PaulSturgess

Panther Lake never fails to impress. Greens we’re probably as slick as Ive ever known them. Course in good condition considering the time of year and a pleasure to play.

Legends sits high on our list of “must plays” every year now. Since re-opening a few years ago, the course can always be relied on to be in good shape. However, because of this, it can prove to be very popular,resulting in slowish rounds if you get unlucky behind novice groups. We saw no course marshals to hurry things along on a busy Saturday afternoon. There had been a Junior Competition, but that had all but finished. Refreshment cart came by us on the 2nd tee but never re-appeared.

Greens are great, tee boxes are good and fairways generous and generally not too wet.

I would recommend this to all standards, providing they play the tees for their standard.

What a difference a year makes. HR is now a joy to play. A friendly and helpful greeting, and a well stocked reception are the perfect start. Tees are all nicely manicured. The greens had just been dressed when we played, but the greens staff had quickly watered this in. Additional use of a green iron (we watched them early one morning) has transformed these into true running greens that react to good shots as they should. We will definitely play here again during our vacation and I recommend others try it. Pace of play was good (4-ball off white tees at 3h 40m). Fairways have good growth on them.

Finally, whoever planned the course maintenance and re-design project needs a big pat on the back for a job very well done.

They’ve clearly spent a lot of money to get this up to a reasonable standard. Not sure whether the Black tees will be sustainable as they’ll need seriously good golfers playing them to make them worthwhile and the rest of the course won’t attract that level of golfer. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not in bad condition, but the priority should be grassing the fairways more and improving the bunkers and the reception area.

It’s a challenging layout for regular golfers.

Unfortunately, the clubhouse is more like a MacDonalds eating area and the reception desk staff don’t appear very motivated. Cart guy was friendly and helpful.

Do NOT be swayed by reviews suggesting this is in good condition. There are many very wet areas still and we have no idea what the greens are like because they were covered in sand. Cart path only was prevalent on many holes. Pace of play was great because there was nobody ahead of us until the last 5 holes, so, as regular low handicap players, our fourball took 3 hours 15mins.
Amenities/Facilities are non existent. We finished at around 4.00 pm and they were shutting up the clubhouse. We were told there were restroom facilities on the course - the one on 16th hole would embarrass a family of pigs.
We have given 4 stars for value for money because we got a Hot Deal @ $30 - that is a fair price as long as they spend it on cleaning the Portaloo - don’t pay any more.

We’ve loved El Campeon in previous years, and it is highly recommended always by many, me included. However, because of this, it is now overused, and sadly, by many standards of golfers. The pace of play is now appalling, and unfortunately no sign of course marshalling. We packed up after 14 holes @ 3h 45m.
Fortunately the starter team were great and suggested we could play 9 on Las Colinas, which we’d never played before. The difference was amazing. Great layout, great condition (not overplayed) and a joy to play. Will definitely return and play Las Colinas for 18 holes.

This was our first visit to King’s Ridge, and I’d certainly like to play it again. However, fairways and green surrounds were very “worn”.
We must have picked a bad day for the greens too, so difficult to judge these. They look as though they could be a good experience. However, for us, they were a big disappointment. Not only had they just been top-dressed, but every flag except the last was located a yard from the green’s edge, which made them so inaccessible and unenjoyable.
Saying all that, it looks like a great layout, although the I’d suggest switching the two nines round for a much better start and finish.

Our first time playing, and a good course was spoilt by very slow play (5 hours). Also spoilt by the inability of the course marshall to do anything about it despite being aware of the problem and culprits.
Pro-shop staff were friendly, and stock is all reasonably priced. Cart girl very cheery. Barman less cheery.
Greens very pure and a good pace and all a good size. The whole layout is a great challenge from all tees, and if it hadn’t been for the slow play it would have been a definite return.

Southern Dunes is a quality course, and one of the best in the area west of Orlando. Tees are excellent and greens are well presented, if a bit slower than they look, unless you’re the wrong side of the flag. Speed of play was lethargic at best, and would be improved if they had a course Marshall or two.
There are, I understand, 180 or more sand traps - if only they had enough rakes! They surely don’t cost a lot. They are sadly lacking, resulting in many, many unraked areas with footprints galore.

Regrettably there were no facilities available to us on the day we played due to a crossover with change of management. We found this short-sighted, as many, like us, will plan to eat/drink prior to play and arrive early. We were not alerted to this when booking, so found ourselves with over an hour to kill. The Pro Shop staff weren’t bothered by our plight, however the starter was great and sneaked us in. We are quick players, and found the pace of play good. Our 4-ball lost the 2-ball behind us.
Greens are very good and true. Rough is a.but scruffy in places, as we’re the tees. Fairways were excellent, and we enjoyed the layout. Blue tee yardage at around 6700 was not over-taxing for us (H’caps 5, 10, 13) and represent a fair challenge.
Will definitely come back.

HR is not, they would admit themselves, in the greatest condition, though more from the weather conditions recently than neglect on the management’s part. Nothing wrong with the tees, and, whilst the greens look poor, they run fairly true.

Green fringes are tatty, and what rough there is, is well named.

The speed of play wasn’t great, but around 4 hours would have been acceptable if hadn’t been a two-ball.

This is now firmly on our “must play” courses every time we holiday in Orlando. The greens run true, as do fairways, which,whilst generous, can be difficult to find if you’re not on your game.
There are a multitude of tees for all standards. We played Blue, which at around 6400 is a great challenge for holiday golf.

Aggressive pricing makes this the bargain golf choice in the Orlando area at present. At $25 per head, you won’t find a better quality course at such good value for money.

Greens look and play well, and, considering the footfall, the fairways play well. But don’t expect the round to be quick, unless you get out early. It is full most days. We’ve played here twice recently. Early start took 3h 30mins for 4-ball, late start took 5 hours for 2-ball.

Well worth the money if you get lucky.

We holiday every year in Davenport and always play Panther Lake. It has never disappointed.

This is just great for societies, couples or single golfers. If you want a challenge, the back tees are a good one They’ve cut down a lot of diseased trees since we were here last year and it hasn’t detracted from the way the course plays too much.

Give it a try or two if you want golf thrills without the frills.

Always a “must play” whenever we visit Orlando. A great challenge for all levels. Speed of play is marshalled well and great practice facilities.

This course is a joy to play, and many courses in the area would learn from a round at Crooked Cat that you don’t need hugely sloping greens to provide golfers of all standards with a fair, but difficult challenge. All the bunker and greens were in great condition and the whole place runs like clockwork. Marshalling is both proactive and reactive and the whole experience was a joy.

We visit the Orlando area for golf every year, and wouldn't ever miss out on Panther Lake.
The course layout and standard are top notch. The course marshalling is a bit too pompous having waited on most shots on front nine, to be asked to keep up with the group in front was difficult to understand.

Going by the amount of construction and groundwork going on, there’s a lot of money going into flattening the landscape to increase housing. Let’s just hope they flatten most of the greens at the same time!
Contrary to their belief. Golfers don’t want to 4 and 5 putt greens just because they are set up to give impossible putts. This course is in the right area because it’s very Mickey Mouse. It is also very scruffy around the edges with lots of areas in need of repair.

Highlands Reserve is a nice clean wholesome friendly Golf Course that we keep coming back to year after year. It’s unpretentious nature is a joy, and whilst it’ll never reach the manicured state of some other nearby courses, you’ll struggle to find a friendlier club in this area. From the green keepers to the pro shop staff, they all make one feel welcome.