Golf at WDW

Miffy2003

<font color=orange>I've got Saratoga Springs - mak
Joined
Aug 13, 2003
Messages
12,175
Hello,

Wonder if anoyone has any advice on the best courses to go on and also the best plan of action with clubs etc.

FIL is a mad keen golfer and I think would love to have a go while we are at WDW. I know there are quite a few courses to choose from - which would you recommend? His handicap is 14 if that means anything to anyone (means nothing to me!!)

Also, is it best to take his own clubs which I believe will be hassle and also take up baggage allowance (more important!) or hire when out there (which will cost I know and also it won't be his own clubs which he is used to)??

The cost to play looks quite high to me but I suspect I would be shocked by the cost in this country too! Any hints or tips on getting money off?

Sorry, lots of questions!

Thanks

Karen :)
 
Hi My dad always takes his own clubs, depends which airline but it has never used our luggage allowance and we have flown virgin BA and Icelandair amongst others. He gets the token books when we get there and decides where to play. Also has friends out there so he plays with them. Out resort arranges trips also so he gets to meet other golfers while he is out there. This year we have rented a villa which includes clubs for him to use, the villa is in a community with a golf course so he will get to try somewhere new.
 
Karen, where will you be staying, will you have a car, will he drive himself.

Golf clubs shouldn't be considered part of your luggage ( well it isn't on BA, Virgin, USAirways, Delta or any of the other scheduled aurlines I've flown, chartered I'm not so sure.

Disney's courses are expensive, although if you play "twilight" rate that can bring the cost down quite a lot. There are loads of off site courses and they will span almost every price bracket. I've never been unhappy with any of the courses in the US even those that are in the $20 a round range.

I've found this company to provide the best deals for golf in Orlando http://www.stand-bygolf.com/ . You call them up the day you want to play ( or the night before) and they will find courses with openings. As long as you're flexible on courses you can get some great deals. It's a good idea to go to the golf outlets and grab a few of the free magazines they have. They are usually full of vouchers, details on the courses, contact details and directions/maps.

If you can answer the questions I've asked at the top I'll try to give you a few ideas for him .
 
Hello,

Thank you both for your input.

Vernon, to answer your questions:

We wil be staying onsite for 2 weeks and then in Sarasota for a week, we will have a car and will be happy to ferry him about (within reason LOL!)

Really appreciate your help, thank you!

Cheers

Karen
 

Here are a few courses I would recommend, I'll give minutes drive from WDW.

Orange County National ( 15 minutes) http://www.ocngolf.com/page/1-1.htm

Southern Dunes (25 minutes) http://southerndunes.com/

Falcons Fire ( 5 minutes) http://falconsfire.com/

Celebration (5 minutes) http://celebrationgolf.com/welcome.htm

Mystic Dunes ( 10 minutes) http://www.mysticdunesgolf.com/main.htm

For any of these I would use Stand by golf to see what the best deal is. If you mention a few of these courses the tele sales staff will iknow the level of course you're looking for. You can also tell them the drive time you are prepared to go from Disney.

If he decides to play on Disney here are my views of their courses. All are fantastic championship standard courses ( as are the off site ones above) but each have their different challanges for players. IMHO it's pretty pointless picking a course that penalises your particular weakness. Here's a link to Disney's golf http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/moreMagic/golf/golfHome?id=GolfHomePage

In my order of preference

1) Osprey Ridge . Not too tight, but requires decent length off the tee to give you a chance to the excellent greens. IMHO the most scenic of the Disney courses, I've seen plenty of deer, gators,eagles, ospreys and other wildlife on this and it's sister course Eagle Pines.

2) Eagle Pines. A nightmare if you're short off the tee or have a tendancy to "top" your tee shot as almost every teeshot you have to clear a very large "bunker" type set up that's scrub sand covered with the pine needles the course gets it's name from, if you get into this stuff it's hard to get out in just one shot. If you're long off the tee, but a little wayward, this is a good choice as once you clear the scrub you get good sized landing areas. Again a nice scenic course.

3) Magnolia is pretty long with lots of carries over water, it's one of the courses Disney use on their pro tournements, although I think that has more to do with it's ability to take seating areas and non playing guests than a reflection on it's merits above my first two choices. Not a course for any hydrophobics or rabies sufferers LOL ;)

4) Palm Another course with plenty of water to carry, although not as long as Magnolia. Reasonably open and inviting.

5) Lake Buenna Vista . I think it's the shortest of Disney's 18 hole courses. It winds it's way through the OKW DVC resort. Has some nice holes, including a feature "Island green" par 3. Because it's through a resort a lot of the tee shorts favour straight players and length isn't as much of a pre-requisite as it is on the other Disney courses. It's a personal thing, I guess, but if I'm playing golf I'd rather not be wandering past people's windows and worry about sliding my teeshot into their morning cup of cocoa
:eek:

As you can see from the prices of the Disney courses their twilight rates are MUCH cheaper than regular time, this is exagerated at the moment because afternooon storms and the humidity make late afternoons a less popular choice than at other times of year. The "price slice" of $45 after 10.00 seem a good deal though.

A couple of cheaper courses that are worth considering are Orange Lake Country club ( 10 minutes drive) http://www.orangelake.com/tour_our_resort/orange_lake_golf.html . If there is anyone else who may fancy trying a game of golf, but are not very experienced. Orange lake has an excellent 9 hole par 3 walking course, Legends walk is the name of this course. With 5 different tee boxes it's easy to give a non regular golfer a decent chance of winning a few holes by letting them tee off on different tee boxes to the regular player.
and Kissimmee golf club http://www.kissgolfclub.com/ . At $50 a round I don't think you can go far wrong :D
 
Wow, Vernon!

Thanks so much for all the detail. I now feel armed with information for my FIL who will be a very happy man :)

Cheers again,

Karen
 












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