Let's Play Two at Phoenix's Wildfire Golf Club

By: Steve Habel

When Ernie Banks, the Chicago Cubs Hall of Fame outfielder, famously said "Let's play two" he was talking about his love of baseball doubleheaders and two games in the same day. But Banks' famous catchphrase easily translates to the golfers who tee it up at the two courses at Wildfire Golf Club in Phoenix - a place where 36 holes a day should be mandatory.

Wildfire is situated in the rugged Sonoran Desert of northeast Phoenix and features a pair of picturesque layouts designed by Arnold Palmer and Nick Faldo. The 36-hole facility, the golfing option at the opulent JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa, offers distinctive golf experiences.

Located just 16 miles from downtown Phoenix and 10 miles from downtown Scottsdale, Wildfire opened in 1986 with the Palmer course. Faldo brought his brand of magic to the site in 2002.

The Palmer course is more traditional, with a target-golf feel and large greens, while the Faldo contains a bevy of bunkers. Wildfire's courses and surrounding mountain views have helped cement the resort's reputation as one of the premier golfing destinations in the Valley of the Sun.

Huge Greens at Palmer Course

Playing at 7,145 yards from the back set of five tees, where it has a Slope rating of 140, Wildfire's Palmer Course can provide a stern test even for the pros, although the various tees provide any category of player a fun round.

Palmer's wide and relatively flat fairways help keep golfers in play, while bunkering and the vast putting surfaces are create subtle challenges. It's not uncommon to have 30-, 40- or even 50-foot putts up or down severe undulations.

The greens also have shelves that make it tough to reach some pins. The par-72 layout favors long hitters as two of the four par-3s measure at least 205 yards and all but a pair of the course's par-4s stretch 415 yards or more.

The key to success at Palmer is to keep the ball in play off the tee. The desert on the Palmer Course is more penal than at the Faldo, and if one drives the ball offline it's difficult to find. The Palmer course is target golf, pure and simple, as ravines cut across many fairways.

An example is the par-5 ninth. Carded at 520 yards from the tips and reachable for some in two, it features plenty of trouble as a wide desert ravine slices across the fairway off the tee. The more to the left a tee shot veers, the sooner the ravine enters play. With a lone bunker about 65 yards short of the green and a waste area in mid-fairway, there's plenty to manage here.

The Palmer's final five holes are as good a closing stretch as any in the Valley. The 14th is a 530-yard, split-fairway par-5, while No. 15 plays 205 yards to a green protected by bunkers right and a wash left. The 16th is a 355-yard par-4 where a birdie - or double-bogey - is possible.

No. 17, which many consider the best hole at Wildfire GC's two courses, is a monster of a par-4 at 450 yards, with water protecting the green. The par-4 finisher runs 430 yards to a narrow, wavy green.

Bunkers are the Bomb at Faldo

The par-71 Faldo course, which plays at 6,846 from the tips, is the shorter of the two courses at Wildfire but it could be better than its older sibling. The design by the six-time major winner, in conjunction with the architectural team of Lee Schmidt and Brian Curley, features devilish and perfectly placed bunkers on each hole, forcing players to double-check yardages from tees and fairways.

The track involves 174 acres and offers a slight variation from the typical desert-style courses. Century-old Saguaro cacti and 108 bunkers that flash up anywhere from 5 to 25 feet are reminiscent of Australia's Sandbelt courses.

This is a course unique to the Valley, not just because of the design but because it is so position-oriented. The Faldo is an interesting combination of short and long par-4s, dramatic par-3s that optimize the property's vistas, and clever par -5s that reward placement over power.

The biggest difference between Faldo and Palmer courses is the size of the greens. Faldo's has some postage stamp-sized putting surfaces that are difficult to hit. Take the par-3 third. Playing just 164 yards from the tips, with bunkers left and right, it forces the golfer to select the right club. A steep drop-off long and left adds to the challenge.

The par-4 sixth is 350 yards, but players have to clear a wash to reach the green. For the low handicapper, it's 3-iron, 8-iron here, but for the average golfer it's testier because of the bunkering.

Another beauty, the par-5 ninth, extends 534 yards from the tips. But getting home in two is tough. A good tee shot leaves a fairway wood or long-iron for big hitters to a smallish green surrounded by seven traps. But it's more prudent to lay up to wedge distance and take dead aim at the pin.

The longest hole is the par-5 15th, which goes 607 yards from the tips. The closing hole on the Faldo course (a 420-yard par-4) sports 10 bunkers, and, from an elevated tee, provides a heart-pounding view of the resort at the rear of its green.

Wildfire Golf Club and its tandem of courses have been voted "Best Courses You Can Play" by Golfweek magazine, "America's Top Golf Courses" by Zagat and among the "World's Best Golf Resorts for Family Trips" and "Best Resort Course in the Southwest" by Travel & Leisure Golf magazine.

Both layouts offer amazing vistas and no matter your choice, you'll find a challenging layout from start to finish. So why not stay overnight and play both? Ernie Banks knows how you feel.

For more information, go to www.marriott.com/golf-hotels/phxdr-jw-marriott-phoenix-desert-ridge-resort-and-spa/wildfire-golf-club.

Steve Habel is a freelance writer contributing Cybergolf news stories, features, equipment and book reviews and personality profiles from his base in Austin, Texas. He also works as an associate editor for Horns Illustrated magazine, a publication focusing on University of Texas sports, and is a contributing writer for Texas Golf Insider, Golf Oklahoma magazine, Tri-State Golfer and ATX Man magazine. Habel's blog (www.shotoverthegreen.blogspot.com) features news on golf and chronicles his many travels, including playing almost 1,000 golf courses since 2008. Habel is a member of the Golf Writers Association of America and the Texas Golf Writers Association.

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