The murmurs are getting louder.
Whether it’s GolfPass reviews, rants on X or threads on Reddit, the message is the same. Green fees to play golf during peak season in Phoenix/Scottsdale are getting too expensive for many golfers.
I’ve always been a realist when it comes to how golfers should look at green fees. Don’t complain online or with your mouth. Protest with your wallet. If you think a golf course is too expensive, go somewhere else. If enough golfers followed this philosophy, the golf clubs deemed to be too pricey by a majority of customers would eventually be forced to drop green fees low enough to attract a critical mass of golfers to stay viable. Supply and demand.
Remember that ‘bargain golf’ in the Valley of the Sun is a relative term. You’re never going to feel like you’re beating the system. Every golf course in Phoenix-Scottsdale will feel more expensive than a comparable course back home because Arizona has a monopoly on the game this time of year. A sunshine tax is also another factor of golf’s supply and demand.
Believe it or not, there are enough golf courses in the Valley of the Sun to find some value when you’re visiting in prime time from December through April. In this case, “value” means green fees generally ranging from $75 to $150 in high season.
To research this story, we weighed GolfPass star ratings (aka the “quality of the course”) versus green fees we found online – whether through GolfNow or a course’s website – to come up with this list of 10 of the best bargain golf courses in Phoenix-Scottsdale. All but one of these courses boasts a GolfPass rating at 4.0 or higher, meaning they’ve gotten the stamp of approval from paying customers. Many of them are munis faithfully serving their golf communities year after year. Other popular semi-affordable courses such as Papago Golf Club (3.6) and Starfire Golf Club – The King Course (3.5) just missed the cut.
All green fees were taken from research done in March. With dynamic pricing being a new reality for many seasonal facilities, there’s no guarantee you’ll be able to find similar prices. On the other hand, maybe you’ll get lucky and find a lower rate.
Here are our picks for the 10 best bargain golf courses in Phoenix-Scottsdale (in no particular order):
The best value golf courses in Phoenix-Scottsdale
North Course at Granite Falls Golf Club
Green fee: $135
Comment: The Granite Falls – North Course (4.5 stars) made our prestigious Golfers’ Choice 2026 list of the Top 50 Public Golf Courses in the U.S., ranking 47th. The South (4.4) is another quality option in Surprise, which seems to be a hub of value golf in the region.
Green fee: $99-$109
Comment: Another bargain in Surprise, this 27-hole facility designed by Lee Schmidt and Brian Curley will celebrate its 20th anniversary next year. Ranked among the top public courses in Arizona 10 times by Golfers’ Choice, Copper Canyon (4.6) delivers nice views of the White Mountains.
Green fee: $69-$85
Comment: Recent reviews of this Phoenix Parks & Recreation Department-run city muni in Laveen use phrases like “Best bang for you buck” and “Best value for your money in Phoenix.” The tradeoff is potential slow play that seems to plague the Gary Panks design (4.5).
Green fee: $60-$81+
Comment: Cave Creek (3.8) dates to the 1980s as the city’s most-played muni. Unfortunately, hilly fairways and long distances between holes make it tough to walk, which is where many golfers can find value by saving on cart fees.
Sterling Grove Golf & Country Club
Green fee: $155
Comment: As one of the region’s newest courses (opening in 2021), Sterling Grove (4.6) continues to gain a loyal following in Surprise. The Jack Nicklaus design is kept in impeccable shape.
BONUS BARGAINS – SHORT COURSES
Green fees: Continental: $31-$94. Mountain Shadows: $73-$148
Comment: One of the best ways to find value is to play shorter courses like Continental Golf Course, a par 60 of 3,766 yards. Often times, people can scratch their golf itch on short courses with a round that’s faster, allows for lower scores and is more affordable. Continental (3.8) is the best option of all the short courses in town given the price, plus the fact you can hit driver on the six par 4s. If you’re okay with playing a true short course of only par 3s, Mountain Shadows ranks among my all-time favorites. It’s both challenging and gorgeous, located near the foothills of Camelback Mountain.
Green fee: $135-$150
Comment: One tried and true way to find value is to drive farther than you normally would to play golf. The extra money spent on gas is worth it to play ‘Los Cab’ (4.1). This resort course has ranked among the top public golf courses in Arizona nine times from 2015-2023 in Golfers’ Choice. The resort is a great stay-and-play for golf and horse lovers as my family found out in 2023.
Grand Canyon University Golf Course
Green fee: $95-$138
Comment: The Grand Canyon University Golf Course (4.0) has ranked among the top 25 college courses in the country by Golfers’ Choice three different times. Flat terrain and a busy urban landscape hold review scores back a bit.
Dove Valley Ranch Golf Club
Green fee: $139-$195
Comment: This Robert Trent Jones Jr. design (4.5) delivers the type of experience golfers expect when they drop nearly two Benjamins. The conditions, pace of play and friendliness of the staff are all on point according to GolfPass reviews. You get what you pay for, and that also means there aren’t any super bargains to be found. The $195 green fee is pretty static throughout the two weeks I researched online.
Wigwam Resort – Blue Course
Green fee: $90-$182.
Comment: The Blue (a par 70 of 6,085 yards) is much shorter than the Red (6,852 yards), which makes it an ideal option for beginners, higher handicaps, seniors, juniors or anybody who wants to shoot lower than they normally would. That keeps prices lower on the Blue (4.3) than the Red (4.5), which isn’t a bad bargain either, ranging from $122-$208.
Green fee: $60-$76
Comment: Encanto (4.1) is the oldest Phoenix city muni on our list, a William Bell classic dating to the 1930s. It is holding up well despite its age. Resistance to scoring on the 6,404-yard course (a par 70) comes from minimal bunkering and a couple of ponds.
What is your Phoenix-Scottsdale go-to when you want to save a buck but still have a good experience? Let us know in the comments below.