Formerly known as the Independence course, the Watson layout at the 54-hole Reunion Resort debuted in 2004 and despite an open feel it’s a visually exciting golf course with bold bunkering.
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Formerly known as the Independence course, the Watson layout at the 54-hole Reunion Resort debuted in 2004 and despite an open feel it’s a visually exciting golf course with bold bunkering.
Reunion Resort (Watson)
Boasting 18-hole designs from Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson, the impressive golf complex at Reunion Resort occupies only a small portion of a massive 2,300-acre property that lies to the south west of Orlando.
The Watson layout (originally known as “Independence”) and Palmer course (previously named “Legacy”) were first to appear at the resort in 2004, followed a couple of years later by the longer, tougher “Tradition,” which has also now been renamed after its designer, Jack Nicklaus.
Enjoying changes in elevation of up to fifty feet, which is rare for Florida, the Watson course is a heavily bunkered layout featuring a number of long punishing par fours, such as the 4th and 5th on the outward half then holes 10 and 18 on the back nine.
Some of the more memorable holes include the 240-yard 7th (with a large waste bunker between tee and green), the right doglegged 13th (which plays to a deceptively difficult raised green) and the par five 17th, where a plethora of sand traps skirt the fairway en route to a deep, narrow putting surface.
The short-lived Ginn Open on the LPGA Tour lasted for only three years at Reunion, beginning in 2006, when a composite course (using the front nine on both the Palmer and Watson courses) was used for the event. Lorena Ochoa finished runner up in the first two editions of the tournament before claiming the first prize at her third attempt in 2008.