We-Ko-Pa: Golf that Stands Alone

The quiet Scottsdale course helps players get away from the crowds

By Jim Bebbington

The We-Ko-Pa golf courses northeast of Scottsdale are longtime favorites for Coloradans seeking to escape the grey and cold of winter.

The two courses – Cholla and Saguaro – have elite pedigrees. The course conditions are perennially fantastic. And as the first of the courses to come online is about to turn 25 years it, the resort and courses are worth revisiting.

In 2001, the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation built one resort course, which they named Cholla, at the same time as they opened their new We-Ko-Pa casino and resort nearby. Then, in 2005, they added the Saguaro Course from the design team of Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore. The two quickly became a popular overnight or day-trip destination for golfers from Colorado visiting Phoenix and Scottsdale.

Because the complex is tribal land underwritten by a casino, the economics of the surrounding area are very different from nearly every other course in the region. There is no economic pressure to bring in housing development or more strip malls, and so the tribal leaders have not done so. That has helped create a rare and precious experience for both the resort and the courses: solitude.

The views of Red Mountain, Four Peaks and the rest of the Superstition Mountains are taken in without interruption of anything man-made. The courses make use of the region’s natural arroyos – the channels cut by the sudden rainstorms which can bring torrents of water to bone-dry land seemingly out of nowhere. The results are courses that are allow players to focus on the challenge, the experience, and their playing partners – free from interruption. These are courses played best with your phone off and buried deep in your bag; they reward concentration.

The roar or the world is easily found again. The full restaurant and bar at the clubhouse – and the casino and resort across the road – are always there waiting to serve. But for at least a few hours, these two courses give you a chance for a quiet golf experience.

CHOLLA COURSE

Chollas are the spiny cacti that dot the land in the Valley of the Sun, and without pushing the metaphor too far, the course and the cacti are both cut from the same cloth. Both are at times narrow, floral and welcoming with their natural beauty, but exacting for visitors who do not know how to handle them.

Cholla, a Scott Miller design, is turning 25 years old this winter and the course has matured magnificently.

The course begins with desert washes fronting the tee box on No. 1 and requiring a decent carry. Most of the holes will require a good swat to clear a wash or desert terrain, but if players choose wisely on which tee box to start from it should become a cause of pride and not consternation. The greens on the first four holes all have knolls and significant contour changes.

By the back half of the front nine greens level out slightly, but some more aggressive bunkering comes into play to offer a new challenge. Nearly every hole begins with a desert wash in front of the tee boxes that must be cleared. Rounds end with a rare greenside pond on No. 18.

SAGUARO COURSE

The Saguaro course is the course that makes all the best-of-Arizona lists and is the one that visiting players want to be good and warmed up for. The Coore/Crenshaw design has welcoming fairways, but driving angles from the back tees can be crucial. The namesake saguaro cacti tower over players throughout the course.

In the end, the experience for both courses starts with great design and conditions. Then, as players wind through the desert, the world outside slowly fades away. For a few hours, players put their skills to the test and come away feeling as though they have accomplished something special, regardless of their score.

We-Ko-Pa Golf Course: By the numbers

Wekopa.com

480-836-9000

Cholla Course:

Saguaro Course:

Jim Bebbington is the Director of Content at Colorado AvidGolfer and can be reached at [email protected]

Colorado AvidGolfer Magazine is the state’s leading resource for golf and the lifestyle that surrounds it, publishing eight issues annually and proudly delivering daily content via coloradoavidgolfer.com.

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