The Clubhouse

Best golf courses in Orlando

From the championship Arnold Palmers Bay Hill course, to Reunion Resort and Orange County National, check out the top golf courses in Orlando...

Patrick Tarantino
Patrick Tarantino
6 mins read
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It’s no surprise that so many professional golfers reside in Orlando. With an abundance of wonderful golf courses and fantastic year-round climate, the quality and playability of Orlando golf is hard to beat.

We’re often asked, what are the best golf courses in Orlando? It’s hard to pick out just a few courses, as there are so many great ones, but take a look at our list of the best golf courses in Orlando that you should try on your next Orlando golf vacation.

1. Arnold Palmer's Bay Hill

Host to the PGA Tour’s Arnold Palmer Invitational since 1979, Bay Hill is the perfect combination of a comfortable lodge atmosphere and outstanding golf. As a guest, you are made to feel like a member and part of the family. The Champion, Challenger and Charger loops of nine make up 27-holes of tour championship golf that is consistently ranked in the Top 100 Courses to play in America.

Arnold Palmers Bay Hill

2. Disney's Magnolia Golf Club, Walt Disney World

There are three championship courses to choose from at Walt Disney World Resort. Magnolia, a beautifully manicured links carved through 1,500 magnolia trees, is the longest and hosted the PGA Tour’s Disney event for 35 years. The Lake Buena Vista Course meanders through native Florida wetlands surrounded by pine forests, palmettos and sparkling lakes. And finally, the Palm course takes in the natural beauty of the Florida woodlands. Three very different but equally challenging and fun courses.

Disney's Magnolia Golf Club

3. Reunion Resort

No resort in the world can claim to offer signature design layouts from Nicklaus, Palmer and Watson (Tom, not Bubba), but at the very lovely Reunion Resort, south-west of Orlando, that’s exactly what’s on offer. The Watson course is the most highly regarded, offering unusual elevation changes and colossal amounts of bunkering, but all three are great fun to play. And if it’s all going wrong, there’s always the Reunion Resort Academy on offer to perfect your game.

Reunion Resort

4. Omni ChampionsGate Resort

At the Omni ChampionsGate Resort, you will find two fantastic and completely different Greg Norman designs. The International Course is a links-style course with a classic outward nine before making the turn layout, whereas the National Course is a more typical Florida resort course that weaves its way through 200-acres of secluded woodlands, wetlands, and former orange groves. ChampionsGate is also the world headquarters for the David Leadbetter Golf Academy.

Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate

5. Grand Cypress

45 holes of Jack Nicklaus Signature golf, with the three nines of North, South and East requiring typical Golden Bear accuracy, and the 18-hole New course modelled on a classic Scottish links. In fact, the New is Jack’s homage to the famous Old Course at St Andrews, with double greens, stone bridges, burns and 150 pot bunkers. With luxury club suites and villas onsite, this is the perfect golf vacation destination.

Grand Cypress Golf Club

6. Orange County National

Orange County National, or OCN as the locals like to call it, offers two impressive courses that have both played host to multiple PGA Tour Qualifying School Finals. Panther Lake is a visual delight, playing over rolling meadows, through native pines, around and over wetlands and with elevation changes of up to 60 feet. Crooked Cat on the other hand, is more of a links-style course, with rolling fairways framed by native heather and large, undulating greens.

Orange County National

7. Celebration Golf Club

Consistently rated in the Top-10 Orlando Golf Courses, Celebration has held many prestigious tournaments such as the US Senior Open Qualifier and Florida State Links Championship. Opened in 1996 and designed by the father & son team of Robert Trent Jones, Sr. and Jr., Celebration is the final course co-designed by the renowned masters of golf course architecture and is reflective of the very best of every course they have created around the world.

Celebration Golf Club

8. Hawks Landing Golf Club

Gently winding its way around the Orlando World Center Marriott Resort, Hawks Landing is a Robert Cupp Jr. design offering a delightful blend of challenging golf amid beautiful surroundings, wildlife and native Florida vegetation. Water comes into play on 15 holes so bring plenty of balls, and there is a Jack Nicklaus Golf Academy onsite if you need to brush up on your game.

Hawks Landing Golf Club

Plan your Orlando golf trip
As the heart of the sunshine state, Orlando boasts an abundance of top-quality golf courses and theme parks.

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Patrick Tarantino avatar
Patrick Tarantino

Sales Manager

Sales Manager, Heads our Charleston office sales team for golf vacations domestic and abroad

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