Desert Forest Golf Club

Desert Forest Golf Club, Carefree, Arizona, was designed by Robert "Red" Lawrence in 1961 and established in 1962,{{cite web |url=http://www.worldgolf.com/courses/usa/arizona/carefree/desert-forest-golf-club-private.html |title=Desert Forest Golf Club - Private |accessdate=September 25, 2012 |publisher=Golf Channel}} becoming the first desert golf layout in the Southwestern United States and earning its designer the nickname of "Desert Fox".{{cite web |url=http://www.desertforestgolfclub.com/red?ssid=233240 |title=Robert "Red" Lawrence |accessdate=September 25, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120901192417/http://www.desertforestgolfclub.com/red?ssid=233240 |archive-date=September 1, 2012 |url-status=dead }} The course was created as a part of the development plans of club founders K.T. Palmer and Tom Darlington, who created the town of Carefree north of Scottsdale in the early 1950s. The course is located in the Sonoran Desert at an elevation of about 2400–3000 feet. Very little earth was moved in the creation of the course, resulting in narrow, rolling fairways that follow the natural terrain.{{cite news |url=http://www.golfarizona.com/departments/coursereviews/phoenix/desert-forest-golf-club.htm |title=Desert Forest Golf Club: The Desert Course that Started it All |author=Rebecca Larsen |accessdate=September 25, 2012 |publisher=Golf Channel}} It is considered to be the first course in the western deserts to incorporate the desert itself into the course design, instead of imposing eastern designs onto the desert landscape.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8djQh9kqh5sC&q=Desert+Forest+Golf+Course&pg=PA8 |page=8 |title=Golf in Scottsdale |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |accessdate=September 25, 2012 |author=Joan Fudala|year=2008 |isbn=9780738556321 }} According to Scott Gummer of Links Magazine, "Beyond the boundary markers [the designer] staked, nothing was to be touched. Everything was—and remains today—in play, from the saguaro, ocotillo, prickly pear and myriad other varieties of cactus to the javelinas, coyotes, roadrunners and rattlesnakes that call the desert home."{{cite news |url=http://www.linksmagazine.com/golf_courses/desert-forest-golf-club-arizona-golf-course |author=Scott Gummer |title=Desert Forest Golf Club |publisher=Links Magazine |accessdate=September 25, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121113112744/http://www.linksmagazine.com/golf_courses/desert-forest-golf-club-arizona-golf-course |archive-date=November 13, 2012 |url-status=dead }}

Golfweek has consistently ranked Desert Forest among the 50 best golf courses in the United States.{{cite news |url=http://golfweek.com/news/2012/mar/13/2012-golfweeks-best-modern-courses/?RANKINGS-GolfweeksBest |title=2012 Golfweek's Best Modern Courses |publisher=Golfweek |date=March 13, 2012 |accessdate=September 25, 2012}} Then in 2009 Golf Magazine ranked Desert Forest as the 35th best in the world on its list of the 50 Greatest Courses of the Last 50 Years, making it the only course in the state of Arizona to make that list.{{cite web |url=http://www.golf.com/node/154260 |title=The List of 50 Greatest Courses of the Last 50 Years |publisher=Golf Magazine |accessdate=September 25, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120806133647/http://www.golf.com/node/154260 |archive-date=August 6, 2012 |url-status=dead }} Author Jeff Barr named Desert Forest's holes number 7, 13, and 16 as among the most important holes in golf in his book 1001 Golf Holes You Must Play Before You Die.{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/1001golfholesyou00barr |url-access=registration |title=1001 Golf Holes You Must Play Before You Die |author=Jeff Barr |publisher=Ronnie Sellers Productions |year=2005 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/1001golfholesyou00barr/page/328 328], 587, and 766}} Over time the course has also ranked among the best in the US according to Golf Digest Magazine, which began keeping a list of America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses (first as America's 100 Most Testing Courses) in 1969, a list on which Desert Forest has appeared for a total of 17 of the years since. This makes it one of the most consistently ranked golf courses by the magazine in America.{{cite web |url=http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-courses/golf-courses/2007-12/100greatestcourses_roster?currentPage=4 |title=America's 100 Greatest Courses |accessdate=September 26, 2012 |publisher=Golf Digest}}

In 2013 Golf Course Architect David Zinkand was engaged to create a new Master Plan for the golf course, and to oversee subsequent construction. The golf course was rebuilt from tee to green, including state of the art infrastructure. Changes and enhancements were made to accommodate the modern game, while staying true to the original Red Lawrence routing and use of the desert. Zinkand has created a masterful update of this classic American golf course.

File:Desert Forest Golf Club 17th Hole.jpg

In 1990 Desert Forest hosted the USGA Senior Amateur Championship, over the week of October 15 to October 20, 1990.{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=istJAAAAIBAJ&pg=1026,1412513&dq=1990+desert+forest+usga+senior+amateur+championship&hl=en |publisher=The Vindicator |title=Rick Jones qualifies |date=October 5, 1990 |accessdate=September 25, 2012}} The winner of the tournament was Jackie Cummings, who won a semi-final match against Rick Jones after eliminating the 1988 Senior Amateur Champion Clarence Moore in the quarter-finals.{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=eTcdAAAAIBAJ&pg=2190,4945814&dq=jackie+cummings+senior+amateur+championship&hl=en |title=Cummings Wins Again; in Senior Amateur semis |date=October 20, 2012 |accessdate=September 25, 2012 |publisher=The Tuscaloosa News}} Cummings became the youngest winner in the history of the championship at that time, winning at age 55 by defeating fellow finalist Bobby Clark.{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ejcdAAAAIBAJ&pg=6811,5102900&dq=jackie+cummings+senior+amateur+championship&hl=en |title=Jackie Cummings captures U.S. Senior Amateur title |date=October 21, 2012 |accessdate=September 25, 2012 |publisher=The Tuscaloosa News}}

Over the week of September 29 to October 4, 2007, Desert Forest hosted the U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur. The winner of the stroke-play event was Dawn Woodard, defeating runner-up Virginia Grimes by two strokes after shooting a 70 in the first round and a 74 in the second.{{cite web |url=http://scores.golfweek.com/scores.asp?Action=Tournament&TournamentID=2696 |title=U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur (stroke play) 9/29/2007 - 10/4/2007 |accessdate=September 25, 2012 |publisher=Golfweek}} The winner of the match-play event was Meghan Bolger, who defeated finalist Kerry Postillion (a Desert Forest member) 1-up in the championship round.{{cite web |url=http://scores.golfweek.com/scores.asp?Action=Tournament&TournamentID=2697 |title=U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur (match play) 9/29/2007 - 10/4/2007 |accessdate=September 25, 2012 |publisher=Golfweek}} The course has also hosted several other U.S. Mid-Amateur and U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur qualifiers previously.{{cite web |url=http://www.usga.org/news/2005/December/Desert-Forest-Golf-Club-To-Host-2007-U-S--Women-s-Mid-Amateur/ |date=December 22, 2005 |accessdate=September 25, 2012 |title=DESERT FOREST GOLF CLUB TO HOST 2007 U.S. WOMEN'S MID-AMATEUR |publisher=USGA}} The course is also a previous host to other major tournaments including the Goldwater Cup on several occasions{{cite news |url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/azcentral/access/1835959621.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Nov+28%2C+2002&author=John+Davis&pub=Arizona+Republic&desc=AMATEURS%2C+PROS+GEARING+UP+FOR+GOLDWATER+CUP&pqatl=google |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130131205241/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/azcentral/access/1835959621.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Nov+28,+2002&author=John+Davis&pub=Arizona+Republic&desc=AMATEURS,+PROS+GEARING+UP+FOR+GOLDWATER+CUP&pqatl=google |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 31, 2013 |title=AMATEURS, PROS GEARING UP FOR GOLDWATER CUP |date=November 28, 2002 |accessdate=September 25, 2012 |publisher=Arizona Republic |author=John Davis }} and the Phoenix Silver Pro AM in 1994.{{cite web |url=http://www.golf.com/courses/us/arizona/carefree/desert-forest-golf-club |publisher=Sports Illustrated |title=Desert Forest Golf Club |accessdate=September 25, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120904153851/http://www.golf.com/courses/us/arizona/carefree/desert-forest-golf-club |archive-date=September 4, 2012 |url-status=dead }}

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• [http://www.desertforestgolfclub.com/ Desert Forest Golf Club]

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Category:Golf clubs and courses in Arizona