Golf Memberships near Disney/Dr. Phillips area

golfisprettyfun · June 26, 2023

Hello all,

My wife and I are considering moving to the Orlando area in the next year or two. Her family lives in the Dr. Phillips area, so I imagine we will stay with them our first few months and then look to buy/rent something around there. We both love to play golf, so wanted to go ahead and start looking at memberships. I am turning 30 next month, so should qualify for most of the junior memberships.

We aren't overly picky in regards to criteria, but I think ideally:

- Initiation under $10K, would really prefer little to no initiation but I assume that is rare these days

- Decent practice facility and course conditions (does not have to be pristine)

- Good pace of play. I would imagine most of our play will be twilight weeknight rounds after work. We usually get pretty busy on the weekends, so likely not a ton of weekend play during peak hours.

- Friendly/welcoming members. We are not looking for anything "exclusive" or stuffy. Just somewhere laid back where we can hangout and play after work!

One option I have looked into is the Player's Club at Disney. If my wife and I did the Platinum Membership, it would be $180 per month for the two of us and include complimentary play at Oak Trail after 12 PM. I've played that course before and I actually really like it. Since we typically only have time to play 9 holes during the week, we may just go out and play that course everyday during the week, and then look to take advantage of the walk-up rates for the main Disney courses as they are available. Also, the unlimited range balls and free clinics is very appealing. Unfortunately, they don't appear to be accepting any new members at the moment, but hopefully that changes in the next year or two.

Any other suggestions would be very welcome! Thank you for reading.

sabram · June 26, 2023

Check out Championsgate Country Club. It is semi private. Members have exclusive use until 11:00 am. After that the public may make tee times. They have a range and practice area for members only. It's a very good course, although the long distances between holes make it un-walkable. One of my neighbors is a member. It was very inexpensive when he joined. He loves it. The only reason I didn't join is that i like to play at many different courses. Click on the photo below to view a photo tour of the course.

Philfil · June 26, 2023

Check out Grande Vista - https://grandevistagolf.com/golf-membership/

Great practice area and fun 9 hole course. The membership would be a no brainer for me if I lived in Orlando.

Edited June 26, 2023 by Philfil

RichieHunt · August 10, 2023

Orange Tree is in Dr. Phillips. I was told that single membership initiation is at $10K now (when I joined in 2018 it was $3,500). it's a straight up golf club, no tennis courts, pool, etc. Lots of really good and serious golfers there. Good range and practice area. Pace of play generally moves around very quickly. May be a little on the pricey side for you, but should suitably fit your golf needs and then some.

RH

pearls24 · September 11, 2023

On 8/10/2023 at 2:19 PM, RichieHunt said:

Orange Tree is in Dr. Phillips. I was told that single membership initiation is at $10K now (when I joined in 2018 it was $3,500). it's a straight up golf club, no tennis courts, pool, etc. Lots of really good and serious golfers there. Good range and practice area. Pace of play generally moves around very quickly. May be a little on the pricey side for you, but should suitably fit your golf needs and then some.

RH

One of the tightest courses I've ever played! 🙂 Several holes we were literally a few feet off the fairway and either OB or almost OB. That said, the greens were great.

rblmp32 · September 21, 2023

On 6/26/2023 at 4:44 PM, sabram said:

Check out Championsgate Country Club. It is semi private. Members have exclusive use until 11:00 am. After that the public may make tee times. They have a range and practice area for members only. It's a very good course, although the long distances between holes make it un-walkable. One of my neighbors is a member. It was very inexpensive when he joined. He loves it. The only reason I didn't join is that i like to play at many different courses. Click on the photo below to view a photo tour of the course.

I was a member at Champions Gate and the courses are both excellent. However it's a resort course so it's crowded as heck. Even in the mornings. I think my membership was about $600 a month. No initiation. This includes range privileges and most of the time they didn't charge me for a cart though I don't think it was included in the membership. Back then (2020) the pro's were super cool. If you are looking for a private club experience, this is not the place. If you are just looking for good golf it's an option. However, living in Doc Phillips, driving down to Champions Gate can be a pain. Mostly you'd take I4 and the traffic from Celebration to Champions Gate is horrible most of the time. Something to consider. I live next to Reunion, so it was an easy 10 min drive for me.

sabram · September 21, 2023

3 hours ago, rblmp32 said:

I was a member at Champions Gate and the courses are both excellent. However it's a resort course so it's crowded as heck. Even in the mornings. I think my membership was about $600 a month. No initiation. This includes range privileges and most of the time they didn't charge me for a cart though I don't think it was included in the membership. Back then (2020) the pro's were super cool. If you are looking for a private club experience, this is not the place. If you are just looking for good golf it's an option. However, living in Doc Phillips, driving down to Champions Gate can be a pain. Mostly you'd take I4 and the traffic from Celebration to Champions Gate is horrible most of the time. Something to consider. I live next to Reunion, so it was an easy 10 min drive for me.

You're referring to the two Championsgate courses at the Omni. I was referring to the Championsgate Country Club. It's not a resort course and members have exclusive access during the preferred times.

rblmp32 · September 22, 2023

14 hours ago, sabram said:

You're referring to the two Championsgate courses at the Omni. I was referring to the Championsgate Country Club. It's not a resort course and members have exclusive access during the preferred times.

Ahh yes. Thank you for pointing that out. I always forget about the country club. What's the initiation there? 🙂

sabram · September 24, 2023

On 9/22/2023 at 10:31 AM, rblmp32 said:

Ahh yes. Thank you for pointing that out. I always forget about the country club. What's the initiation there?

I'm not sure. My neighbor joined two or three years ago and it was very reasonable. I don't want to guess what it is currently, but expect it is less than any purely private club. They have a form on their website where you can inquire directly to the club

rblmp32 · September 26, 2023

On 9/23/2023 at 10:10 PM, sabram said:

I'm not sure. My neighbor joined two or three years ago and it was very reasonable. I don't want to guess what it is currently, but expect it is less than any purely private club. They have a form on their website where you can inquire directly to the club

Yeah I filled it out but haven't heard from them yet. Not well organized it seems. But I agree, since it's more like a semi-private club it should be reasonable in cost.