McDowell Mountain Golf Club

I played on a Thursday morning during spring training so the course was pretty busy. Got paired up with a couple who were members which was positive as they had good course knowledge.

Very nice track with plenty of diversity and interesting holes. The power lines noted by others are frankly not a factor and really did not diminish the course for me. Good pace of play and very friendly staff. Will definitely play this course again!

I was offer a discount promo from golfnow for my birthday but when I tried to us it to book this round it said "not available" at this time, with no explanation ? It was disappointing !

An abused Golf Course, from the practice range to the fairways and the greens...
One of the worst greens conditions in memory.
Over booked, had to wait 15 minutes at the driving range, no chance on putting green(s)...AND you are charged for practice balls!
#10 and #18 hug the driving range...wear a helmet!
If not for the weather, what a disappointment. And it cost $100.00 each....

It was a little crowded but did not slow us down until the last three holes. Wildlife on the course Quail, Dove and a Road Runner. Very playable with challenges and some varied sand in the traps. The greens were true and at a good speed for a mid handicap player. People I played with were very nice and knew the game. Round played 4 hours and 7 minutes with slight delay as noted above. I would return.

Pace of play was good until 17/ guy fishing for balls out of lake

Had a free round from Golf Now so headed further afield for a change of pace. I mismanaged my timing from the far east valley to Scottsdale so consequently hit the pro shop one minute shy of my 12:05 tee time and they got me out there in the blink of an eye. What I remember of the restaurant and pro shop was very nice. No time for range balls or putting and to my surprise nobody else on the first tee. I wound up playing the whole round as a single between two foursomes.......and it was great. Totally relaxing day, plenty of time to figure yardages from the book and enjoy the solitude. Certainly I practiced putting on every hole to fill time and hit second shots whenever I was peeved with my abilities. Saw the marshal and the cart girl twice per side. Fourteen of the holes play along the power line corridor with nary a home in site. One, nine, ten and eighteen play perpendicular between the clubhouse and the corridor and have homes. Traps had good sand, greens were large, medium fast and undulating, fairways were made interesting and challenging with shapes and bunker/waste area placement. Maintenance was generally very good. Really the only negatives I can think of were range balls in number 10 fairway and the patrons were less than stellar about fixing ball marks. I know some people don't care to play around power lines but they were not intrusive or "shocking" to me. I'd love to play it again but it's out of my frugal golfer price range.

Nice course with a very friendly and accomdating staff. Would definitely play again when returnign to AZ. Good location and easy to get to.

Course in great condition and pace of play was excellent.

My only issue with the club house is locals receive a price advantage which makes travelers like us feel taken advantage of.

Course was ok in itself. Far to many Powerlines which diminishes the the atmosphere. Par 5 #9, disappointing when you havee to play a layup shot for a par 5. Also charging for Range Balls when you have paid to play the course is enough to keep me from returning and/or recommending to others for play.

great course overall. it's somewhat tight in the fairways. The greens are difficult as they have subtle breaks that you don't necessarily read.

Greens were very nice, smooth, in good condition. Drives must be hit straight or you're ball will end up out of play. The round went by quickly, very little waiting to hit, which was in stark contrast to every other Phoenix based course I have played recently.

I've played this course several times with my wife. We enjoy playing there especially because there are tee boxes that match our level of play. I carry an 18 handicap and my wife carries a 23. I think it's important that there are tee boxes for men under 6000 and this was just fine at a little over 5700. It was a touch under 5000 for my wife. At this distance, I have good chance of breaking 90 and my wife and break 100 - allowing us to enjoy the round a little more.
The fairways and greens were well maintained and most of the fairways gave you plenty of space to land your ball (with one or two exceptions)).
There are two items with which I was less than pleased.
1. At a course of this level, and with the cost of golfing there, range balls should be included. When I asked the fellow at the golf shop whether he knew that most of the negative reviews were about their policy to charge for range balls (and that is was a short sighted policy), he acknowledged the problem, but pretty much said that it's decided at a much higher level.
2. Many of the courses are played near these massive power lines. It gets a little disconcerting when you hear the wires crackling.
While there's little they can do about #2 (the power lines are there for good), they can certainly make the range balls complimentary and remedy my #1 complaint.
All said, however, it's a lovely course in a beautiful setting. They maintain the course well and that's always important.
Finally, this course may have been a little rich for my wallet, but I was able to get on reasonably with a Golfnow twosome card that effectively made the cost only $50 per player. I would generally not spend the $90+ per golfer to play that course, the regular "Hot Deal" price, let alone the rack rate which is much more. For $50 each it was a pretty good deal.

Good layout! Tough pin placements made for difficult putts but overall little better than most desert courses. Power lines not a factor.

Great layout, Excellent turf and greens, 31/2 hours on Sat. morning and the best staff I can remember.

Only the power lines above diminish the overall experience. We'll definitely play again.

Course in great shape, and fun to play. Too many power poles around.

Nice secluded facility with very freindly and helpful staff. The course was in excellent condition and well maintained. We were paired with another twosome and really enjoyed our experience on this course. Highly recommended.

Have played here many times now with new owners the course has become a even more enjoyable time.New club house is first class and the staff is great.

Great course to play - I have played all over the valley, and this is one of the best I have played. The electrical towers were not an issue.

First visit to the course and ultimately played 2, 18-hole rounds that day. The club house is in excellent condition having been refurbished in the past 2 years. The pro-shop is well equipped and quality of food & drink very good - you could rendezvous with family / friends after a round quite nicely.

The practice green is indicative of the putting challenge - which is quite complex. My father is a lifelong golfer with a low-teens handicap and he struggled with the greens.

Still, the course is fun and at the current price point (below $100/round) worth including on a Scottsdale itinerary.

We played a second round after stopping for lunch and pace of play was a lot slower. A lot of larger groups of older golfers slowed things down and had to push to complete our round in twilight - so if you have a tight itinerary - go out early as a priority.