Golf in Arizona: A Season-by-Season Guide

Arizona has hundreds of golf courses, from the resort corridors of Scottsdale and Phoenix to Tucson's mountain-framed layouts and the pine-lined courses of the high country. You can play golf somewhere in the state every month of the year, but the experience changes enormously with the season. Temperature, rain, turf conditions and green fees all follow a clear annual pattern. This guide walks through the year so you can pick the right time, the right place and the right tee time.

The Climate at a Glance

Most of Arizona's golf is in the low desert. According to the National Weather Service's 1991–2020 climate normals for Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport, the average high is about 68°F in January and about 106°F in July, and the city receives only about 7 inches of rain a year. Tucson, at around 2,400 feet, runs a few degrees cooler. The high country is a different world: Flagstaff sits at roughly 7,000 feet, where summer days are mild and winter brings snow.

Winter (December to February): Peak Season Begins

Winter is when Arizona golf is most in demand. Days in the Phoenix area are typically in the 60s and low 70s, skies are usually clear, and the courses are green with the ryegrass planted during autumn overseeding.

• Tee times and prices: this is high season for the resort courses, with the highest green fees of the year and tee times that book up early.
• Morning frost: clear, calm nights can bring frost in the desert, especially in low-lying areas. Courses delay the first tee times until it melts, because walking on frozen grass damages it.
• Short days: with sunset before 6 p.m. in midwinter, a late-morning start is often the latest that will let you finish.

Spring (March to May): The Best Weather of the Year

For many golfers, spring is Arizona at its best. March and April bring highs in the 70s and 80s, very little rain and long days. Turf is at its peak, and the desert often blooms.

Demand stays high through March and April, when prices are still close to their winter peak. By May, highs regularly pass 90°F in the Phoenix area, and many courses start to lower their rates as the season winds down. Spring is also when wind is most likely: a breezy afternoon in the desert can change club selection from hole to hole.

Summer (June to September): Heat, Bargains and Monsoon Storms

Summer is the low season in the low desert. June is typically the driest month, and highs well above 100°F are routine from June through September. That heat has real consequences:

• Play early: the first tee times of the day are the most popular by far. By early afternoon, walking a round can be unsafe; most golfers ride, carry plenty of water, and aim to finish before the worst of the heat.
• Lower prices: summer rates at many resort courses are a fraction of their winter prices, which makes summer attractive for golfers who don't mind an early start.
• The ball flies farther: hot air is thin air. Our carry model estimates that a drive that carries 230 yards at sea level on a 70°F day would carry about 241 yards on a 106°F July day in Phoenix, compared with about 234 yards on a typical January day.

The monsoon adds another factor. The National Weather Service defines Arizona's monsoon season as June 15 to September 30. It brings higher humidity and afternoon and evening thunderstorms, with lightning, strong gusts and dust storms. Courses clear the course when lightning is nearby, so a morning tee time is the safer choice in monsoon months too.

Autumn (September to November): Overseeding and a Fresh Start

Autumn brings the most unusual feature of desert golf: overseeding. Most low-desert courses are grass-covered with warm-season Bermuda grass, which goes brown and dormant in winter. To keep the courses green, they plant cool-season ryegrass over the top each autumn. The process takes a course out of play, or restricts it to cart paths, for anywhere from about one to several weeks, usually between mid-September and early November.

Once the new grass is established, late October and November can be superb: temperatures back in the 70s and 80s, fresh turf, and prices that have not yet reached their winter peak. Before booking an autumn round, check the course's overseed dates. See our news article on Arizona's 2026 overseeding season for this year's dates.

Where to Play When

• Phoenix and Scottsdale: the largest concentration of courses in the state, at its best from October to April. Browse our Scottsdale and Phoenix golf weather pages.
• Tucson: slightly higher and cooler than Phoenix, with a similar season. See our Tucson page.
• The high country: Flagstaff, Prescott and the towns along the Mogollon Rim are summer destinations, when the low desert is at its hottest. Many high-country courses shorten their season or close in winter, so check before you travel. The thin air at altitude also adds real distance: our model estimates that the same 230-yard drive carries about 261 yards on a warm July day in Flagstaff. See our Flagstaff and Prescott pages.

Getting Started

The simplest rule for Arizona golf: play the low desert from autumn to spring, head for the high country in summer, and always check the time of day as well as the date. For any course in the state, our Arizona golf weather pages show a playability score and a carry estimate for every tee time in the week ahead. For more on how desert courses differ from other types, see Types of Golf Courses Explained.

Photo: hole 15 at We-Ko-Pa Golf Club (Saguaro course), Fort McDowell, Arizona, by Bernard Gagnon, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Resized from the original.