Best golf courses near Haines City, FL

Southern Dunes grew out of an unfortunate event in 1989, when a 350 acre citrus grove was lost to a severe freeze. Instead of replanting the grove, the group of owners decide to build a golf course on the land. Today, Southern Dunes offers a refreshing design that differs from many typical Florida layouts, where flat fairways are heavily guarded by water. Instead, Southern Dunes plays over rolling terrain with elevation changes of up to 100 feet. Though water is in play on a few holes, tall-lipped bunkers are the primary defense, and many guard the fairways and greens.

Three stellar golf courses—designed by Nicklaus, Palmer and Watson—can be found at this full-service Orlando-area resort, making it the only destination with three courses designed by these three legends. A manageable drive to the airport makes this an easy trip to plan. The Watson Course utilizes strategic bunkering and hilly terrain as its defense. With hardly any water in play on the course, bunkers line the fairways, which are generally wide.

Seth Raynor built Mountain Lake, a millionaires’ winter retreat, in two stages, completing one nine in 1917 and the other four years later. As he did on all his projects, Raynor produced some “template holes” and some originals. At Mountain Lake, his par-3 fifth sports a very authentic Biarritz green and the seventh is recognizable as a Road Hole. But the par-3 11th, designed with a canted, slanted Redan green, has been reworked in recent years, with the front half of the putting surface flattened to create pin positions just above a 10-foot-deep frontal bunker. Restoration expert Ron Prichard and his associate Tyler Rae have been reclaiming Raynor features for over seven years, working most recently on perfecting the unique “circus ring” contour in the middle of the ninth green.

Opened in 1996, Celebration Golf Club was a design collaboration between the father-son duo of Robert Trent Jones Sr. and Robert Trent Jones Jr. The course features generous fairways that dogleg around numerous lakes and bunkers on the front nine. On the back side, there are a few more tree-lined holes, though the fairways are still wide. The course is conveniently located just a few minutes from Disney World.

Featuring two Greg Norman designed championship courses as well as a lit nine-hole par-3 track, ChampionsGate is the perfect choice for an action-packed Orlando golf experience. The challenging International course features large greens (made even bigger by a recent restoration) and numerous grassy dunes, giving the layout a links feel.

Featuring two Greg Norman designed championship courses as well as a lit nine-hole par-3 track, ChampionsGate is the perfect choice for an action-packed Orlando golf experience. The National course—the easier of the two layouts at the resort—plays through 200 acres of woodlands, wetlands and former orange groves. Though water comes into play on a few holes, there are few forced carries, making the course playable for the higher handicap.

Three stellar golf courses—designed by Nicklaus, Palmer and Watson—can be found at this full-service Orlando-area resort, making it the only destination with three courses designed by these three legends. A manageable drive to the airport makes this an easy trip to plan. The Palmer Course challenges players with undulating terrain, creating uneven lies in the fairways and rough. It features significant elevation changes, including a 50-foot drop from tee to green at the par-3 second.

For those willing to drive a bit (Providence Golf Club is about 30 miles southwest of downtown Orlando and 15 miles from Disney World), you'll find great value with winter rates under $100. The course is quite flat but has a lot of design variety, with holes moving in each direction and water coming into play on more than half the holes. Many greens have a fair amount of undulation, emphasizing proper shot placement on approaches.

Three stellar golf courses—designed by Nicklaus, Palmer and Watson—can be found at this full-service Orlando-area resort, making it the only destination with three courses designed by these three legends. A manageable drive to the airport makes this an easy trip to plan.  The Nicklaus Course is generally forgiving off the tee, but small, undulating greens place a premium on precise iron play. Elevated railroad-tie tees and greens, along with the occasional pot bunker, give the course character.