Overview: The Country Club at DC Ranch is a private course in Scottsdale, AZ that was designed by Tom Lehman and John Fought and opened for play in 1997. This course is located at the base of the McD... Continue »

Overview: The Country Club at DC Ranch is a private course in Scottsdale, AZ that was designed by Tom Lehman and John Fought and opened for play in 1997. This course is located at the base of the McDowell Mountains and offers excellent views of the Phoenix Metro area. We were fortunate enough to play the course because a friend of mine had the winning bid on a foursome during a Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce auction.

Clubhouse/Practice Area: A 45,000 square foot Hacienda style clubhouse which included a 12,000 foot fitness and performance center. As we entered the clubhouse we went inside the temporary pro shop and was warmly greeted by the player assistant. He told us where the practice area was and we walked over to hit some balls.
The practice area was beautifully maintained bermuda grass with Taylor Made and Pro V's as the practice balls. The practice area was aimed at Pinnacle Peak with the McDowell Mountains off to the east. It was a great setting to warm up on.

Course: The course was in great shape for mid-September. Fairways and rough were wall to wall lush Bermuda grass with the rough being about an inch in length. The sand was excellent and easy to hit out of and the bermuda greens were in excellent shape and were top dressed with a little bit of sand. The valley effect was definitely in play on this course, and you had to take that into account on every putt and green.
We really enjoyed the layout on the front nine, but as soon as we made the turn and hit #11, you could see what was going to take place over the next few holes. #11 started to work to the east, and you start to make your way up the McDowell Mountains. #12 is a short dogleg right par 4 that worked further up the mountain, and #13 is a short par three into a little bit of a box canyon. Finally, #14 was a 447 yard par 4 that worked back down the mountain and allowed for incredible views of the valley floor below. The rest of the back nine was a little anti-climatic, with 18 being a rather boring finishing hole.

Final Thoughts: It was a great day at The Country Club at DC Ranch, and I definitely want to come back and play there again. In the future, I will definitely be looking at area auctions to have the possibility of playing Phoenix metro private courses during the off season. September is normally a great time to play in Phoenix due to the monsoon summer rains that allow for lush Bermuda conditions.