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Besides the Disney courses, which are about 10 miles away, if you want to keep within a 20 minute drive from Downtown go play either Orange County National or Shingle Creek. Orange County just had a renovation and it looks awesome and is technically the Muny course for Orlando. Shingle Creek is a nice course that looks and play just like Reunion Resort, but not with the price tag. Metrowest is only 10 minutes away and it hosts many FL State qualifiers and is usually in great shape at a super low price. Side note: this is out of season for us down here, so courses tend to aerate during this time of the year.

I have not played it but I've heard good things from others on Falcon's Fire. I have played Grande Pines and enjoyed it very much. Any of the Disney courses, also the Orange Lake courses are supposed to be nice layouts. You can't go wrong with Windermere, it's good enough for Tiger! Although looking at the prices on GolfNow it's probably not the same one he plays...

Windermere and Lake Nona are private and you may be shot on site for trying to pretend to belong there among the "blue bloods". LOL

Falcons Fire is great, but this time of the year is not the time to play it. It gets a bit scorched out and you end up with a lot of tight lies on dead grass. It's in Kissimmee, not Orlando, so you have to drive all the way around Disney to get there. I prefer to play that course in Sept.

BTW... you want to play EARLY morn. Trust me. Get the earliest tee time you can so you can finish up before the nasty humidity hits. A late tee time at 3:00 or 3:30 will get you a major discount for Twilight and you will finish before dark. Golfing in Orlando in the summer is like golfing in Vegas... if someone is playing during the middle of the day, they are a danger to themselves and others!! Stay away.

Thanks for the suggestions! I understand that Orlando is brutally hot this time of year, so am looking for early morning rounds before things get to be too oppressive.

I'll look over the websites for these courses and let you know how things go.

Teed it up at Grande Pines at noon on July 2nd... Kept towels in the ice cooler to wrap around my neck between holes and played 36 before it was even close to getting dark!

All great recommendations, so to start I just want to mention that Windermere is not either private or the one that Tiger Plays, The one that Tiger plays and it is private is Isle Worth which is in Winderemere and I think that lead to the mistake.

And really all of those are very nice choices, but the best values are in Metrowest, and Hidden Gem name Eagle Creek Golf Course, it's a par 73 golf course Links style or Better said Links Orlando Style, and they always keep it in great shape, to me if you can, play Orange County National, those two might be the best public golf courses in Orlando, and last time I checked Disney's Magnolia the price was pretty good and that's a fantastic Golf Course. Good Luck

Oh Yeah!!! Grande Pines is a tough and beautiful Golf Course, and you're right those towels are very nice and helpful

Yup, Falcon's Fire is good, but not in mid-summer. I am partial to Grande Pines ....

I just noticed an eBay deal for Shingle Creek today for $50. It may be a perfect deal.

I recently played Windermere, Falcon's Fire and Lake Buena Vista (Disney). Falcon's Fire and Lake Buena Vista were in fantastic condition, Windermere not so much. Enjoy.

Shingle Creek is a must from where you are staying. You wont be sorry. Apples and Aroma therapy towels at the 10th hole. Always in great shape.

David,
We went down to Orlando last week and played the Magnolia course at Disney. It was in great shape. Just fyi because last year when we were down, the greens were not that good. Everything was in nice condition.

I will add that I'm going to Orlando by the end of the month and the wife gave me for my birthday the golf package at Champions Gate Resort, I've heard very good things about those courses but I haven't played there. Sadly I only will play the National Course twice since they have a Tournament going on that weekend on the International course.

Played there several years ago but played the International course. Very enjoyable. Had a wait while the wife came to pick me up but got to watch David Ledbetter working with a student. Didn't help me but was a great experience.