Florida and golf are a natural combination. Despite the summer rains, Florida is known as the Sunshine State for a reason. Many towns experience more than 300 days of sunshine a year. For golfing enthusiasts, Florida is a veritable paradise.
The central Florida communities of Kissimmee, Davenport, Clermont, and Orlando boast a vast number of first-rate golf courses. A number of the most extraordinary golfers in the world reside in this segment of the country. Tiger Woods? main residence is just southwest of Orlando. In fact, Orlando itself is home to nearly 90 public golf courses and a host of private courses. Aside from the renowned theme parks, family attractions and plentiful beach rentals, golf is a major element of the central Florida vacation experience.
Eagle Creek is a Scottish style course located just southeast of the Orlando International Airport. It features revetted bunkers and other aspects of golf that can usually only be found in Scotland. The Grande Pines Golf Club is located near Sea World in central Orlando, just off International Drive. Recently renovated, the course was considered to be one of the best before the redesign, and is now frequently showered with praise from professionals and amateur golfers alike.
Of course, Orlando is just one city in central Florida where golfing is essential to the tourist trade. Davenport, a small town located on US Highway 17/92 in Polk County, southwest of Orlando, maintains unexpectedly superior courses. The Ridgewood Golf Club at Davenport was voted one of Florida?s top 30 courses. The course was designed by Ted McAnlis and has an extraordinary reputation. The club offers Champions Turf greens, new bunkers, leveled tee boxes and the kind of lush landscaping that golfers in Florida have come to expect.
Another Scottish style course in the area is the Highlands Reserve Golf Resort north of Davenport. This course boasts exceptional surroundings and is located on one of the highest locales in Florida. Old Florida citrus trees embellish the edges of the course and scattered pines are reminiscent of courses in the Carolinas.
Kissimmee, Florida is nearly adjacent to Orlando and is frequently used by visitors as a base of operations when visiting the attractions in Orlando. But Kissimmee has plenty to offer in its own right, including the Kissimmee Bay Country Club which was nominated as one of America?s Best New Courses by Golf Digest in the 1990s. The course is 11 miles from the Orlando Airport and features the natural beauty of a lakeside environment shaded by sprawling oak trees and abundant wildlife. Kissimme provides the kind of romantic travel you may be searching for while also incorporating family fun.
The neighboring city of Clermont maintains nine public courses, which is a spectacular number for a town of only 13,000 people. The more well-known of these courses include The Legends Golf and Country Club, Kings Ridge Golf Club, Swiss Fairways, Green Valley Country Club, and Sanctuary Ridge Golf.
Wesley Mathews is part of the travel team at FindVacationRentals.com and FindBedandBreakfast.com. These directories provide detailed information on bed and breakfasts and things to do.
