Encanto Park Golf Course

Overview: Set within central Phoenix's historic Encanto Park, this public layout uses 18 holes to connect the city's golf and park traditions. The city describes wide, level fairways and a limited number of hazards, while the current blue scorecard lists par 70 and 6,361 yards. It is a parkland course rather than a desert target layout, with mature greenery and a relatively gentle visual scale that makes the round approachable while still asking for sound tee-to-green decisions.

History: Encanto's golf story begins with the park's development in the 1930s. Phoenix identifies William P. Bell as the designer and dates construction to 1935, while the Library of Congress historic survey records the 18-hole course opening to the public on November 26, 1936. The original project included two municipal golf courses within the park, making Encanto part of the earliest public-golf history in Arizona rather than a later suburban development.

Did You Know? Phoenix describes Encanto as the third-oldest golf course in Arizona. Its setting is also unusual for the region: the fairways sit in a major historic city park with lagoons, palms and recreational facilities nearby, rather than in an isolated desert community. The combination of William Bell design, 1930s public-golf history and a central Phoenix location gives Encanto a character that newer Valley courses cannot easily reproduce.