Ak-Chin Southern Dunes Golf Club

Depending on where you live it can be a bit of a hike to get here but it’s well worth the trip. Once you arrive there’s nothing else but you and the course- no homes or buildings in sight. The course is super well maintained with a really fun and challenging layout. Staff is great. Plays like a “high end” course for far less. Probably my favorite course in the greater Phoenix area.

We had such a great time visiting Ak-Chin on Saturday.

The Course:
• Beautiful shape
• Had just come back from reseeding so everything was in perfect condition
• Most holes are dog leg rights off the tee (Good for left to right ball flights, but a serious challenge for the opposite)
• Depending on what tee you're playing from, you can really have a different test and have to place shots to avoid the many bunkers
• The bunkers are inconsistent (by design). Some are fluffy, some are concrete, so you have to have both shots in your bag and know when to play which
• The driving range, chipping area, and practice greens are all perfect and worth coming early to take advantage of

Check-In:
• We were greeted by George who couldn't have been more welcoming. He knew a ton about the course, gave us advice in advance, and was just genuinely one of the best parts of the day. He was simply the man.

The Pro Shop:
Plenty of good gear, and the Ak-Chin logo looks great on all apparel.

The Grill:
I had the Avocado Toast, and my buddy had the Breakfast burrito. Both solid. If you have time, go for the donut holes ("Breakfast Balls"), but they seemed to have taken some time to make, so account for that.

Caddy Program:
My buddy and I grew up caddying so we thought we'd give their caddy program a shot. We booked a caddy to carry both our bags. Our caddy was a great guy and helped us out with a bunch of distances, lines, and reads on the green. However, our bags were both dual strap bags which is a challenge for a caddy to carry. It would have been great if the clubhouse had a single strap bag to swap out for ours, or at least just the strap to put on our bag. Most clubs have this if they offer caddies, so I was surprised that wasn't the case here. He ended up using a push cart for one bag and carried the other, which actually provided more challenges.

The Rangers/On-Course Staff:
When we teed off, the starter put us out as just a twosome. This was going to be perfect because my buddy and I play fast, and we had considered being paired with another twosome might rattle everyone involved (especially if they were in a cart). But as soon as we reached the green on 1, the starter asked us to wait for another twosome to catch up to us to join. These people were incredibly nice, but they both teed off at different tees than us. So then, by making this decision as a starter, you're making us wait for four tee shots from three different tee boxes each time, which will naturally add about 1-2 minutes a hole. Then, since they were in a cart, the course was cart path only, so then you're adding even more time for them to have to walk around to find their balls, hit their shots. It was just really poor planning I thought.

All this lead to the starters pressing us three (3!) different times saying that we were backing up the course. I found that odd for multiple reasons: 1) We finished our round in 4 hours 39 min which was only 10 minutes behind the preferred pace. 2) The group behind us never waited on the tee or caught us! So it clearly wasn't us. We definitely played slower for all the reasons listed above but it really made us feel awful. I'd consider not having a caddy paired with another group or maybe not offer the program if you can't manage the pairing. and 3) Every pin was actually diabolical on Saturday. If you're going to keep the course as cart-path only, don't pair that with challenging pins on every hole or you're just asking for a slow day. I thought the pins were fun and challenging but it just didn't make logistical sense. and 4) The starters seemed to make a point to give our caddy and us the scolding when the twosome we played with probably shot a combined 230. It just felt uncomfortable to call that out but like, come on now.

We wanted to get food at the turn but were too stressed out about the pace, but the cart ladies were around enough and there was water on every third hole's tee box (Thank you for that!)

Overall:
Ak-Chin is absolutely worth the drive out to Maricopa. It's beautiful, and Troon just gets it. But I'd call ahead and see what the cart-path rules are that day, and make sure you fill your group with experienced players as the course is certainly challenging. Practice in the bunkers on the short game area as much as possible because you'll be in them a lot. And tip George at the front if you see him. He's the best part of the day.

Would be five stars but the course was just about to be over seeded and was dried out.

Love this layout and the conditions were great! Go check it out!

This place was incredible. Well atleast the first 13 holes (due to a monsoon our round was cut short). Some greens had fringe dead spots, but this late in the summer, that’s expected. Fairways were pristine, tee boxes nice and short. They definitely play into the dunes on the property, and you have options off the tee. Definitely recommend this place, worth the drive from Phoenix.

The course was beautiful, the staff was great. As soon as I showed up I felt rushed. Forced to start early, waited for the group on front of us on every hole. Before our group would even drive there was a group behind us watching. I guess everyone has dealt with that at some point on any given course. The grass amd greens were perfect but the sand, and there are bunkers everywhere, was as hard as a rock and I didnt feel bad for not raking the boxes after a shot. For not golfing in 3 years and even though the course is a difficult one, I still managed to par half of the holes. I'll be back for sure as this is my new homecourse. I'll forgive the sand this time too as we have had some recent rain storms. 4.5

I love playing here. The cost typically isn't to high compared to other courses of this caliber. Marshall's drive around and bring you water. They keep the place of play up. The layout is not too difficult. Usually course conditions are pretty solid.

All great, only issue was a lot of mosquitos, so you had to learn how to take a put with flys in your face, hands and ball :)

Would highly recommend this. Played it for the first time. Great deal for the money during the summer. Conditions very good for this time of year. Just bring some bug spray.