Sewailo Golf Club at Casino Del Sol is unlike any other course in Tucson

In Southern Arizona, there's a plethora of golf courses worth playing. Yes, even in peak summer — hey, cheaper rates!

We've created a guide with 10 courses Southern Arizona golfers should play as soon as possible.

Here's the catch: no country clubs or courses that require memberships to play, which excludes sumptuous tracks like Tucson Country Club — the home course of the Arizona Wildcats — along with La Paloma Country Club, Skyline Country Club, The Gallery Golf Club and Stone Canyon Golf Club, the host of the "The Match: Change for Charity," a made-for-TV charity with Phil Mickelson and Charles Barkley against Stephen Curry and Peyton Manning. 

Oh, and no putt-putt golf, although we don't discourage anyone from working on their short game at Golf N' Stuff, a longstanding Tucson staple.  

Over the next week or so, we're featuring courses that should be on your golf to-do list in Southern Arizona. Quarry Pines and The Golf Club at Dove Mountain kicked off the countdown. Up next: Sewailo Golf Club at Casino Del Sol. 

Sewailo Golf Club

Location: 5655 W. Valencia Road

Length: 18 holes, 7,309 yards

Par: 72

Notable hole: 10 (par 5, 638 yards)

The rundown: Gambling, live entertainment, restaurants, golf — you can find all of it at Casino Del Sol. The Sewailo Golf Club has become a renowned track in Southern Arizona since it opened in December 2013.

Designed by Notah Begay III — a renowned course designer who is also known for being one of the top Native American golfers on the PGA Tour and Tiger Woods' college roommate at Stanford — Sewailo Golf Club served as the home course of both Arizona Wildcats golf programs despite the course being a 30-minute drive from the UA campus. Arizona played at Sewailo from 2014-22 before moving to Tucson Country Club, where they built a nearly $15 million facility.  

Sewailo (pronounced seh-why-low) is a hybrid between desert- and links-style courses with postcard-worthy views, especially the view from the tee box on the third hole. In the Pascua Yaqui Tribe's native language, Sewailo means "flower world." Sewailo has pristine — and sometimes hilly — fairways, large greens, 65 bunkers, six lakes and waterfalls covering 14 acres, and a creek. 

However, some of its beauty is why it's widely considered one of the most challenging courses in Tucson, like the 10th hole, a 638-yard par 5 with a double-dogleg shape.

While a slice or a hook shot off the tee box is findable, a shot that doesn't land in the fairway is flirting with danger. To the right of the 10th fairway is a lake; to the left, three bunkers that span 50-plus yards. Plus, there's a creek at the end of the first fairway on the 10th hole. The 10th hole at Sewailo Golf Club has eight total bunkers, including three surrounding the green. 

Sewailo Golf Club has hosted several high-level golf events, including the Arizona Intercollegiate for the UA and a tournament for the Epson Tour, a developmental league for the LPGA. Former UA star Gigi Stoll won the Epson Tour event at Sewailo Golf Club in 2023.

Unlike the other golf courses we're highlighting this summer, Sewailo Golf Club is the only golf course in Tucson connected to a casino. On Friday, you could experience BBB — no, not Better Business Bureau or Big Baller Brand — with birdies, blackjack and a Baby Bash concert. 

Later this month, one could play a round at Sewailo Golf Club, go to a spa, eat dinner, play roulette and attend a Bob Dylan concert without having to leave the property.

The top-tier conditions, coupled with other sources of entertainment, make Sewailo Golf Club one of the best destinations for golf in Southern Arizona.