Foothills Golf Club (Super Bowl LVII)
February 2023 – The Foothills? If you’ve crept around the blog portion of my site you may have noticed that the courses I reserve for blog reviews are usually some top golf courses I’ve played. Is Foothills in that strata? Nope, it’s probably not even in the top half or two-thirds of courses I’ve played. It certainly has some good bones – a Weiskopf-Morrish design with some nice views here and there. However, conditioning is crap. The homes are up on the course and are getting a little long in the tooth. The wall around the course is ratty and getting rattier. In general there are much nicer publics to play and the only reason for playing here was that I was coming in from the airport and didn’t want to venture to some courses further out that I’ve never tried.
So why the blog write-up? Super Bowl LVII.
Throughout my Fall 2022 course reviews on the blog I stated that my hope was that my first 2023 write-up would be in February from Arizona and the Super Bowl – from the second game which I watched from the RTJ Golf Trail and watched the Eagles demolish the Vikings to Valhalla in November where the Eagles were 8-0. I really felt that this season was shaping up to be something special for the Eagles. So here we are in February 2023, the Eagles make the Super Bowl, I get to go to the game and my first review is from Arizona as predicted. Except….
The Foothills is far from worthy of a review and I didn’t actually play it during my trip out here for the Super Bowl.
My plans for the Soop were late developing. Even after dismantling the cry baby Giants, I was leaning against going if we beat SF. Dollars, timing, hassle. In fact until Thursday after the Niners game I was still out. Then I got an opportunity for some low-cost, really good tix. I was already in FLA so the flight was available and could use miles. And got the hotel at no cost. I had my clubs in FLA and brought them and tried to get on for Super Bowl Saturday through my cousin who had a friend up at Desert Mountain. Nope. Tried Thousand Greens and hooking up at Estancia: On the Saturday during the Waste Management and the day before the Super Bowl. I think they are still laughing. So felt it was more important to pre-game in Old Town Scottsdale Saturday and bagged golf. Had to come back the following week for work and once again struck out on anything nice; voila you get a review on the Foothills so I can make good on my Eagles Super Bowl prediction.
What a game! While I am disappointed with the outcome, the game and season were great. Sure I hated the ticky-tacky holding call made at the most horrible time you can choose (I sure as shit hope Carl Cheffers never visits Philadelphia anytime soon). I don’t care if it was holding it should have been let go as much more egregious non-calls could be seen throughout the game. But we shouldn’t have been in the position we were in that it mattered. In order of causation, the biggest factors in the outcome were:
- Special teams: All season long, special teams were an Achilles heel for the Birds. We bring the punter Siposs back after a 6-week layoff like he was some punting god and he low balls the punt and the Chiefs scurry down field to the 5.
- Hurts’ fumble: Sure he came right back with an awesome drive but this killed! You can’t let the Chiefs D get a freebie. Seumalo’s false start on the previous play sucked, making this happen.
- The Eagles second-half D: WTF? Gannon couldn’t adjust to get a consistent pass rush. His D let two motion plays completely stump ’em and allowed two walk-in TDs.
- The Bradbury holding call
The event itself was outrageous. Here is the Eagles introduction…
We were 14 rows on the 15-yard line. Devonta Smith’s family was behind us and Hassan Reddick’s in front. Seeing some local buddies and having a few Playboy models hanging with us in Scottsdale was fun. Cooper Bros. steakhouse was a great find (also in Old Town). But traffic getting into the stadium S-U-C-K-E-D!!! Fucking three hours! Most of it within 1/4-mile of the stadium. After the game we chilled at some weird putting/Top-Golf like bar (with no food). At least we waited traffic out.
I came back a week later for a work trip. Again failed on playing any different privates. Probably not a bad thing though. I ended up getting delayed two-and-a-half hours thanks to Ameri-trash-can Airlines and would’ve had to cancel any private plans – as it was had to catch up at The Foothills and start at the third. I hate American. Even though I am Executive Platinum, I’ve literally had to cancel three trips in 2022 – including comped rounds of golf at Spanish Bay and Pebble Beach – because of those shitfucks. But alas in Philly you can’t choose – if you fly you’re stuck with American like if you ARE an American you’re stuck with Joe Biden, Carmella and Pothole Pete Buttigieg. Did find another good restaurant though – Toca Madera. I think I ate at one in LA too once/good high-end Mexican Steakhouse.
Also post-this-Phoenix trip, I shot out to LA . Historically bad weather but we found a four-hour window that we played Oak Creek in Irvine – good not great course. Also had the Thousand Greens member from Shady Canyon get back to me that couldn’t accommodate me on this trip but would love to do so in the future. Coming back in June so will try and hook up and let you know how that goes. Below are pix from The Foothills. Not going to bother to caption but choose elsewhere if going to PHX.
Golf Scrapbook 