With the GK group tee time at Boulders for 10:00, my options were somewhat limited to try and squeeze in a morning round. Dove Valley Ranch turned out to be the best option as it was close by, afforda... Continue »

With the GK group tee time at Boulders for 10:00, my options were somewhat limited to try and squeeze in a morning round. Dove Valley Ranch turned out to be the best option as it was close by, affordable ($39 + tax) and they had a 6:00 tee time available for this morning. I thought that was the first group out, but they let me know there was one group of members before that. However, he offered to pair me with him. The twosome behind (the group I was supposed to be in) seemed like they were going to ride us, but we left them in the dust after the 1st hole. The guys I played with met my "3-F" requirements for a quick early morning round if I have to be paired with someone: fun, friendly and, most importantly, FAST! We were on a sub-3-hour pace until we caught a slower back-nine-only twosome for the final 4-5 holes. Still a total pace of 3:15 worked out perfectly for me!

The course was in decent late summer condition and saw some wear from the hard storms overnight. A few wash areas were a bit muddy and there were some low-lying spots on the course that were pretty squishy. Otherwise, good enough. Nice tee boxes. Fairways had some scattered thin/bare spots, but adequate coverage for the most part. Rough was pretty good throughout. Cut down and easy to play from. Bunkers good, as well. Greens were firm and a tad crusty. A bit bumpy and rolling at slow-ish speeds.

This is a solid, but not spectacular layout. The front nine is quite forgiving and then the back nine tightens up significantly. Flat overall terrain. Back nine requires some forced carries as you hit over sandy desert washes many times playing from one target landing area to the next. Recommended at the right price and a good value for summer, but not one most folks need to put on their Scottsdale wish lists.

Played Thursday 5/22. Got a 7:12a tee time online. $45 + tax, green fee + cart. Played with a friend on his birthday who wanted to play here. The course has 2 very different nines. The front nin... Continue »

Played Thursday 5/22. Got a 7:12a tee time online. $45 + tax, green fee + cart. Played with a friend on his birthday who wanted to play here. The course has 2 very different nines. The front nine is more wide open with large green complexes. The back nine is tighter with smaller greens.

The over all condition of the course was mixed. The greens were very good. They were firm and fast. They held good shots and putted very true. Fairways I rated fair. They were firm and thin. A little burned up on most holes. Rough was poor. It was cut as short as the fairway. It wouldn't stop a ball from going off the course. Around the greens, all of your chips are off of tight lies unless you get a bad break and end up in the clumps of grass. Sand was OK. Tee boxes were good.

The course has good practice facilities. Outside service was attentive. We played in 3hrs 15 mins. The carts were old and the GPS wasn't any good. It was to dark, which made it hard to see. Also, the distances it gave you were for the front, middle, & back. It doesn't give you the distance to the pin. Bring your own range finder.

Currently I wouldn't recommend playing here. You can find a better caliber of course with better conditions for $50 around the valley right now.

Played DVR on 3/15/17. My review may be tainted after playing 2 immaculate courses in Palm Springs two days before, but oh well. In summary, I do recommend this course. Fun course, although some issue... Continue »

Played DVR on 3/15/17. My review may be tainted after playing 2 immaculate courses in Palm Springs two days before, but oh well. In summary, I do recommend this course. Fun course, although some issues stick out.

The layout is curious. The front nine - walk onto the tee box, see the hole, play the hole. Normal stuff. The back nine - most of the time you don't have a clue where you are going. They have GPS system on the carts, but the screen is so dark you cannot see the hole on the screen. Fortunately, the staff must know this as they give you a card with hole layout and yardage. Still, I had 3 or 4 shots today that ended up 30-40 yards different than the yardage book led me to believe. And funny enough, it was never in a 30-40 yard better location!

Conditions - tee boxes great. Fairways good, although a little firm for my liking as all my wedge shots were bouncing after impact. Sand traps - the two I were in had a light layer of sand over hardpan - skull city. However, others in my group seem to have no sand problems. The worst part is the rough, it has less grass than the fairways, and only serves to accelerate the balls towards the desert. So, you'd better stay in the fairway. Greens rolled nicely, although I expected better coverage given the wet winter. But, they still putted fine, so that was good.

I did enjoy the course, and the 2nd time around should be better once you know the hidden dangers on the back 9.

We came west to play golf this winter, but at Dove Valley what we played could not be called golf. It seems due to an error by their superintendent, or a herbicide vendor, they lost their grass. Not j... Continue »

We came west to play golf this winter, but at Dove Valley what we played could not be called golf. It seems due to an error by their superintendent, or a herbicide vendor, they lost their grass. Not just their greens. Not just their fairways. All their grass. Did they close the course? Nope. We received guidelines on how to play on crushed stone greens, and how to hit from tight lies on every shot. Since we booked and prepaid, we had to play the course. We're we given coupons? Nope. Did we get a warning? Nope. Should you play Dove Valley Ranch? Nope. Nope. Nope.

Played 04/12/2014. Booked for 1330 and started 1400.Golf shop gave us the twilight rate and a free bag of balls for the delay. Given that it was Saturday afternoon of a beautiful sunny day, I get it.
... Continue »

Played 04/12/2014. Booked for 1330 and started 1400.Golf shop gave us the twilight rate and a free bag of balls for the delay. Given that it was Saturday afternoon of a beautiful sunny day, I get it.

Played the course in a 25 mph wind with baked out crusty greens. Nothing like a challenge. The ball was moving on the greens after coming to rest. The course was in great shape on the fairways and in the rough. The bunkers were indifferent, some were crusty with no bottom, some were filled with pebbles and small rocks and some were light fluffy sand, In any case, I try and play the course as I find it.The greens were very fast, crusty with numerous ball marks and very firm. Most were elevated as well. With the heavy winds, putting became a challenge.

The course is GPS equipped and rightly so given the split fairways, waste areas in front of the greens and severe dog legs, Even with the gps, most of my party had difficulty following the routing of the course. We all agreed that a second round would shave 5-6 strokes by local knowledge.

Our round was 4:25 which was a pleasant surprise. The beverage cart came by 4 or 5 times in our round. Lots of water refill points but I only saw one wash room, a porta potty on 6. I may have missed one on the back nine.

We saw the marshal several times but there were no pace of play issues.

I would return to this course just to get revenge. Weather conditions conspired to kill my score as did my 38 putts, several which blew right back to me. I am learning to adapt to Bermuda, but the wind was impossible.

Played here on 4/28/12. The course is a pretty good desert layout , but does have a few visually deceptive holes. The carts have GPS , which does help a little with these holes. It was in good shape a... Continue »

Played here on 4/28/12. The course is a pretty good desert layout , but does have a few visually deceptive holes. The carts have GPS , which does help a little with these holes. It was in good shape and the greens were excellent. The desert areas are tough to impossible to play out of , so without local knowledge , your forced to play conservative on a number of holes. It has a grass driving range and good practice facilities.

Dove Valley Ranch Golf Club Reviews
Cave Creek Arizona Golf Course Reviews

Course is in great shape. Greens a little faster than normal. Staff, as usual, very friendly, very accommodating.

Dove Valley Ranch Golf Club Reviews
Cave Creek Arizona Golf Course Reviews

Course is in great shape. Greens a little faster than normal. Staff, as usual, very friendly, very accommodating.

Dove Valley Ranch Golf Club Reviews
Cave Creek Arizona Golf Course Reviews

Played December 30th, a beautiful day! The course was in great shape. Greens were fast and smooth. Ran true. A lot of the greens had undulations in them, so be aware of that, although you certainl... Continue »

Played December 30th, a beautiful day! The course was in great shape. Greens were fast and smooth. Ran true. A lot of the greens had undulations in them, so be aware of that, although you certainly couldn't miss them looking at the greens. Mostly large greens, so a 3 putt is looming if you're not on the right level, or if your approach shot is errant/not near the pin. Fairways were excellent, and generally speaking quite wide, the exception being a couple holes on the back nine, where you can hit it through the fairways with driver (or as I did 3 wood), so pay attention to the GPS system-which is an excellent system, we were fortunate enough to play with a couple of members who were quite helpful. I was only in one bunker and the sand was excellent. Although the rough was dormant it was still fairly deep, but if your ball wasn't sitting down in it you could get the club on it without difficulty. The desert on the back nine comes into play a lot, so pay attention to where to hit it. I played here a couple of years ago, and by comparison the course now is far superior to the conditions then. The staff were friendly and efficient, cart girl around often enough and pass the clubhouse at the turn if you wanted something there. Play moved along pretty good, we were done in just under 4 hours, we teed off at 930, and there were people making the turn when we arrived around 815, so I'm guessing play is generally pretty quick. It will slow down on the back nine. I will play it again.

Dove Valley Ranch Golf Club Review
Cave Creek Arizona Golf Course Reviews

I typically play Tatum Ranch (private) a few miles away but at $99 for twilight with a member I shuffled over to Dove Valley for only $60 per person in the morning. Dove Valley played just as well as ... Continue »

I typically play Tatum Ranch (private) a few miles away but at $99 for twilight with a member I shuffled over to Dove Valley for only $60 per person in the morning. Dove Valley played just as well as if not better than Tatum Ranch. The greens were perfect, the fairways were lush, and the tee boxes were nicely cut. The clubhouse was very nice and the round included a drink, chips, and hot dog at the turn. There is a lot of water and OB on this course but it adds to the character. Even from the gold tees (6500+yds) you rarely have to use your driver. The back 9 has a lot of blind tee shots but the GPS carts help a lot. I will be playing this course the next time I am in town.

Dove Valley Ranch Golf Club Course Review
Cave Creek Arizona Golf Course Reviews