On Friday I checked out the Palmer Course at Reunion Resort & Golf Club. Reunion is located next to the I-4 and SR-429 interchange, so it is close to all the Disney attractions. What’s crazy is that I’ve driven past this area probably a hundred times over the years and never knew the courses existed, until recently.

Reunion has three courses designed by three great players in the game of golf. The courses are designed by Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson. Each course is a “signature” course which usually means the architect who’s name is on the scorecard was heavily involved in the design of the course, instead of just their design firm. As you can likely guess the three courses are named Palmer, Nicklaus and Watson.

A sign at the proshop says the courses are only open to members and resort guests, but the courses are allowing some public play these days. I booked my tee time through GolfNow for $67 (plus a $5 resort fee paid to the proshop) and think I got quite the deal. The rack rate this time of year is $135 and while that isn’t unreasonable for a premium course, I’ll take a less expensive round whenever I can get it.

I haven’t played either the Nicklaus or Watson courses yet so I cannot make a comparison for you, but I thought Palmer was a solid place. I usually enjoy a Palmer design and Reunion’s Palmer Course was no exception. However, this course seemed more difficult around the greens than the average Palmer design. It might just be me though.

The layout here has a coastal vibe and I enjoyed that aspect. The course has many bunkers, waste areas and there are minor elevation changes throughout the round. The homes that can be seen from the course felt like they would fit in somewhere along the beach. I wouldn’t have been surprised if you told me the course was located in the Outer Banks region of North Carolina.

I played the gold tees which are 70.9/133/6419. For the most part Palmer has wide fairways, although the opening holes need straight shots to score. However, the course gets tougher around the greens with elevated green complexes that kick golf shots away from the putting surfaces. There are quite a few steep drop-offs into bunkers or rough which will probably drive golfers with poor short games crazy. The greens themselves have a lot of contour.

Each nine on Palmer has quite a few good golf holes. I enjoyed the opening four holes and especially the 1st. The 1st is a 384 yard par-4 and was more difficult than I expected. It doglegs left and water to the right of the green is very much in play. The best hole on the course is probably the driveable par-4 7th. The tee shot is over water and five bunkers force someone to make a choice off the tee. The green is narrow and if you aren’t in position it is a blind shot.

I preferred the back nine since much of it plays near a wetlands area. The 13th, 14th and 15th hug the wetlands and were fun to play, especially the 14th. From the gold tees the 14th is only 119 yards (par-3) and plays over a hazard. The green is surrounded by trouble and requires an accurate short iron. I made terrible contact with the ball while teeing off, but somehow it landed on the green!

The conditions were good and in line with what I would expect for a higher-end course. I’m not positive, but I don’t think anything was overseeded – so all the lies were tight and the course played fast. If you are looking for a lush Orlando course you might want to try playing here during the summer. The greens were quick. The bunkers had adequate sand.

I’m not sure I’d pay full price to golf here, but if you can find a deal then I don’t see a reason not to play here. The wild green complexes stressed my short game and there is a lot of sand. Still, the layout felt manageable to play. Out of the courses I’ve played in the immediate area I’d say the Palmer Course is one of the better ones.

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