Canoa Ranch Golf Resort

I hadn't played Canoa Ranch for a while, and was really looking forward to my return. The course is a challenging track, but can be had if you keep the ball in play. On most holes, that's easier said than done. What's more, 20-25 MPH sustained winds with 40 MPH gusts made things very tough, but not impossible. It is often windy at this course anyway, but today was extreme. So, make sure you play from the correct tees. Distance is not really an issue on the par 4s and 5s. Actually, it goes the other direction. Driver is not needed or recommended on some. However, the selected tee box is very noticeable on the par 3s. The back two tees are near or over 200 yards on a majority of them. Add a stiff wind, and it's a tall order. The greens rolled very well, but they don't break as much as you read. That's not uncommon in Arizona, though.It appears that a lot of the underbrush that I recall from previous rounds has been cleared, which is certainly player-friendly, especially on a windy day. It was a tough round, but still a lot of fun. The staff was a mixed bag, however. Canoa Ranch has gone through cycles of friendly and unfriendly staffs over the years. Today, we experienced a little of both. The starter and cart attendants were great. The pro shop attendant and beverage cart lady could have been nicer, but were not rude. The marshal, however, was surly and downright unpleasant. We encountered him on #4 after we had found trouble and fallen behind. He treated us with contempt as he accused us of holding the groups up behind us even though we were not being pushed then or the rest of the day. It only took us a couple of holes to catch up and comfortably settle into our interval, but we never saw him again. So he never noticed. I understand that course marshals are entrusted with maintaining pace of play, and can be very beneficial and effective, but I don't appreciate the ones who get off on the power. My foursome consisted of low and mid-handicappers who know what they're doing. If the marshal would have been around for more than one shot, he would have seen that. If we were a problem, he should have monitored us. Instead, our first and only interaction was a negative one, and tarnished an otherwise enjoyable round. I do hope to be back, but I feel I needed to make mention of this because I know Canoa Ranch has struggled with low revenue in the past. With COVID essentially wiping out the dining portion of the operation, for the most part, unnecessarily alienating local golfers is not a good thing.

Good photo ops for old and new players! Just enjoyed the round and cart person was attentive too!

Course was much better than last year and will get even better when they can cut down the greens.

90 degree rule today so pace of play was fair. Tee boxes and fairways arein very good shape. The greens are softand a bit fuzxy still. There are also several greens with burmed out "crust" around the edges. Otherwise a decent track.

Reseeded and cart path only when we played, but with a great layout and stripped ryegrass fairways this course is coming around.

Bunkers still rough and with small rocks and very little sand. Greens slow and soft (hold well!) They will be cut shorter later as grass grows in, but need to be tightened up in order to roll faster. VERY slow now..

Such a fun layout is one of the most interesting in southern Arizona and nice clubhouse to visit post round, will be back.

The team in front of us was very slow. The last 3 holes took almost an hour tp play.

Greens are extremely fuzzy. Will be great in a couple weeks or less!

Tee boxes and fairways were beautiful. Cart path only as the course was just over seeded. Greens were super soft and wooly due to the thickness of the grass and couldn’t putt with all the holes in the ground. I had to full swings for the ball to roll towards the holes. There were about 6-8 greens that had dirt patches. When I was at the range, maintenance worker was mowing the grass when he should’ve been cutting the greens down.

Great layout. Not in bad shape for the tlme of year

Course was awesome! Recently seeded great and challenging course.

We have been to this course, my wife and I, several times and every time is a good experience! We will definitely play again. It is a challenging course but friendly enough for some what beginners which my wife is. Well worth the booking and will do again soon.

Some greens have damage, but limited. Challenging course, but also fun. Overall the course is in good shape.