On Saturday a friend and I made a return visit to Falcon’s Fire Golf Club. We golfed here together about ten years ago and liked the course. I know courses can change over time, but I was excited for another round here and for a chance to catch up with my friend.

Falcon’s Fire is one of the Orlando attraction area courses and it was designed by Rees Jones. When I say “attraction area course” I mean it is close to Disney and all the tourist activities. From the course you can see some of the rides nearby and helicopters giving tours buzz overhead.

My friend and I teed off shortly after 11am on what turned out to be a beautiful (and warm!) day. It was cloudy on my drive to Orlando but as you’ll see in my pictures there was plenty of sunshine to highlight the ryegrass overseed.

My friend and I joined another twosome and the pace was fine on the front nine. However, things slowed down dramatically on the back nine thanks to the group in front of us. I’m not sure what happened but there were two open holes in front of them! The round took about 4 hours 45 minutes which was entirely too long.

Besides the lengthy round I enjoyed another spin around Falcon’s Fire. I’m not sure I’d call it a top public course in Orlando, but there is a lot to like about it. For example, the green fees are fair ($60 to ride), the conditioning was satisfactory, the design should hold your interest and the course doesn’t require your game to be sharp (generally speaking).

We played the blue tees which are 71.0/130/6435 and the design allows for quite a few stray shots. The fairways are wide and while the front nine is a bit bland it allows you to get loose for the fun back nine. Most of the trouble comes from the course’s many bunkers and mounding that line the fairways. Also, smaller greens make it tough to get the ball close.

The best hole on the front is the par-3 8th which is 201 yards from the blue tees. The tee shot needs to carry water and there are six bunkers (yes, six of them) that guard the green. The green is a small circle so it was tough to find the surface with a long iron.

The back nine is the better nine and has a great stretch of holes – the 13th through the 17th. These holes work their way around two lakes and bring in an element of risk/reward. Of these holes, the 13th and 17th could provide the most excitement.

The 13th is a shorter par-4 (362 yards) with options off the tee. You can carry more water or lay back, but no matter the line you pick a dozen bunkers left of the fairway will keep you from bailing out over there. The 17th is another par-4 and it doglegs left around more water. If you miss the tee shot right then you’ll likely end up in the mounding with a crazy stance and lie.

The conditions were good, except for the tee boxes. The course is in the final stages of overseeding so things had a shaggy/soft look to them. The fairways and rough should be great once they are cut down. The tees were chewed up and it doesn’t look like the overseed grew in properly on them. The greens were smooth and a medium pace. The bunkers looked tired and could use some TLC.

Falcon’s Fire is a solid mid-tier course and one I think that should be considered if visiting the area. Rees Jones’ work always blends together for me – but Falcon’s Fire will allow you to enjoy your Orlando vacation and experience Florida golf (water, sand and pine trees) without any homes around.

Course Pictures (click any picture to scroll through the gallery):