Played with my usual Sunday threesome here at 11:02 am for $20 off a hot deal on GolfNow. This course never allows for singles to book so I've never played here, and the last time one of my partners i... Continue »

Played with my usual Sunday threesome here at 11:02 am for $20 off a hot deal on GolfNow. This course never allows for singles to book so I've never played here, and the last time one of my partners in the threesome played here was some 5 odd years ago. We were excited. This course has an extensive history with being one of the first courses established around 1913, before Arizona was even officially a state. The service was acceptable, the cart guys grabbed our bags, we checked in, hit the bar to grab our drinks as there wasn't a cart girl out on the hot Sunday we played. We were off without warmup due to the driving range being simply foam golf balls into a 150 yard grassy area with a few trimmed "greens". The conditions on the tee boxes, with around 4 sets of tee to play from, were nice and acceptable of any tee. The fairways were a little overgrown, but noticeably lower than the rough. The rough was quite lush, it'll hide your ball pretty well and impact any approach shot. The greens, which we were warned of being slow, were pretty pristine. Soft and receptive on any shots into the green but rolled true with putts. Not seemingly baked at all and fun to putt on...once you were successfully on the greens. The bunkers, which all are SURROUNDING the small greens were a little inconsistent. Some were soft and well raked while others could be firm and packed a bit too tight. The only weird thing about the conditions was the absence of the fringe, it was basically trimmed greens and immediately off the greens was the rough and crabgrass. This course is for sure a parkland style course, with very little desert seen if any and if you saw desert shrubbery it was because of the houses that are prominently lining the holes of this resort/hotel course. The fairways are rather accepting of errant tee shots but to score well, bring your sharpest of irons because these greens are the size of postage stamps. Every green was in great shape, which is great because you needed the ability to putt well with all of the greens being defended by at least one bunker, up to three surrounding the green complexes. My only gripe was this course strategically could be great if the greens weren't under 1,000 square feet because EVERY green is surrounded by bunkers. It's not necessarily target golf other than with the greens but the greens limit your options for approach shots, they need to be able to fly and stop quickly. It was a fun course, albeit rather challenging with my below average iron game that Sunday, and with the conditions I'll be back but it's not for the everyday hacker that can't accurately control their irons. If you can't bring some swim shorts and a towel because you'll be at the beach all day.

Played this course 2/17/17. Found a deal for $30 at 3 PM. I played as a two-some and hoped to cruise through the course in 2-2 1/2 hours. This was not to be as the course was backed up. They had group... Continue »

Played this course 2/17/17. Found a deal for $30 at 3 PM. I played as a two-some and hoped to cruise through the course in 2-2 1/2 hours. This was not to be as the course was backed up. They had groups packed together like sardines. I don't know if the pace of play is always like this, or if it was because there was a large group of players from Iceland who were just finishing up an event. There is no starter after about 2:30, which didn't help matters much either. The course is a traditional parkland style course with wide fairways, and accommodating rough areas, not the typical desert-punitive-rock found elsewhere. I had never visited the course, so I did not see it pre-renovation. I enjoy these traditional courses because they suit my meager golf abilities, and don't penalize me for rolling the ball along the ground, or hitting errant shots left and right. The course conditions were fair, about what I would expect for a muni, or budget option. The sole knock on the course was the sand, which was non-existent. It was just hard pack. There was no getting a club into the sand and under a ball. I saw the beverage cart once in the round. Due to time constraints, the pace of play, and the setting sun, I only got through 12 holes. The weather was windy and superb. All in all, an enjoyable round.

Played 10/18 to scout the course and 10/22 in a 4-man scramble for charity. The course must be one of the first golf courses in the Phoenix area. It dates back to 1913. It's a more traditional styl... Continue »

Played 10/18 to scout the course and 10/22 in a 4-man scramble for charity. The course must be one of the first golf courses in the Phoenix area. It dates back to 1913. It's a more traditional style course. It's generally flat, tree-lined, and has small greens. It's got some nice bunkering in the fairway and around the greens. It's not a long course by todays standards. 6640 yards Par 72 71.0/124 from the black tees. It has some good Par 3's. Two of them play long at 212 yards & 215 yards respectively. It has a nice mix of Par 4's, with the two longest being 482 & 471 yards. It's the Par 5's where this course gives you a big advantage. Three of the four Par 5's are less than 500 yards. The longest is #18 which is only 509 yards. The course did a full over seed and it had only been open a week when I played it. Generally, the condition of the course was fair - good. They didn't punch the greens during the over seed. The grass was a little thin ,but it was coming in nicely. The greens were soft and slow. You needed to putt them firm enough to hold the line and not try to die them into the hole. The fairways were very generous on most holes. They were lush but a little shaggy which was to be expected. The rough was thick and could give you a variety of lies. The sand traps had plenty of sand in them. The green side bunkers had the faces pushed up to block your view of the greens surface from the fairway. The good news is they are shallow and easy to play from. The black tee boxes were level and didn't have much wear. San Marcos has a good practice putting green. It has a nice pitching and chipping area with a practice bunker. It doesn't have a good driving range. You have to hit the yellow foam balls on the short range. They have outside service. The beverage cart came around three times. I heard this course had its problems in the past. It was reflected in the fact that there are no recent reviews. With that being said, I would say it is a good value for this time of year in season. I've seen online rates between $25 - $45 depending on day and time. I'd rate the course higher once the grass comes in more. I submitted photos so you can see for yourself. I also added some playing tips. Side note: If you are standing on the 14th tee box, look to the right and you will see a big white mansion. It was Al Capone's winter residence.

I'd heard and read the bad reviews of San Marcos in recent years, but I decided to check it out since it's newly renovated, and I'm glad I did. Played Sat Dec 6th. All playing surfaces were excellen... Continue »

I'd heard and read the bad reviews of San Marcos in recent years, but I decided to check it out since it's newly renovated, and I'm glad I did. Played Sat Dec 6th. All playing surfaces were excellent. The greens were especially good. Fairways were great and the rough was long enough to be appropriately penal without being overly so. Tee boxes were excellent. Sand was very workable, maybe a tad fluffy.

The only negatives were warming up with foam balls on the mini range, which frankly doesn't bother me, but it is unusual, and that the course was very soggy. It was an overcast day, so maybe it'll be less soggy on a sunny day or once they get in a groove on their watering schedule. The only other thing is the couple of oddly long par 4s, but overall I'll be happy to go back and play it again.

Played San Marco on Sunday 10/27/13 , to say it is in poor condition is an under estimation , the greens are very woolly which made them awfully slow , the fairways were bare and very patchy , the rou... Continue »

Played San Marco on Sunday 10/27/13 , to say it is in poor condition is an under estimation , the greens are very woolly which made them awfully slow , the fairways were bare and very patchy , the rough was not existent , I understand they are over seeding at the moment however if this is the state they will allow a course to get in prior to over seeding I'd be looking to hire new greens staff .....

Played Nov 19. I'm writing this review because this course has improved since last year. Everything is better except the traps. At the current rates it is well worth the price. The only problem I see ... Continue »

Played Nov 19. I'm writing this review because this course has improved since last year. Everything is better except the traps. At the current rates it is well worth the price. The only problem I see is there seems to be no maintenance going on. Some of the tee boxes have divots everywhere and none filled. Not a good sign.

San Marcos Golf Resort Course Review
Chandler Arizona Golf Course Reviews

Played March 5. This course has gone downhill fast. The resort has gone into bankruptcy, they must have stopped maintaining the course months ago. Only dirt and pebbles in sand traps. Very little gras... Continue »

Played March 5. This course has gone downhill fast. The resort has gone into bankruptcy, they must have stopped maintaining the course months ago. Only dirt and pebbles in sand traps. Very little grass on greens and fairways. Some of the greens are dead. This course not a bargain at any price. This has happened twice before that I know of, Chandler took over the course until they found a buyer. Its a shame because I've always liked this course. Until you hear good things, play somewhere else.

Drive by this course every day to and from work, decided to give it a try. If you're looking for customer service and/or amenities because this is a "resort" course, you'll need to look elsewhere. I d... Continue »

Drive by this course every day to and from work, decided to give it a try. If you're looking for customer service and/or amenities because this is a "resort" course, you'll need to look elsewhere. I dropped my clubs off at the bag drop, was greeted by one of the starters, who then looked back down at whatever he was doing (which was nothing), and I loaded the clubs onto a cart myself. Went inside to get some range balls to warm up. Range balls here are those limited flight monstrosities, so dialing in your irons at the range isn't going to happen.

The carts come equipped with coolers, which is nice, but none had ice in them. You've got to go to the kitchen to request ice for your cart. The cart also has one of those ball/club cleaner things, but, sadly, no water in them with which to clean your clubs/balls. At least they provided a towel.

Finally got onto the course and it's pretty much what you'd expect from an older course: relatively flat, which some small dunes and grass traps scattered about. There's a small creek that runs through about six holes but never really came into play for me until #18. Lots of traps--an average of three per hole, protect the greens. Bunker lips were generally low for relatively easy escapability, but the sand was near solid in most that I visited. Greens were in decent shape, held most shots, not too many ball marks, but some dead areas. Very, very little break on most. Tee boxes could use some work, too; older trees that shaded some boxes also left a lot of debris on them, and there were at least 4 holes that I needed a pneumatic hammer to get my tee in the ground. The fairways were wide, rough was pretty much non-existent, but if you strayed too much the trees lining the fairways definitely came into play.

Overall, so long as you pay less than $25-$30, this course is okay, but never would I pay full price.

CP

Played Nov 28. Have been playing here for many years. Course has changed some in that time. That's why some of the holes don't make seem right. When they added all the buildings to the right of 1 and ... Continue »

Played Nov 28. Have been playing here for many years. Course has changed some in that time. That's why some of the holes don't make seem right. When they added all the buildings to the right of 1 and 2, they had to change several holes. Not for the better. One of the first resort courses in Az. Still like playing here. The course was in good shape from the over seeding. The Salt Cedar trees are still very impressive. Basically an old fashioned flat course with lots of trees, most holes next to each other.