but they need to up the condition of the course.

Not a great value for the green fee...

The staff is friendly and helpful. The Ambiente course is challenging and fun.

Played a round with my wife, who is just getting into the game. Fairways are wide, but strategically placed bunkers will grab errant drives. I was in three of them. Conditions were very firm and fast, except for the greens. A fair bit of sand was on the greens, but they were very smooth, if a bit inconsistent in speed. The course description seemed off. I didn’t feel that there were any “significant elevation changes.” The front tees afforded my wife a good chance to hit successful tee shots. No forced carries except on 18. Pace of play was good. Our twosome followed a foursome and we had to wait just a bit on some holes. Finished in 4:20. Carts are excluded from a very large distance in front of the greens, so there is a lot of walking if you leave shots short.

I was expecting a little more in terms of quality and condition. It was fine and challenging just not as good as I thought it would be.

The staff was incredible! Course in great condition.

This is a stunnng course - out and back with few houses nearby. It was in great condition - the greens were fast and true. The best part was that I finished uin under four hours! That's unheard of for a resort course in peak season.

I am a huge golfer. I generally play Kierland/Troon/Greyhawk. I play twice a week at least. I had to be in south scottsdale for something and was near Camelback Golf Club so I decided to give it a whirl. I booked a 3:40 tee time on Friday afternoon hoping to get 11/12 holes in and see a course I hadn’t played. I get there and walk up to the outside services team. No acknowledgement that I was standing there for a few minutes while the guys are chatting amongst each other. Then a guy comes up and says how can I help you. I say I have a tee time at 3:40. Real smug look from him as if he truly hated this. He says… okay let me find you a cart. Then goes to talk to another guy 5 feet away. “Can’t believe they let people book this late”. The other guy “yeah it’s such Bull S”. I finally have to say “guys I’m right here and can hear you”. Anyway after about 5 minutes of awkwardly standing there while these guys get it figured out they bring me a cart. No direction of where to go, how to get to hole 1, where can I grab a beer before heading out, nothing.

At this point your like… okay whatever, rude guys but that is the beauty of golf, you deal with these people for a few minutes then you don’t have to see them again. Nope… I get to the green on hole 1. A guy in a cart stops me, “what course are you supposed to be playing”, At that point I’m hoping I’m on the right course because there is no signage telling me which is which. Find out I am on the right course so all good, but then why is he asking me? Okay fine whatever, keep playing golf. Then on hole 3 I get stopped AGAIN. Different guy asks me which course I’m supposed to be playing, I tell him, then he looks at his watch and says “okay well you should be able to get a few more holes in, the cart is due back by 5:15”. I tell him okay. I proceeded to play until 6pm and there was plenty of light. Ended up getting all the way to 14.

Beautiful course, excellent conditions. But for some reason the outside services people don’t like golfers to golf. As I returned my cart, there was a bunch of other golfers just finishing as well. Why are they mad if you are staying until sundown to take care of everyone anyway? Why did they tell me to return the cart at 5:15?

I am in Management in the Hospitality industry so I know all about how tough it is to get everyone on the right service culture. You think you have everyone on board but then someone goes rogue. But Camelback had 4 separate people make me feel completely unwelcome.

Upon getting off the plane in PHX from the freezing and snowy Midwest, I was ready for some golf! There were a few courses that I was eyeing based on the 50 Best Courses the Public Can Play, and the Camelback CC had the right tee time available. The staff is friendly and efficient, and the clubhouse and locker room, along with the views on the decks, were great!

I was able to get onto the Ambiante Course, and was playing solo with a couple groups ahead of me. The pace was decent, nothing egregious, and I was to just get in my 18 in before dark with a 3pm tee time.

The conditions of the course from the paths to the tee boxes to the fairways and greens were immaculate and in fine shape! The greens were not too difficult based on the pin locations, but the length and the terrain as well as strategically placed traps and foliage make this no gimme.

I highly recommend this course, and if you have the time, take in the views and food/ drink at the clubhouse.

Ambiente is a great layout. Course is in great shape from tee to green. Pace was a bit slow at times due to AZ Senior’s tournament that day. It’s on our favorites list and will definitely play there again.

You will not be disappointed, good course that is good condition. It’s difficult but you can score here.

Long fairways and tees with a few carries needed. Wonderful conditions. Beautiful views.