PLAYROUND COURSE GUIDE

How to Play Boulders — South

Course strategy, tee-specific yardages and a hole-by-hole game plan for Boulders — South in Carefree, AZ.

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Boulders — South golf course

Boulders — South

Carefree, AZ
Black tees · 6,917 yards
COURSE OVERVIEW

About Boulders — South

The South Course at The Boulders Golf Club in Carefree, Arizona, designed by Jay Morrish, is a premier Sonoran Desert resort layout famed for routing directly up against 12-million-year-old granite outcroppings. Featuring generous fairways, multi-tiered bent grass greens, desert waste areas, and signature rock formations like the Boulder Pile and Rosie's Rock, the course balances visual drama with strategic playable design.

COURSE STRATEGY

How to play Boulders — South

Off the tee

Fairways are relatively receptive for a desert target layout, but landing zones are constrained by desert waste areas, natural arroyos, and strategic fairway bunkers. Players are best served laying back to comfortable approach distances rather than recklessly chasing extra distance off the tee.

Elevation & terrain

Foothill terrain provides subtle elevation shifts that affect club selection and distance control, particularly on raised green complexes and elevated tee boxes. Uphill par 3s and shots playing toward towering boulder backdrops demand accurate clubbing to avoid severe dropoffs.

Approach play

Approach shots demand precise yardage control into large, multi-tiered bent grass greens protected by deep bunkers, ridges, and false fronts. Missing on the correct side is vital, as fast putting surfaces slope away toward desert collection areas.

Around the greens

Green complexes feature sharp undulations, bi-level tiers, and deep sand bunkers that punish imprecise approaches. Precision on short shots is necessary to navigate fast bent grass greens and tricky surrounding slopes.

Best way to play it

Prioritize position off the tee to secure clear sightlines past dogleg corners and fairway bunkers into green complexes. Mind pin positions to stay on the correct tier of the greens, and respect desert hazards and rock outcroppings framing the playing corridors.

Key takeaways

  • Signature holes 5 and 7 play directly alongside world-famous rock outcroppings, including the 35-foot Boulder Pile and Rosie's Rock.
  • Bent grass greens offer smooth, fast putting surfaces rarely found on public desert resort courses in the valley.
  • Strategic desert waste areas cut across several fairways and dictate conservative layups and target lines.
  • Wide landing zones make the layout playable, but off-target shots are quickly penalized by surrounding Sonoran vegetation and sand traps.
YOUR GAME PLAN

Hole-by-hole game plan

Hole
Par
Yards
HCP
Strategy
1
4
447
9
Aim toward the right-center of the fairway off the tee to counteract the fairway shape and secure a clean look at the green.
Your 240 yd driver · ~207 yards remaining by raw distance.
2
3
150
13
Target the center or right side of the green with a short club to avoid the severe dropoff on the left.
3
4
413
7
Favor the left-center of the fairway off the tee to bypass the right-side sand traps and set up an uncomplicated approach to a spacious green.
Your 240 yd driver · ~173 yards remaining by raw distance.
4
4
409
1
Keep your tee shot along the right-center of the fairway away from the left hazard, then take an extra club to hit the raised green surface.
Your 240 yd driver · ~169 yards remaining by raw distance.
5
5
545
3
Match your drive to the diagonal angle of the fairway, lay up safely between fairway bunkers, and trust your yardage into the green despite the imposing rock backdrop.
Your 240 yd driver · ~305 yards remaining by raw distance. Plan this primarily as a three-shot hole.
6
4
355
15
Lay back left of the right fairway bunker off the tee to leave a short, aggressive wedge shot into an open green.
Your 240 yd driver · ~115 yards remaining by raw distance.
7
3
187
17
Aim for the middle of the green to stay clear of the right bunker and ensure your tee shot lands on the proper side of the bisecting ridge.
8
4
455
5
Drive confidently into the wide fairway corridor to leave a manageable approach into a broad putting green.
Your 240 yd driver · ~215 yards remaining by raw distance.
9
4
404
11
Find the middle of the fairway between the lateral sand traps off the tee, then control approach depth to land on the correct green tier.
Your 240 yd driver · ~164 yards remaining by raw distance.
10
3
221
12
Shape a controlled left-to-right shot toward the center of the green to carry surrounding sand traps safely.
11
5
601
2
Play this hole conservatively as a three-shot par 5, positioning layups carefully between bunkers to approach a flatter putting surface.
Your 240 yd driver · ~361 yards remaining by raw distance. Plan this primarily as a three-shot hole.
12
4
348
16
Select less than driver off the tee to fit the ball into the pinched fairway corridor and setup a short approach to a receptive green.
Your 240 yd driver · ~108 yards remaining by raw distance.
13
4
429
10
Hit the main fairway section off the tee to leave a clear wedge or short-iron shot over the cross waste area into a small green target.
Your 240 yd driver · ~189 yards remaining by raw distance.
14
5
532
6
Keep your tee shot to the wider right-center portion of the fairway to preserve clean sightlines around the left-hand trees.
Your 240 yd driver · ~292 yards remaining by raw distance. Plan this primarily as a three-shot hole.
15
3
151
18
Take extra club to account for the elevation gain and target the center or left side of the putting surface to avoid severe right-side penalties.
16
3
227
14
Choose enough club to hit the middle of the putting surface, taking advantage of the more moderate slopes on the green.
17
4
460
8
Guide your tee shot into the left side of the fairway to navigate the waste area and create a clean approach into a very compact green.
Your 240 yd driver · ~220 yards remaining by raw distance.
18
5
583
4
Keep tee shots and layups along the fairway corridor, shaping a left-to-right approach when pin placements are positioned back-right near the water.
Your 240 yd driver · ~343 yards remaining by raw distance. Plan this primarily as a three-shot hole.

Course information and strategy are provided for planning purposes. Yardages, course setup, hazards and playing conditions can change. Always confirm current course information before your round.