Mirabel

Around the end of the 1990s, the $15m Greg Norman-designed course at what was then called Stonehaven was ready to open when Michael Meldman of Discovery Land Co. purchased the property, allocated Tom Fazio a budget of $15 million, and asked him to replace the old layout with one of his own at the renamed Mirabel Golf Club.

Only a developer with deep pockets was able to take such radical action, refashioning the Great White Shark’s original layout. More than a decade after Mirabel debuted, its elevated position in the Arizona state rankings would suggest the rather costly revamp was actually money well spent.

A number of testing par fours remain long in the memory here, most notably at the 472-yard 4th and 466-yard 13th. It’s the 449-yard 10th that garners most of the plaudits at Mirabel though, with its aesthetically pleasing fairway routed around the only real water hazard on the layout.

In 2009, Discovery Land Co. turned ownership over to the members.