ChampionsGate Golf Club- National

Davenport, Florida

With four sets of tees, Golfers of all abilities will be able to play from a distance that suits their game. The Par 72 ChampionsGate National Golf Course measures 7,128 yards from the blacks, with a demanding rating of 75.2 and a slope of 138. The remaining pin placements are blues at 6427/133 slope, the whites at 5937 /124, and the reds at 5150/117. (Interactive course tour at the bottom of this page) Besides the complimentary GPS on all carts, The National course also provides marked sprinkler heads and tees, and daily pin placement information. The classic American parkland course design has 18 contiguous holes that wind through 200 acres of secluded woodlands, wetlands, and former orange groves. With its lush fairways and greens, and the stunning natural beauty integrated into the design by Greg Norman, playing the National Golf Course is truly an Orlando golf adventure. The National Course at ChampionsGate features gently sweeping fairways, 80 sculpted bunkers, greens maintained in tour condition, clever doglegs and scenic water hazards. Water comes into play on many holes, but few forced carries means that this layout can be maneuvered by all levels of players. The sharply framed golf holes end up on smaller greens, making it a shot maker’s delight. Wayward shots will quickly unravel your round. The par-4 fifth hole is typical of challenges facing the golfer. At just 323 yards from the black tees (311 from the blues) long hitters are tempted to take a shot at the green. However, there is trouble everywhere – wetlands that you have to carry and that run down the entire left side of this dogleg left; large bunkers on the right with ball-gobbling trees right of the bunkers. If you are playing in a scramble, hit a safe hybrid or long iron, then have your big hitter go for it. The National Course has one of the best finishing stretches in the Orlando area. The par-3 14 is a short, but intimidating shot over wetlands – and is known to “eat” over 15,000 balls annually. While 16 is short, 17 is a long par 5. This difficult dogleg-left measures 636 yards from the back tees and follows a lake all the way to the green. Scoring a par requires hitting three very good long iron shots. The finishing hole is a 451-yard par 4 dogleg around a lake. Bunkers to the left, and water right of the green make the long approach visually intimidating – a real test to finish the round. The consensus is that the National Course is the easier of the two Greg Norman designed layouts – we think that’s debatable. Both ChampionsGate National and International Golf courses have received high honors from Golf Digest, Golf Week and the Zagat Golf Guide. We know you will remember the National Golf Course for its secluded setting, testing par 3 holes, and impeccably maintained fairways and greens.