The quieter sibling at TPC Scottsdale. Same facility standards, less than half the green fee, and a par-71 layout that measures 7,235 yards.
The Champions Course operates in the shadow of the Stadium Course and benefits from the arrangement. The same maintenance team, the same practice facilities, and the same TPC Scottsdale infrastructure support both courses, but the Champions carries a green fee roughly half that of its famous neighbor. For golfers who want the TPC experience without the $500 peak-season price tag, the Champions delivers a legitimate alternative.
Randy Heckenkemper designed the course in 2007, and the layout plays longer than the Stadium at 7,235 yards with a comparable slope of 140. The design is straighter and more conventional than the Weiskopf-Morrish Stadium routing, with less dramatic desert integration and fewer holes where the landscape creates visual drama. The Champions is a solid, well-conditioned golf course rather than a memorable one, and there is nothing wrong with that distinction. It provides a quality round at a price that leaves room in the budget for a premium tee time elsewhere in the trip.
The green complexes are well defended without being punitive, and the fairway corridors are generous enough to accommodate the mid-handicap player without losing interest for the low-handicap player. The par 3s are the strongest stretch of the routing, with varied lengths and directional changes that test different clubs and shot shapes across the round.
At approximately $234 in peak season, the Champions represents one of the better values among courses with a tournament pedigree and facility. The shared clubhouse with the Stadium means the post-round experience is identical regardless of which course was played. Off-peak rates in the $100 to $150 range bring the price into the same territory as several of the public municipal courses in the area, which makes the Champions a straightforward choice during the shoulder and summer seasons.
The ideal use of the Champions is as a second-day complement to a Stadium round. Playing both courses over consecutive days provides a full TPC experience at a combined cost that is often less than a peak-season Stadium round paired with a premium course elsewhere. The Champions does not try to compete with the Stadium's personality, and it is better for the honesty.
Links-style golf on 320 acres of Ak-Chin Indian Reservation in Maricopa. An annual U.S. Open qualifying site that plays nothing like the desert courses nearby.
A short, scenic par-71 at Arizona Grand Resort with lush semitropical landscaping and South Mountain Park as a backdrop.
Jay Morrish's desert design among iconic granite boulder formations. No other course in the area looks anything like it.
Tom Fazio's Arizona contribution and former NCAA Division I Championship host. Consistently ranked among the top daily-fee courses in the state.
Golf Magazine ranked it among the Top 10 You Can Play in the U.S. Bent grass greens and a slope of 149 provide a test that does not suffer by comparison with the Raptor.
Golf Digest Four Star Award for nine consecutive years. A hillside design at Hilton Phoenix Tapatio Cliffs with elevation changes that earn the name.
Twenty-seven holes of Ted Robinson design in Chandler with water features on most holes, a Golf Digest 4.5-star rating, and complimentary replay and range balls.
A City of Phoenix municipal course that plays 7,380 yards with Papago Buttes as a backdrop. Renovated in 2008 at a cost of $5.8 million.
Dramatic elevation changes on 7,249 yards of Rees Jones desert design, 45 minutes northwest of Scottsdale in Peoria.
A Carolina-style layout with 6,000+ imported Georgia pines, five miles from Sky Harbor Airport. Scottsdale desert golf, this is not.
Flat, links-style Coore-Crenshaw design with views of the McDowell Mountains and Pinnacle Peak. Consistently top-5 in Arizona by Golfweek.
The more traditional counterpart to the O'odham. Tree-lined fairways, raised greens, and a Coore-Crenshaw design that rewards accuracy.
Home of the loudest tournament in professional golf and a par-3 16th that seats 20,000. The rest of the course rewards strategy over power.
British links principles transplanted to the Sonoran Desert. Firm greens, bump-and-run approaches, and four par 5s exceeding 500 yards.
Desert target golf through steep arroyos and saguaro forests. The signature par-5 16th measures 609 yards through a natural wash.
Named one of the ten best new public courses in the world upon opening. Scott Miller's bolder, longer counterpart to the Saguaro.
Ranked number one in Arizona by Golfweek for 15 of the past 16 years. Coore-Crenshaw minimalism on Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation land.