Pinon Hills

Pinon Hills is situated in the northwest corner of the state, in the Four Corners region, where the boundaries of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah meet. It’s a rugged, rather remote area that’s largely occupied by native Americans from the Navajo Nation with sensational scenery to be found in all directions around the course .

Described as “the best muni in America,” by one commentator, it’s well worth a major detour to play – Albuquerque and Santa Fe are both around 200 miles away – because “the fee to play the pride and joy of Farmington N.M. doesn’t just represent good value, it’s a gift from the golf gods, given the exceptional quality of the course.”

Architect Ken Dye (no relation to Pete Dye), a partner with Baxter Spann in their Texas-based design company, set out the course within a 1,000-acre site, half of which wasn’t usable because of the gradients involved, and only around 100,000 cubic yards of earth was moved during construction as Dye allowed the terrain to dictate the routing.

The par threes are particularly pleasing: the 235-yard 3rd plays across desert scrub to a multi-tiered green, the 157-yard 6th requires a carry across a ravine, the raised tee on the 196-yard 13th offers great views south to Farmington, and the green for the 15th (where the 228-yard back tee sits on the edge of a cliff) lies beside a dry wash, backdropped by striking rock formations.