Disney World today reopens its renovated Magnolia Course reopens as a 14-hole layout while the finishing touches are made to the remaining four holes The full 18 holes holes of Disney’s signature course, managed by Arnold Palmer Golf Management, will reopen in early in 2023.
The Magnolia layout was one of the original Walt Disney World Resort golf courses when it opened in 1971 and has hosted several PGA Tour events. The redesign follows major changes on the Disney Palm course in 2013, Oak Trail in 2014 and 2018, and Lake Buena Vista in 2018 and is expected to raise the visibility of Disney Golf and Disney Golf stay and play packages.
The project at Magnolia, which plays more than 7,500 yards from the back tees, included redesigning the fourteenth hole from a par five to a four, with players hitting to a new green; relocating and converting the par-three fifteenth into a long par five; shifting the par-four, 16th to play with a dogleg left; and converting the 17th from a par four to a three. The project also includes the construction of a bridge that will connect the 16th and 17th holes.
Work on the Magnolia has also involved building new tees, rebunkering and renovating greens. Contractor Heritage Links has executed the work. All told, Magnolia now has five sets of tees, the shortest being 5,200 yards.
“These are going to be dramatic changes to the Magnolia course that will create a playing experience that will be challenging yet fun for all golfers,” said Faron Kelley, vice president of Disney Sports.
in celebration of the course’s 50-year history and the decades to come, each hole has been given a new Disney-themed name borrowed from a classic Disney film, and paired up with a quote from either Walt Disney or Arnold Palmer.
Photo Credit: Walt Disney World