Tucson's upscale golf transformation continues with Nicklaus-designed Ritz-Carlton Club

It’s official: Tucson golf has crossed the threshold of Ritzy golf.

The new 27-hole golf course at The Ritz-Carlton Club, Dove Mountain in Marana, just outside of Tucson, is pretty much done and will be open for public play on Jan. 18. And like most of the recent openings - such as the Loews Ventana Canyon or the JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort & Spa, for example - the first Jack Nicklaus signature course in the area in 25 years will be a little pricey. The per-player fee is $225, which includes cart, range and required forecaddie.

For now, anyone will be able to play the course, Nicklaus’ first in the area since La Paloma Country Club opened in 1984. Eventually, the new course will be only open only to club members and guests of the Ritz-Carlton. Another nine holes, bringing the total to 36, are slated to open in 2010.

The golf course is described as a reflection of the Sonoran Desert’s “lush mountainside terrain … blended naturally among noble saguaros that line the surrounding Tortolita mountain range.”

That all sounds wonderfully serene, but the real draw is probably the fact that Nicklaus tailored it for world class competition, i.e., the World Golf Championship’s Accenture Match Play, which will make its debut at the Ritz-Carlton at the end of February. Translation: Tiger Woods will play at the WGC Accenture, as will the world’s other top players, so this course will get a lot of visibility in a hurry.

The event will be played on Ritz-Carlton’s Tortolita Course, which at 7,850 yards may even force Woods to lay up on a par 5 or hit a driver, mid-iron into a par 4. Of course, it will have multiple tees, so you don’t have to play every par 4 like a par 5.

Aside from the golf, of course, we are talking Ritz-Carlton. The $160 million project also includes a 50,000-square-foot clubhouse with tennis center, state-of-the-art fitness center, steward serviced private locker rooms, a double-ended practice facility as well as several indoor and outdoor dining venues with spectacular views. The 250-room luxury resort hotel and spa are scheduled to open late next year, as well as The Residences at The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain, a very exclusive residential community.

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