McDowell Mountain Golf Club

Getting To Know: McDowell Mountain Golf Club

An Insightful Interview With Kevin Neel, Head Golf Professional

By Brian Weis

Whether you have played a course 20+ times a year or looking to play the course for the first time, insights from an insider can help enhance your golf experience. Below is an interview with Kevin Neel who shares some valuable tidbits about the course, memorable holes and must eats and treats at the 19th.

Give Our Readers An Overview of the Golf Course/Property
McDowell Mountain Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona, has become one of the premier public golf courses in the Valley. Built on the foothills of Scottsdale's McDowell Mountains and adjacent to the nationally recognized Westworld equestrian center, this outstanding Scottsdale golf course now stretches to a 7,072-yards and delivers a stunning Scottsdale golf experiences that will keep you coming back for more.

If Someone Was Looking To Golf In The Area, Why Should They Play Your Course?
Our golf course and clubhouse have some of the best views in the entire Valley. We are always in great shape and we are the best value in North Scottsdale.

What Tips or Local Knowledge Would You Provide To Help Them Score Better At Your Course?
There are many challenges off the tee and an emphasis is put on executing solid tee shots. Playing conservative off the tee will usually give most players the best chance to make par on this golf course.

Recent Awards or What You Are Most Proud About The Course?
We are most proud of our new owners. From course renovations to a newly built clubhouse, they spared no expense in creating first class facilities for our guests.

What Is The Signature, Most Talked About, or Most Photographed Hole?
Number 14, our shortest par 3 has to win the honors. The backdrop of this gem provides scene views of the McDowell Mountains.

What Is Your Favorite Hole? Any Tips to Play It?
My favorite hole is number 18. Playing 508 uphill and usually into the wind, this hole depands a long carry on the tee shot. With out of bounds left and right, as well as protected by bunkers, this is a stern test of golf. Par on this hole is a great score! Best way to play this hole is playing a fade off the tee, which usually leaves a long iron or fairway wood depending on the wind. The second shot also favors a cut. You do not want to miss the ball right on any shot.

Must Have Dish or Drink after the round at the 19th Hole?
Our wide variety makes it hard to choose a favorite. From our craft beers to our savory Southwestern inspired cuisine, you cannot go wrong!

Who Holds Course Record and What Was Their Score?
Kendall Critchfield and he shot a 62 from the tips with a bogey on the last hole!

Back Tee Stats
Par: 71
Yardage: 7072
Slope: 137
Rating: 73.3

More Information
McDowell Mountain Golf Club
10690 East Sheena Dr
Scottsdale, AZ, 85255
480-502-8200
www.mcdowellmountaingc.com

Revised: 09/19/2013 - Article Viewed 32,459 Times - View Course Profile

About: Brian Weis

Brian Weis is the mastermind behind GolfTrips.com, a vast network of golf travel and directory sites covering everything from the rolling fairways of Wisconsin to the sunbaked desert layouts of Arizona. If there’s a golf destination worth visiting, chances are, Brian has written about it, played it, or at the very least, found a way to justify a "business trip" there.

As a card-carrying member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA), and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG), Brian has the credentials to prove that talking about golf is his full-time job. In 2016, his peers even handed him The Shaheen Cup, a prestigious award in golf travel writing—essentially the Masters green jacket for guys who don’t hit the range but still know where the best 19th holes are.

Brian’s love for golf goes way back. As a kid, he competed in junior and high school golf, only to realize that his dreams of a college golf scholarship had about the same odds as a 30-handicap making a hole-in-one. Instead, he took the more practical route—working on the West Bend Country Club grounds crew to fund his University of Wisconsin education. Little did he know that mowing greens and fixing divots would one day lead to a career writing about the best courses on the planet.

In 2004, Brian turned his golf passion into a business, launching GolfWisconsin.com. Three years later, he expanded his vision, and GolfTrips.com was born—a one-stop shop for golf travel junkies looking for their next tee time. Today, his empire spans all 50 states, and 20+ international destinations.

On the course, Brian is a weekend warrior who oscillates between a 5 and 9 handicap, depending on how much he's been traveling (or how generous he’s feeling with his scorecard). His signature move" A high, soft fade that his playing partners affectionately (or not-so-affectionately) call "The Weis Slice." But when he catches one clean, his 300+ yard drives remind everyone that while he may write about golf for a living, he can still send a ball into the next zip code with the best of them.

Whether he’s hunting down the best public courses, digging up hidden gems, or simply outdriving his buddies, Brian Weis is living proof that golf is more than a game—it’s a way of life.