Golf Club of Estrella

A year has past since I wrote any reviews but after just returning from my annual trip to Arizona with my father, I'm dedicated once again. I have also given some thought to ranking courses after reviewing them by using the CIPA metric. (Don't worry if you don't know the acronym, I made it up. It stands for: Courses I'd Play Again.) Similar to last year, we played two new courses for us and enjoyed three Spring Training games. More on the the baseball later!

Golf Club of Estrella, Goodyear, AZ

After looking for courses on the west side of the Phoenix Valley, Estrella popped up as one of the Top 20 Courses You Can Play in Arizona according to GolfWeek. The pictures on the website lead you to believe that this course a Nicklaus designed desert golf paradise. That was far from the truth. For the most part, the course was generic, nestled between a planned community, and worn down thus making the $115/person rate seem very over-priced. You could see where the last 30 cups had been cut on each green and there were plenty of un-replaced divots. This was much different than what we had experienced at the last Troon managed course, Ak-Chin Southern Dunes, we played which was in great condition. The worst hole on the course in my opinion was #5, ironically named "Oasis", with a large fake pond guarding the left side of the green and lined by homes. The first 16 holes of Estrella could have been dropped in any locale (Nevada, California, the flat parts of Idaho) almost as a "strip-mall" of desert golf. Jack Nicklaus II did save the best for last, the 17th (pictured) and 18th holes had impressive elevation changes and views, but that was about all worth remembering from the course.

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