The hotel sits adjacent to Kierland Commons, home to North Scottsdale\u2019s trendiest shops and restaurants. It\u2019s also just nine miles from Old Town, Scottsdale\u2019s original tourist hub. There are so many enticements to stay on property that not every guest ventures out, but with nearby retail therapy and meal options available in abundance, it\u2019s hard to resist.<\/p>\n
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The resort has nearby retail and restaurants galore yet also plenty of reasons to stay in. \/ Courtesy Westin Kierland Resort<\/p>\n
Big-time amenities at Kierland span the gamut, starting with the 27-hole golf course. Designed in 1996 by Scott Miller\u2014a former Jack Nicklaus associate who also created We-Ko-Pa (Cholla), Eagle Mountain and Idaho\u2019s Coeur d\u2019Alene Resort course, Kierland serves up the Acacia, Ironwood and Mesquite nines, each named for an indigenous desert tree. While Acacia might be the most dramatic of the three nines, each features mountain panoramas and watery closing holes.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
When I get asked by folks who are bringing a golf group to Phoenix\/Scottsdale and they\u2019re looking for a course that can accommodate the tournament-ready 2 handicap as well as the once-in-a-while 20, Kierland always springs to mind. Nancy Dickens, who arrived at Kierland in 2005 as director of agronomy and who has been GM since 2013 explains the attraction.<\/p>\n
\u201cKierland isn\u2019t your typical desert target course,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s a little more forgiving. It\u2019s the perfect course from the scratch handicap golfer to the beginner, because it\u2019s playable, with friendlier bounces and lies than many courses. It\u2019s flexible, with five sets of tees from 5,200 yards up to 7,000. It\u2019s got beautiful mountain views, but it\u2019s less penal than you\u2019ll find in a lot of golf courses.\u201d<\/p>\n
Put another way, it\u2019s pure fun. Miller built up the sides of many holes to help enhance playability by containing errant shots. Desert accents spice the proceedings, though it all resembles traditional resort-y golf, replete with big, bold bunkers and a fistful of lakes. There\u2019s also surprising elevation change, notably on the Acacia nine, which concludes with the most memorable hole on the property, featuring an 80-foot plunge from tee to fairway, plus water, bunkers and the iconic hotel in the backdrop.<\/p>\n
Locally, the chatter is growing louder that the Mesquite nine might go bye-bye, and while it would be missed, it\u2019s generally acknowledged as the least admired, due to its level terrain and lack of drama. For now, whether you tackle 18 or all 27, know that you\u2019ll encounter day-to-day conditions which invariably rank at or near the top for public-access courses in the region. In summer, Kierland opts for TifEagle Bermuda greens and 419 Bermuda fairways, while in winter, they overseed with perennial ryegrass and poa trivialis on the greens. \u201cWith the wintertime overseed,\u201d says Dickens, \u201cthe deep dark green contrasted with the desert landscaping is just really appealing to people.\u201d <\/p>\n
Also appealing is Kierland\u2019s award-winning pro shop, superb practice area and Brittlebush Bar & Grill restaurant. Nevertheless, make sure to take the five-minute walk back to the hotel, where a new bar and gathering place, Antidote, debuted earlier this year. Placed at the back of the hotel\u2019s patio, where a massive, 300-square-foot, SkyWatch TV screen commands your attention if you\u2019re looking south, Antidote overlooks Kierland\u2019s signature holes, Acacia 7 and 9, the lake between them and the mountains beyond to the north and east. Now that\u2019s a picture worth framing.<\/p>\n
Antidote is so named because, as they say, \u201cwe have the remedy for what ails you.\u201d Indeed, cleverly named and concocted signature cocktails do just that. On a recent visit I sampled an \u201cAnecdotal Old Fashioned,\u201d consisting of Buffalo Trace Single Barrel Bourbon, House Sarsaparilla Syrup, Nopal Cactus and a Palo Santo Smoked Finish.\u00a0Edibles include the Scottsdale Hot Chicken Wings, tossed in Arizona Citrus Garlic Aleppo Pepper and the Brussels sprouts accented with jalapeno bacon.<\/p>\n
Granted, those of us who have reached a certain age may well prefer a classic single malt after a satisfying round; if so, you\u2019ve come to the right place. The hotel houses The Scotch Library, off the lobby, home to one of the finest collections of whiskies from the old country in this part of the world. If you\u2019d rather heal the modern way, Agave, The Arizona Spa is fresh off a comprehensive makeover that has boosted its stature even further. Kudos to Kierland\u2014an idyllic escape in the middle of everything. \u00a0<\/p>\n
For an additional slice of golf with a perfect location\u2014close to the airport, close to attractions, and loaded with the mountain and desert aesthetic you came to Arizona to experience\u2014check into the Hilton Phoenix Tapatio Cliffs Resort. Then tee it up next door at the resort\u2019s Lookout Mountain Golf Club.<\/p>\n
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The 10th hole at Lookout Mountain. \/ Courtesy Hilton Phoenix Tapatio Cliffs Resort<\/p>\n
The hotel itself hugs a rugged crag in the North Phoenix Mountains, 15 miles north of downtown. Its golf course gets up close and personal with those same rocks and cacti. Designed by Bill Johnston and Forrest Richardson in 1989 and revamped and improved by Richardson over the years, the 6,515-yard, par-72 Lookout Mountain layout opens with six traditional parkland holes. Numbers 7 through 12 embrace mountainside desert target golf\u2014the kind you can\u2019t get anywhere else in the country. The final six holes blend the two styles. <\/p>\n
If you crave variety and high elevation views of the Valley below at a price that won\u2019t cause sticker shock, be on the lookout for Lookout Mountain. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The oldest rule in real estate is location, location, location. If you\u2019re headed to the Phoenix\/Scottsdale desert and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":308859,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[566],"tags":[64,63,755,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-308858","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-golf","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-golf","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308858","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=308858"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308858\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/308859"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=308858"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=308858"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=308858"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}