Desert Forest Golf Club
About Desert Forest Golf Club
Desert Forest Golf Club in Arizona was designed by Robert "Red" Lawrence and is widely regarded as the first desert-style course built in America, making it the original example of a layout genre that has since spread widely across the Southwest.
The course is routed in a natural, minimalist style that works with the existing desert terrain rather than reshaping it. That approach gives the layout both playability and a demanding edge for accomplished golfers, and it has kept the course a distinctive test among later desert designs.
At a glance
- Access
- Public
- Holes
- 18
- Par
- 72
- Length
- 7,203 yards
- Tees
- 9 tee boxes
- Course rating
- 75.2 / 146 slope
- Difficulty
- Harder than most
Scorecard
| Tee | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Out | In | Total | Par | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Par | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 36 | 72 | ||
| Handicap | 7 | 1 | 15 | 5 | 3 | 11 | 9 | 13 | 17 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 2 | 18 | 6 | 16 | 14 | 4 | |||||
| Gold | 404 | 456 | 171 | 441 | 464 | 371 | 551 | 231 | 533 | 392 | 594 | 194 | 466 | 329 | 435 | 535 | 169 | 467 | 3622 | 3581 | 7,203 | 72 | 75.2/146 |
| Blue | 397 | 428 | 160 | 441 | 440 | 361 | 530 | 203 | 533 | 382 | 573 | 185 | 449 | 309 | 435 | 523 | 169 | 415 | 3493 | 3440 | 6,933 | 72 | 74.2/141 |
| Red | 377 | 428 | 156 | 388 | 401 | 367 | 530 | 194 | 491 | 390 | 571 | 175 | 440 | 329 | 368 | 505 | 165 | 417 | 3332 | 3360 | 6,692 | 72 | 73.0/137 |
| Black | 377 | 408 | 144 | 391 | 397 | 346 | 518 | 194 | 494 | 371 | 553 | 169 | 416 | 297 | 372 | 514 | 159 | 402 | 3269 | 3253 | 6,522 | 72 | 71.9/134 |
| Black/Silver | 351 | 398 | 127 | 391 | 351 | 346 | 518 | 194 | 474 | 360 | 553 | 169 | 393 | 253 | 349 | 496 | 150 | 402 | 3150 | 3125 | 6,275 | 72 | 71.0/130 |
| Silver | 351 | 398 | 127 | 376 | 351 | 295 | 518 | 173 | 474 | 360 | 494 | 153 | 393 | 253 | 349 | 496 | 150 | 353 | 3063 | 3001 | 6,064 | 72 | 70.2/127 |
| Green | 276 | 346 | 127 | 366 | 351 | 295 | 464 | 147 | 431 | 330 | 494 | 143 | 312 | 253 | 349 | 457 | 112 | 353 | 2803 | 2803 | 5,606 | 72 | 68.0/123 |
| White | 276 | 346 | 118 | 312 | 311 | 284 | 404 | 119 | 431 | 330 | 442 | 143 | 312 | 236 | 269 | 413 | 102 | 303 | 2601 | 2550 | 5,151 | 72 | 65.8/117 |
| Copper | 276 | 328 | 106 | 312 | 311 | 252 | 370 | 119 | 361 | 252 | 396 | 109 | 280 | 236 | 269 | 383 | 102 | 303 | 2435 | 2330 | 4,765 | 72 | 64.2/115 |
Tee and scorecard data retrieved from the USGA GHIN course database
Course handicap at Desert Forest Golf Club
How many strokes you get from each tee, by handicap index.
| Tee | Rating | Slope | 0 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 20 | 25 | 30 | 36 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | 75.2 | 146 | 3 | 10 | 16 | 23 | 29 | 36 | 42 | 50 |
| Blue | 74.2 | 141 | 2 | 8 | 15 | 21 | 27 | 33 | 40 | 47 |
| Red | 73.0 | 137 | 1 | 7 | 13 | 19 | 25 | 31 | 37 | 45 |
| Black | 71.9 | 134 | 0 | 6 | 12 | 18 | 24 | 30 | 35 | 43 |
| Black/Silver | 71.0 | 130 | -1 | 5 | 11 | 16 | 22 | 28 | 34 | 40 |
| Silver | 70.2 | 127 | -2 | 4 | 9 | 15 | 21 | 26 | 32 | 39 |
| Green | 68.0 | 123 | -4 | 1 | 7 | 12 | 18 | 23 | 29 | 35 |
| White | 65.8 | 117 | -6 | -1 | 4 | 9 | 15 | 20 | 25 | 31 |
| Copper | 64.2 | 115 | -8 | -3 | 2 | 7 | 13 | 18 | 23 | 29 |
Work out your exact course handicap here, or calculate your handicap index.
Golf courses near Desert Forest Golf Club
- Desert Forest Golf ClubCarefree · Private · 18 holes · 0.4 mi9.6
- No. 7 at Desert MountainScottsdale · Public · 18 holes · 0.9 mi8.1
- Renegade Golf CourseScottsdale · Public · 18 holes · 1.1 mi8.8
- Desert Mountain ClubScottsdale · Private · 18 holes · 1.5 mi9.2
- Boulders Golf ClubCarefree · Public · 18 holes · 1.6 mi6.6
- Legend Trail Golf ClubScottsdale · Public · 18 holes · 2.0 mi7.3
- Renegade Golf CourseScottsdale · Public · 18 holes · 2.1 mi8.5
- The Mirabel ClubScottsdale · Private · 18 holes · 2.7 mi9.5
Updated October 2026 · Best golf courses in Arizona ›
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