Where to play in Orlando??? - Page 2

Quote:

Originally Posted by TourSpoon 

 

I highly recommend the New Course with it's replica 1st and 18th holes fashioned after the Old Course. And the practice facility is wonderful. 

Another vote for the New Course. It's an amazingly fun course and this is coming from someone who is not a huge fan of Jack Nicklaus' courses for the most part.

Matt

Played all three at Ginn Reunion and also played the Old Course twice last summer as well. Was alot easier the second time around when we had an idea of where the fairways were...I   would recommend the Old Course anyday.  

Sorry should have said New Course above...was reading the Old part in the post above it and it stuck in my head!

Hi All

I also go in Orlando next June and I was looking for 1 or 2 golf courses. It's crazy the number of courses http://bit.ly/ZThBcf

Winter Pines Golf Course seems to be a good course.

Help welcome

Disney has some pretty good deals especially if you can wait till after 10 am. I have played them all except Magnolia. the conditions are usually pristine. THey have have amazingly low traffic. The only down side is some times you can paired up with some real beginners It might be worth asking the pro shop if they can avoid that. Once I played with group that had a kid who never played golf before. I do not know what he was thinking starting off on a high end course like that. I think you might find rates below $60 by starting after 10 am.

Played the Red and Blue courses at Royal St. Cloud this past February, good layout, fairways and greens in great shape, fun course and friendly staff. Not a tourist trap and at $34 including cart a great deal.
 

I spend about 8 weeks a year in Orlando, and call HIghland Reserve my "home" course while im there.  There are some people who are not a fan of it, but it suits my preferred overall vibe.  Not too expensive, set in a quiet neighborhood, and not too upscale feeling.

Last week I did play the Magnolia at Disney and have to say that the whole operation there is top notch (would you expect anything less from Disney?)  Beautiful, perfectly maintained course/facility....wide open fairways which at first got me really excited.....til i realized how many bunkers are on that course! LOL I spent all day at the beach!! :-)  Lots of wildlife around the course, i was suprised at the gators in the ponds with no fence or anything.  But i guess thats normal for FL

I have annual disney passes which include unlimited free golf on the Disney Oak Trail...which is a 9 holer......but the staff at the clubhouse was telling me that if you are even remotely serious about your golf game, you do not want to play that course.  So many families, extreme beginners etc  and slows pace WAY WAY down....they were saying that they have straight up since fights on the course between families playing slow and really bad vs. low handicappers hoping to blow through 9 in an hour. haha

Quote:

Originally Posted by teed off 

Played the Red and Blue courses at Royal St. Cloud this past February, good layout, fairways and greens in great shape, fun course and friendly staff. Not a tourist trap and at $34 including cart a great deal.
 

Yeah, RSC has really advertised a lot locally. Fun layout, Scottish-style. And being in St. Cloud, it's off the beaten path.

It seems Orlando courses generally fall into one of two categories -

- The 'high-end' resort-style courses. Places like Reunion, Championsgate, Disney, Grand Cypress. All good tracks, all in nice shape. But you'll pay for it.

- The local tracks, some of which are good: Dubsdread, Royal St. Cloud, Winter Pines, Orange County National, Rolling Hills. You gotta look (and possibly drive) a little to find them, but they're good too, and a lot cheaper (like the poster above noted - $34 for 18 & a cart). And RSC also has a nice restaurant/bar.

Final note: Avoid Casselberry GC - horrible condition.

Here are few i played this year, there about 15-20 minutes south of Orlando International Airport

Shingle Creek, right near Disney. A bit pricey, but a great golf course

Southern Dunes, its just a dang tough golf course. A ton of bunkers, believe me i've been a few of them. There's not give on the course, but its actually really fun to play.

Champions Gate International, links style course. Just an awesome course. Really much better than the National.

Quote:

Originally Posted by David in FL 


You put OCN in the same category as the other 4?!

Winter Pines tends to be in decent condition, but bland, short, and uninteresting. Dubsdread is a great little Muni. Very tight though, so keep straight off the tee. OCN is world class, but again, you'll pay for it. Rolling Hills is an absolute goat track, not currently fit to walk your dog on......

You can play OCN for around $50 (not in season of course). Thus the inclusion.

Somehow I thought you were gonna comment on Rolling Hills. Yeah, its condition leaves much to be desired, but at times the greens aren't bad, and starting with the 2nd shot on #7, the dogleg right par 4, it gets interesting with the elevation changes. #8's a good downhill, 200y par 3, 9's an uphill then downhill little par 4, 10's a reachable par 5 but you gotta take on the water, 11 a good par 3 over the pond...and so on. Plus the 18th is one of the toughest finishing holes in Orlando - 450y par 4 with water short left of the green. It's a serviceable muni.

But you'll also note I said "some" of them are good.

Quote:

Originally Posted by David in FL 


Don't know the last time you played rolling hills, but it's not even close to "serviceable" these days. Certainly nothing I'd recommend to someone coming to visit.

I was referring mainly to the layout, not the condition. Thus the term serviceable, which it is. That's hardly endorsing it.