Phoenix has gone nuts over pro sports and is now one of the few cities in the country with teams for all four of the major sports (baseball, basketball, football, and hockey). Add to this baseball's spring training, professional women's basketball, three major golf tournaments, tennis tournaments, the annual Fiesta Bowl college football classic, and ASU football, basketball, and baseball, and you have enough action to keep even the most rabid sports fans happy. The all-around best month to visit is March, when you could feasibly catch baseball's spring training, the Suns, the Coyotes, and ASU basketball and baseball, as well as the Franklin Templeton Tennis Classic and the Safeway PING LPGA Tournament.

Call Ticketmaster (tel. 480/784-4444; www.ticketmaster.com) for tickets to most of the events below. For sold-out events, try Tickets Unlimited (tel. 800/289-8497 or 602/840-2340; www.ticketsunlimitedinc.com) or Ticket Exchange (tel. 800/800-9811 or 602/254-4444).

Auto Racing -- At the Phoenix International Raceway, S. 115th Avenue and Baseline Road, Avondale (tel. 602/252-2227; www.phoenixinternationalraceway.com), there's NASCAR and Indy car racing on the world's fastest 1-mile oval. Tickets range from $19 to $45.

Baseball -- Back in 2001, the Arizona Diamondbacks (tel. 888/777-4664 or 602/514-8400; www.azdiamondbacks.com) surprised most of the nation by beating the New York Yankees in the last inning of the last game of the World Series. Such an edge-of-the-seat upset makes for rabidly loyal fans for this young team, which plays in downtown Phoenix at the state-of-the-art Bank One Ballpark (BOB). The ballpark's retractable roof allows for comfortable play during the blistering summers, and makes this one of the only enclosed baseball stadiums with natural grass. Tickets to ball games are available through the Bank One Ballpark ticket office and cost between $6 and $78. The best seats are in sections J and Q.

For decades, it has been spring training that gives Phoenix its annual shot of baseball, and don't think that the Cactus League's preseason exhibition games will be any less popular just because the Diamondbacks are World Series winners and play all summer. Spring-training games may rank second only to golf in popularity with winter visitors to the valley. Nine major league baseball teams have spring-training camps around the valley during March and April, and exhibition games are scheduled at seven different stadiums. Tickets cost $3 to $20. Get a schedule from a visitor center, check the Arizona Republic while you're in town, or go to www.cactus-league.com. Games often sell out, especially on weekends, so be sure to order tickets in advance. The spring-training schedule for 2004 should be out by December 2003.

Teams training in the valley include the Anaheim Angels, Tempe Diablo Stadium, 2200 W. Alameda Dr. (48th St. and Broadway Rd.), Tempe (tel. 602/438-9300 or 480/784-4444; www.angelsbaseball.com); the Chicago Cubs, HoHoKam Park, 1235 N. Center St., Mesa (tel. 800/905-3315 or 480/964-4467; www.cubspringtraining.com); the Kansas City Royals, Surprise Recreation Campus, 1580 N. Bullard Ave., Surprise (tel. 623/594-5600); the Milwaukee Brewers, Maryvale Baseball Park, 3600 N. 51st Ave., Phoenix (tel. 623/245-5500; www.milwaukeebrewers.com); the Oakland Athletics, Phoenix Municipal Stadium, 5999 E. Van Buren St., Phoenix (tel. 800/905-3315 or 602/392-0217; www.oaklandathletics.com); the San Diego Padres, Peoria Sports Complex, 16101 N. 83rd Ave., Peoria (tel. 623/878-4337 or 480/784-4444; www.padres.com); the San Francisco Giants, Scottsdale Stadium, 7408 E. Osborn Rd., Scottsdale (tel. 480/990-7972; www.sfgiants.com); the Seattle Mariners, Peoria Sports Complex, 16101 N. 83rd Ave., Peoria (tel. 623/878-4337 or 480/784-4444; www.seattlemariners.com); and the Texas Rangers, Surprise Recreation Campus, 1580 N. Bullard Ave., Surprise (tel. 623/594-5600).

Basketball -- The NBA's Phoenix Suns play at the America West Arena, 201 E. Jefferson St. (tel. 800/4-NBA-TIX or 602/379-SUNS; www.suns.com). Tickets cost $10 to $95. Suns tickets are hard to come by; if you haven't planned ahead, try contacting the box office the day before or the day of a game to see if tickets have been returned. Otherwise, you'll have to try a ticket agency and pay a premium.

Phoenix also has a WNBA team, the Phoenix Mercury (tel. 602/252-WNBA or 602/379-7800; www.wnba.com/mercury), which plays at the America West Arena between late May and mid-August. Tickets cost $8 to $100.

Football -- The Arizona Cardinals (tel. 800/999-1402 or 602/379-0102; www.azcardinals.com) are in the process of building a new stadium in the west valley city of Glendale. However, until the new stadium is completed in 2006, the Cardinals will continue to play at Arizona State University's Sun Devil Stadium, which is also home to the Fiesta Bowl Football Classic. Tickets cost $27 to $145 and go on sale around mid-July.

While the Cardinals get to use Sun Devil Stadium, this field really belongs to Arizona State University's Sun Devils (tel. 480/965-2381). Tickets range from $25 to $30.

Despite the desert heat and presence of a baseball team, Phoenicians don't give up football just because it's summer. The Arizona Rattlers arena football team (tel. 602/514-8383 or 602/379-7800; www.azrattlers.com) plays 50-yard indoor football at the America West Arena, 201 E. Jefferson St. Tickets are $5 to $46.

Golf Tournaments -- It's not surprising that, with nearly 200 golf courses and ideal golfing weather throughout the fall, winter, and spring, the Valley of the Sun hosts three major PGA tournaments each year. Tickets for all three are available through Ticketmaster outlets .

January's Phoenix Open Golf Tournament (tel. 602/870-4431; www.phoenixopen.com) is the largest. Held at the Tournament Players Club (TPC) of Scottsdale, it attracts more spectators than any other golf tournament in the world (more than 500,000 each year). The 18th hole has standing room for 40,000. Tickets start at $20.

Each March, the Safeway PING LPGA Tournament (tel. 602/495-4653; www.phoenixlpga.com), held at the Moon Valley Country Club, lures nearly 100 of the top women golfers from around the world. Daily tickets are $15; weekly tickets are $50.

Even amateurs can get in on some tournament action at the Phoenix Amateur Golf Championship (tel. 877/990-GOLF; www.phxamateur.com), held in May.

Hockey -- Ice hockey in the desert? It may not make sense, but even Phoenicians are crazy about ice hockey (maybe it's all those northern transplants). In fact, by the time you read this, the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes (tel. 480/563-PUCK; www.phoenixcoyotes.com) will likely have moved into the new Glendale Arena. Tickets cost $9 to $200.

Horse/Greyhound Racing -- Turf Paradise, 1501 W. Bell Rd. (tel. 602/942-1101; www.turfparadise.com), is Phoenix's horse-racing track. The season runs from late September to mid-May, with post time at 12:30pm or 1:30pm. Admission ranges from $2 to $5.

The Phoenix Greyhound Park, 3801 E. Washington St. (tel. 602/273-7181; www.phoenixgreyhoundpark.com), is a fully enclosed, air-conditioned facility offering seating in various grandstands, lounges, and restaurants. There's racing throughout the year; tickets are free to $3.

Rodeos, Polo & Horse Shows -- Cowboys, cowgirls, and other horsey types will find plenty of the four-legged critters going through their paces most weeks at Westworld Equestrian Center, 16601 N. Pima Rd., Scottsdale (tel. 480/312-6802). With its hundreds of stables, numerous equestrian arenas, and a polo field, this complex provides an amazing variety of entertainment and sporting events. There are rodeos, polo matches, horse shows, horseback rides, and horseback-riding instruction.

Tennis Tournaments -- Each March, top international men's tennis players compete at the Franklin Templeton Tennis Classic (tel. 480/922-0222; www.scottsdaletennis.com), at the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess, 7575 E. Princess Dr., Scottsdale. Tickets run from $15 to $75 (tickets to later rounds are more expensive) and are available through Ticketmaster outlets .

In late February, women's tennis players compete in the State Farm Women's Tennis Classic (tel. 480/778-9799; www.scottsdaletennis.com), also held at the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess. Tickets cost $15 to $75 and are available through Ticketmaster .