Go long and left with a driver at Gold Canyon Golf Resort in Arizona. (QMI Agency/Dave Hilson)

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My playing partner, a smooth-swinging Manitoban, has just hammered the ball down the left side of the split fairway from the elevated tee. Not to be outdone, I take out driver and launch my ball over the dusty, rock- and cactus-covered hill on the left that hides the green, and cuts off all but 35 yards of hole. It’s a calculated risk that pays off this time.

That’s the challenge the 378-yard, par-four 15th hole on the Dinosaur Mountain course at Gold Canyon Golf Resort in Arizona presents. Go long and left with a driver and have an easy wedge into the green, or play it safe with an iron up the right side and leave yourself with a longer approach into this tiered, guarded green. It’s a stunning risk-reward hole, split in two by a craggy, scrub-filled arroyo that is ready to swallow balls and turn beckoning birdies into bogeys or worse.

What makes number 15 all the more breathtaking on this particular day is the 20 or so mule deer that have gathered in the middle of our landing area for a late-afternoon snack. Nature’s greens-keepers munch away on fairway, oblivious to the projectiles that land like stray bullets at their hooves.

“That’s the most deer I’ve ever seen at one time,” says a marshal who has worked at Gold Canyon for 20 years and has made his way out to check on our progress as the sun begins to slip behind the surrounding mountains. Maybe they’ve been brought out of hiding by the storm that has swept through the canyon like a whirlwind, delaying the completion of our round and momentarily bringing temperatures down near single digits.

The gray-coloured deer are unfazed as we make our way to our balls, glancing up only occasionally and moving away oh-so-casually. Heck, I could have reached out and touched a few with my club. In fact, I’m more nervous than they are, wondering if one of the mountain lions that patrol the surrounding hills might want to make a meal out of these healthy looking creatures. Maybe we’ll be mistaken for food in the same way scuba divers are mistaken for seals by great whites? It’s a fleeting thought, though, and my brightly coloured golf attire is probably enough to set me apart from the four-legged gallery. I get down to the task at hand, hoping to stick a lob wedge to within birdie range. “Nice shot,” I’m sure I hear one of the bemused deer say.

While we’re lucky enough to get this close to these beautiful animals, they aren’t the only wildlife we encounter on our recent six-day golf trip. Rabbits and grouse are our constant companions, nervously scurrying back and forth across cart paths and into the nearby scrub like pedestrians making their way across busy intersections. We also come across the occasional wild boar and roadrunner, too. No coyotes, though. For those, we would have to head to Glendale.

GOLFER'S PARADISE

It’s no secret Arizona is a golfer’s paradise. Hundreds of top-notch courses and resorts spread out across the state like spider webs from the major hubs. But we decide to check out first hand what all the fuss is about and fly south into Phoenix during the American Thanksgiving. We’ve chosen three resorts that, while all excellent in the services they provide, differ in topography and challenge.

Our first stop after navigating our way to the car rental agency at the maze-like Sky-Harbor International Airport is the award-winning Wigwam Golf Resort and Spa, a five-star 331-room resort, 30 minutes southwest of the airport.

Wigwam, whose roots date back 80 years as a guest ranch for visiting Goodyear executives, is home to 54-holes, including the Blue and Gold courses. (Courtesy Wigwam Golf Resort and Spa)

Wigwam, whose roots date back 80 years as a guest ranch for visiting Goodyear executives, is home to 54-holes, including the Blue and Gold courses, originally designed by the famed Robert Trent Jones Sr., and given a facelift in 2005. Located in the West Valley and built on what were formerly cotton fields, this could be the flattest place in Arizona. There is nary a hill on any of these courses, the only elevation being Jones’ trademark greens. But the canals, lakes and other waterways that wind their way through the generous fairways provide some challenges. At more than 7,400 yards, the par-72 Gold Course is said to be Jones’ west coast version of the legendary South Course at Firestone. The par-three 15th on the 6,000-plus-yard Blue Course has a dramatic island green where precision placement is of upmost importance. While Wigwam isn’t a walk in the park, it won’t eat up most golfers, either, so it can be a great place to shake off the winter rust.

Add this to the Red Door Spa, fantastic pools, and wonderful dining options, and it is tough to find a more pleasing or conveniently located resort. Wigwam is within a short drive of most of Arizona’s prominent sports teams and we make our way to the Jobing.com Arena to watch the Phoenix Coyotes defeat Dallas before heading off to the aforementioned Gold Canyon, a stunning 36-hole resort in the Superstition Mountains, about an hour southeast of Phoenix.

Gold Canyon is the most modest of the three resorts, but you can still recover from your round by hitting the spa, slipping into your own personal whirlpool, or sitting out on the patio of your casita sipping on some premium tequila amongst the cactus, mesquite and palo verde trees. The Ken Kavanaugh-designed Dinosaur Mountain and the Sidewinder are as immaculate and challenging as any course you’re likely to find in Arizona.

Dinosaur Mountain, with its drastic changes in elevation and rollercoaster-like drops on the par-threes, goes back and forth across the mountain. It has been rated as the number one public course in the state, and one of the 10 most underrated courses in America by Sports Illustrated. It is the more difficult of the two tracks – I could have used some advice from those deer on several occasions – but the numerous tee-boxes allow golfers of all skill levels to enjoy their round. Sidewinder, like the snake from which it takes its name, winds around the base of the mountain through arroyos and along dry creek beds.

We would have loved to play these courses over and over, but reluctantly hit the highway to make the hour-plus drive northwest to the Boulders. We aren’t disappointed. Situated approximately 40 minutes northeast of Phoenix, Boulders, a spectacular resort nestled in the High Sonoran desert that takes its name from the 12-million-year-old granite formations that dot the landscape at the stunning 36-hole set-up, is the ultimate high-end golf experience. The service is impeccable – shuttles whisk you from lobby to casitas, to restaurants, to first tees – and the staff is helpful and courteous. The facilities include a spa, tennis, five dining rooms, a targeted grass range, short-game areas with grass bunkers and multiple putting greens. Famed instructor David Leadbetter was even there giving a clinic during our stay.

Situated approximately 40 minutes northeast of Phoenix, Boulders is a spectacular resort nestled in the High Sonoran desert. (QMI Agency/Dave Hilson)

Designed by Jay Morrish, the well-bunkered, finely manicured rolling fairways of the North and South courses are built right into the desert foothills and are framed by ancient giant cactus, those precariously balanced boulders and casitas. Like Gold Canyon, these courses are immaculate, from the sculpted tee-boxes to the wonderfully conditioned large, undulating bent grass greens. Desert carries are frequent, but scorecards with layouts of each hole, yardages to hazards and landing zones will help you avoid any treachery.

Desert Golf magazine ranked the North Course the number one resort course in the state, while Golf Digest ranked the Boulders as one of America’s top 25 golf resorts.

Golf in Arizona is everything we heard it would be – stunning and challenging. So bring your long game, bring your short game and bring your camera because reliving the experience is something you’ll want to do over and over.

For more on staying and playing at these resorts and the various packages they offer, visit:

Wigwam Golf Resort and Spa

1-800-327-0396

www.wigwamresort.com

Gold Canyon Golf Resort

1-800-827-5281

www.gcgr.com

The Boulders

1-866-397-6520

www.TheBoulders.com