A secret no more, North Scottsdale’s Verde River Golf & Social Club is set to take its place among the greats

Strategic changes help the course better adapt to the preferences of modern players with varying skill levels.
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Verde River Golf & Social Club has been one of the Valley’s best kept secrets for a long time. Now with the redesign complete, the first phase of the new club set to open in March, and the support of a quickly growing Trilogy® community, it sure won’t stay secret for long. 

Behind the groundbreaking change was PGA Tour star and former Ryder Cup Captain Tom Lehman and his Lehman Design Group who, over the summer of 2016, transformed the golf course to prepare for its reopening last fall.

Originally designed by Ken Kavanaugh, the course had gone through many hands during the past 10 years. With Shea Homes’ infusion of capital and commitment to making Verde River one of Arizona’s premier master-planned communities, Lehman’s team was engaged to take an already excellent golf course and reimagine it as a quintessential example of contemporary desert golf design.

“The golf course had great bones and truly was one of the best-kept secrets in Arizona,” said Lehman. “Its lasting popularity is a testament to the excellent work Ken Kavanaugh did on the original design. With Shea’s commitment to the property, we have taken a fresh look at the golf course, and are helping to enhance the playing experience even further. I’m thrilled with the work we’ve done at Verde River Golf & Social Club.”

Among the most dramatic changes made was the “turning of the clock”. This process altered the routing of the golf course so that the previous hole No. 9 became the opening hole. The previous hole 1 became hole 2, and so forth throughout the first nine. Likewise, on the back nine, the previous hole 11 became hole 10 and so on. In fact, the former hole 10 was completely redesigned and will serve as the golf course’s finishing hole. “Turning the clock” in this way will, according to Lehman, result in a more compelling start and finish to the round.

Other strategic changes help the course better adapt to the preferences of modern players with varying skill levels. Lehman and his team have reconfigured the championship tees to further challenge strong amateur and professional players. However, the standard and forward tees have been repositioned in many cases to reduce forced carries and create better angles to fairways and greens for intermediate and novice players. The goal of these changes is to provide the correct blend of challenge and accessibility for different types of players. 

“Players who loved the previous design will be pleased we’ve retained and enhanced the original intent, enriching the golf course’s exceptional shot values and playability even further,” said Lehman. “Even in places where we’ve added new challenges or significantly altered a hole, we were careful to do so in a way that remains in character for the course.”

Throughout the course, other substantial renovations have been made to bunkers and green complexes. Sightlines have been cleaned out and enhanced to maximize the beauty of Verde River’s exceptional natural surroundings, and the drainage corridors have been repaired to assist in dealing with the summer monsoons and to ensure exceptional playing conditions throughout the year.

Finally, while Lehman and his team has been at work, acclaimed architect Bing Hu of H&S International has been intimately involved in crafting the breathtaking resort club which will form the core of the Verde River community experience.

For those who know the project here, a permanent club has been a longtime coming. But now seeing what’s been designed, it will be well worth the wait. The first phase is set to open in March, while the full resort club campus is expected to follow sometime later in the year. The new location (now south of the practice area on a precipice with unencumbered views) will highlight what really makes the location special - the tranquility and splendor of the Tonto National Forest.

The resort club – which features striking 270-degree views from Weaver’s Needle to the Mazatzals – will include tennis and pickleball courts, a resort-style swimming pool, a community market and a full service spa as well as a culinary events kitchen, arts studio, and signature bar and restaurant. 

The course will eventually transition to a private club. Until then, public play is welcome. To learn more about Verde River Golf & Social Club, visit www.verderivergolf.com, or call 480.471.3232.