There are great advantages to playing a short course, says Mark Thesing, the director of golf for IronOaks in Sun Lakes.
“It’s a shorter course, so obviously you can play faster, which makes it fun as well,” Thesing said. “You’re not out there for five hours …, you’re out there for three. People like it that way.”
And when it comes to short courses, the Chandler-Sun Lakes area is home to the best in the nation, according to GolfPass.com, one of the top golf-focused websites.
“I was surprised by the difficulty, variety of holes and overall quality of this course,” one of the members wrote in the review chosen to highlight the course. “I had an executive (par 3) course in mind. This course is par 67, with several par 4s and two par 5s.
“The members I played with were very accommodating and knowledgeable.”
GolfPass said it defines a short course as having a par less than 69 and a total length less than 6,000 yards. Ironwood is a par 67, 18-hole course measuring 5,155 yards.
Its sister course is Oakwood, which has 27 holes. That gives the 750 members of the IronOaks Country Club 45 holes of golf. Both courses are open to the public.
Thesing said he believes Ironwood earned the top spot in the 2026 Golfer’s Choice rankings because it’s in excellent condition.
“It’s a fun layout,” he said. “You have water, you have doglegs, pine trees, you got kind of everything.”
Thesing said about 10 months ago he signed up the IronOaks courses to be part of GolfNow, which is an online booking service for golfers. GolfNow also runs GolfPass.
“That kind of got the eyes on it a little bit more,” he said. “A little better reviews. That’s one of the ways that they found this hidden gem.”
The members of IronOaks are quite proud of the recognition, Thesing said.
“They treat Iron like it’s their little baby,” he said. “When they saw that we got it, they got to tell their family back where it’s cold that look at where they get to play, the No. 1 short course.”
Both courses are owned by the homeowners association, and having 45 holes allows members to change up their rounds. Green fees for non-residents are higher during the winter season, topping $100 before 1 p.m. Rates drop to $90 between 1 and 3 p.m., and to $50 after 3 p.m.
Summer brings significant discounts. After May 24, greens fees are $60 before 11 a.m., $50 late morning, and just $35 after 2 p.m.
“That’s the nice thing about Ironwood, even if it’s hot, you’re only out there for three hours or so and there’s a bunch of trees, so you get a lot of shade.
Thesing said if Ironwood has a signature hole, he’d lean toward the ninth hole.
“That’s got the fountain with the water,” he said. “I also like No. 10, it’s a shorter par 3 with water. Those are two that kind of stick out.”
While the WM Phoenix Open was underway in Scottsdale, Thesing said they usually get an uptick in reservations.
“We get more outside play, guests that come in from the Midwest where it’s negative 20 degrees and we’re at 80,” he said. “We were very busy.”