Orlando golf with my son

[BamafaninKY]

Heading to Orlando with my family (wife, daughter (13), daughter's friend and son (10)) in a few weeks and looking for some feedback on courses. We're staying at the Marriott Royal Palms, and proximity is an issue since we'll only have one car.

 

my son and I plan to play a lot, although we may play later int he day most days. Many of the Marriott managed courses participate in the "Kids Play Free" program which allows kids to play for free afrer 3:00.

 

So the courses I am considering for us are:

 

Hawk's Landing

Grande Pines

Falcon's Fire

Shingle Creek

Grand Cypress - New Course

 

Between the twilight rates and the kids program thru Mariott, we should get some great rates. We'll probably try to play early if we play Shingle Creek and/or Grand Cypress.

[rufus mangler]

Shingle Creek and Grand Cypress are at the higher end of your scale, and the prices will reflect that. But those are all great courses and all fairly close to one another. Some will be "easier" on the family than others.

Hawk's Landing is at the Marriott World Center. The course isn't the strongest of your picks, but the gang could hang at one of the pools while you're on the course. Sea World and Intl. drive shopping are a stones throw away from Grande Pines. Faldo Inst. practice area is across the street. Shingle Creek is nearby. So is Wet N'Wild.

The same can be said about Grand Cypress. The resort is around the corner from Disney Village, Downtown Disney, etc. It's almost ON Disney Property.

Make sure to call to find out about any aerating. A lot of places dive right into maintenance after the snowbirds leave.

Have a ball!

[duck_hunter]

orange county national is a good one

[PhilMickFan]

We played Falcon's Fire in February of this year and thought it was excellent for its price. Staff went out of their way and the entire operation was very professional. We are actually heading back there again in May to play the same course.

[BamafaninKY]

Thanks for the replies. I'll definitely ask about the aerating schedule. With all of the options in Orlando, I don't want to play greens that have been recently plugged.

I should also mention that although my son is 10, he is very good for his age. He plays a lot of tournament golf also.

Unless there are people telling me to forget Hawk's Landing and Grande Pines, we'll probably play there just because they're so close and we'll get a good deal thru Marriott. This will be one of those weeks where we try to play as much golf as we can get away with and not cause a firestorm in the family, so proximity is key. OCN looks great; just not sure about the logistics.

[jnier75]

[quote name='BamafaninKY' timestamp='1334680722' post='4738186']
Thanks for the replies. I'll definitely ask about the aerating schedule. With all of the options in Orlando, I don't want to play greens that have been recently plugged.

I should also mention that although my son is 10, he is very good for his age. He plays a lot of tournament golf also.

Unless there are people telling me to forget Hawk's Landing and Grande Pines, we'll probably play there just because they're so close and we'll get a good deal thru Marriott. This will be one of those weeks where we try to play as much golf as we can get away with and not cause a firestorm in the family, so proximity is key. OCN looks great; just not sure about the logistics.
[/quote]

The problem I have with Hawk's Landing is that it is shoehorned into the property. It has numerous holes that have a wall separating the course from high traffic roads. The other holes are right next to each other. If it weren't for the space issues, it would be a solid course, I enjoyed the variety of hole shapes and shots with difficult bunkering on a number of approach shots.

As for your list, Shingle Creek is the farthest from you with grand cypress, falcon's fire and grande pines pretty much equidistant from you, and the best ones on your list, IMO. You also need to look into Orange Lake. They have a kid's play free policy and located right on the west side of disney. The legends course is in my top 3 of the area.

[BamafaninKY]

Shingle Creek is aerating just before we get to Orlando, so I've ruled it out. I've put together 4 tee times:

Falcon's Fire - 2 players
Grande Pines - 2 players
Hawk's Landing - 3 players
Orange County Nat'l - 3 players

That's 10 rounds of golf, and by getting twilight rates on 3 of those times and with junior rates, the total price for 10 rounds is just under $380.