Bay Hill Club & Lodge - Championship Course

I think we get caught up in this idea than any place that hosts a tour event has to be a classic golf course or wow us in spectacular fashion. Sometimes we overthink it. Bay Hill is simply a typical Florida golf course, solid and well-designed with a number of memorable holes. Two of the par 5s -- 6 and 16 -- are outstanding, and the par 3s are above average, too. Plus, there's the added bonus there's a good chance you'll see Arnold Palmer there if you spend a couple of days at the small resort club.

A stay-and-play at Orlando's Bay Hill is special for a variety of reasons, starting with, of course, the fact Arnold Palmer lives here and is much of a regular here as any resident member. During a stay here, you just get the sense that everyone knows they're in the house of the king, and acts and dressed accordingly. Compared to your average Orlando mega-resort, Bay Hill's class and smaller scale is all too refreshing.

The golf course, meanwhile, is a wonderful, classic design that just feels like it's a PGA Tour venue at every turn. A recent renovation raised a lot of traps, so from the tee, you can see all the trouble in front of you. To my eye, I really liked how the course set up on just about every tee box.

We were playing Bay Hill the day before the PLAYERS kicked off just up the road at Sawgrass, and while pros are lamenting poor greens, we were putting on butter smooth surfaces.

We played the middle of 5 tees (about 6400 & change), and it still felt like plenty of golf, thanks to doglegs, forced carries and each par-3 seemed pretty long as well, requiring mid-irons at the least.

Be sure to hang in the locker room a little bit after your round. It's fully-stocked to say the least, down to the full bar in there, and if you browse the names adoring lockers you'll see some rather familiar ones. Staff is on point at every turn, whether in the lodge, restaurants or golf shop. And when you know the King could walk in any second, it's a sure bet the product is going to be polished 24/7.

Once you've played a few of Orlando's resort courses than can have a bit more of a hustle 'n bustle to them, you'll adore a day Bay Hill all that much more.

I've lived in Orlando for 21 years and only had played Bay Hill once. That was quite a long time ago. But I've covered the Arnold Palmer Invitational for 15 years and know every hole quite well.

For starters, this is Arnold Palmer's playground, what more do you need to know? The place was in great shape and was every bit as challenging as I had remembered. If you're not having a particularly good ball-striking day some of the longer holes, and holes with water, can tend to cause you severe angst.

But the layout is fantastic and the three closing holes are as memorable of a closing stretch as there is in golf. The day was complete when I ran into Mr. Palmer after the round. He was kind enough to take a photo with me, which is something I've wanted to do for the last 17 years that I've been in the golf industry.

Mission complete.

I'd covered the Bay Hill tournament for a number of years and finally had a chance to play earlier this year. When the conditions are firm and fiery, and when the rough is up, Bay Hill is all the golf course you want. Fortunately, the track played a bit easier when I played, and I hit it enough good shots to negate the many, many poor ones. It's always fun to play a PGA Tour course, because you can visualize how the pros get around the place. Even for the amateurs, though, there are a lot of fun holes to play, particularly on the back nine (16-18).

Bay Hill is a fun experience, a definite must play in Orlando. The course layout was interesting, though some holes just really don't do it for me. Having watched the tournament on TV my entire life, the finishing stretch of 16, 17, 18 are really fun. 18 has produced a lot of drama and it's fun to relive those moments when you play.

The food at the facility is excellent and the clubhouse (hats off!) has so many classic pictures Mr Palmer with the who's-who of sports, music and politics from the 50's to today.

The really cool thing about playing Bay Hill is that you have a reasonable chance of seeing The King himself when you are there. Today I was out for lunch and got to say hello. Warning....don't wear your hat in the clubhouse. Mr. Palmer is not a fan of that. Years ago Bay Hill had a reputation of not being well conditioned except around tournament time. That is certainly not the case now. I play the course quite frequently and the conditioning is always excellent. The opening three holes are among the toughest on tour and the closing three are among the most exciting. And the middle 12, well no slackers there. Bay Hill is a challenging course that is well worth playing especially if you have been a fan of the Arnold Palmer Invitational over the years. In so many ways television just doesn't do it justice. Two tips for you....don't bite off too much of the lake at number 6. Bring a camera.

I haven't played Bay Hill since 2011, but I still remember the experience fondly. It was within six weeks of the tournament, so no one was allowed to hit off the grass on the range. The course was rounding into pristine shape, and the layout had more subtle rolls of elevations than I remembered. It's one of my favorite Florida golf experiences, even if you don't happen to run into the King himself, Arnold Palmer. Everybody remembers the three-hole finishing stretch for all the dramatic moments seen on TV. My favorite hole is the crescent moon-shaped par-5 sixth hole where John Daly made an 18 in the 1998 tournament. I might have tossed up a snowman at some point, but at least I beat Big John.

I have played Bay Hill many times but this particular round was freezing. It did not make the course any easier. They are already prepping the course for the tournament and the greens were really quick! The rough is also tough so I'd advise you to hit as many fairways as possible.
There are a few easy holes and a few very tough holes, but it all evens out in the end. You need to birdie a couple of the par 5s to keep your score respectable.
I love the food, I love the practice facilities, and you'll probably spot the King while you're there. I'd definitely recommend Bay Hill if you are in town and able to play it.

One of my favorites in Orlando. Challenging but fair. Keep it in the fairway and you'll have a good round, but beware, the rough will wait as long as it takes to get a hold of you. When it does, don't try anything crazy. Great conditions, and maybe you'll see Mr. Palmer in the clubhouse. Members and Lodge guest only.

Let's be honest, Bay Hill is all about Arnold Palmer. It's not the best course in Florida and it might not even be in the discussion for best in or around Orlando, but none of the competition has the charm and mystique of The King. He might be at the breakfast table next to you, the foursome behind you or standing right in front of you. And even if you don't get to see golf's greatest gift, the walls are decorated with enough pictures and memorabilia that you will feel as though you made a connection to an American Icon who has enjoyed a transcendent career on and off the course. And as for Bay Hill—the resort—it underwent a $7 million renovation in 2007. You have to stay there to play the course, which received a $2 million facelift in 2010. They improved grass from tee to green, carts paths and drainage, raised bunkers and straightened fairway lines. "We lit the place up," was what Mr. Palmer's design associate told me. And he was right. Bay Hill is back to looking as bright as one of Mr. Palmer's yellow golf shirts. It's a good walk, fair test and the course is fun, especially the finishing holes, which can make or break your score. Visit October thru March for the best chance of an Arnold Palmer sighting, who winters in Orlando and hits balls on the far-right side of the driving range. When I interviewed Mr. Palmer for a story I wrote for Golf Digest in 2010, he told me, "We want it to be a first-class, feel-comfortable-type place. It's part of the mystique about Bay Hill -- family. I bought it so that I could have a place to practice, and so I could feel like I was at home." And that's something none of the other 170+ courses in the Orlando area can offer...a tour of The King's Castle.

From the moment you turn into Bay Hill off of Apopka-Vineland Rd., the experience becomes a bit surreal. First of all, in the land of exclusive gated communities, Bay Hill stands nearly alone in Central Florida as a not-gated exclusive community. That was the first refreshing part of my first trip there. Much like the character of the King himself, Bay Hill just has a welcoming feel to it from the time you step out of the car until the time you have to call it a day. You can sense Arnie's presence at all times, even when he's not on site.

As for the course itself, in a word, it's tough. It also has a bit of an old school feel to it as it really isn't a visually intimidating (see Pete Dye) course at all. However, the difficulty is in the fact that it just never lets up...well, that and the length. And whatever the scorecard says, it seems to play about 300 yards longer. I kept waiting to get to the easy holes, and next thing you know, we were finished. Even the shorter holes are made very demanding by the precision required into the greens in order to leave a makeable putt.

All in all, you'll remember just about every hole after you leave and they're all tremendous. Arnie always strives to build courses that can challenge the best players in the world, yet be enjoyable to higher handicap recreational golfers. At Bay Hill, he succeeded in spades.

By far one of the best courses in the world. It offers all the challenges you see on TV and the final few holes are no exception. I was a little disappointed in the condition of the course since it always look so great during the tournament. Overall, would always play it again.

Mr. Palmer is a solid course designer and I think the changes that were made the greens a few years back have paid homage to Dick Wilson's original design. For those lucky enough to find their way onto this Orlando gem, do yourself a favor and breath in the history on one of the PGA Tour's best closing stretches. 16, 17 and 18 are quite possibly some of the most exciting, thrilling holes a golfer gets to play.

If you're fortunate enough to get this far with a good round in tact, good luck and well done because the front nine and middle stretch of your round will be well tested with a variety of holes that force you to move the ball both ways off the tee, be precise with your irons and I certainly hope you hire a caddie to navigate the perfectly manicured greens.

The practice facility is one of Orlando's best with a huge putting green, solid short game facility and a driving range that always has a spot roped off on the right side for Mr. Palmer. Do yourself a favor and find a way to play this course - one of Orlando's best.

Was able to play this course and had a great time. For playing mid-summer it was in great condition and would recommend to anyone.

Home to the King, what more can you say!! Great layout, tough for the average golfer, but still a lot of fun to play.

The customer experience you get at Bay Hill is quite amazing. You truly feel like one of the members. Everything from the rooms to the course to the restaurants to the bathrooms is in outstanding condition! And not much more need be said about playing a golf course that the Pro's play. I was expecting more from a course layout perspective.

One of the coolest things about playing Bay Hill in recent years is that there's always a good chance you might see Arnold Palmer somewhere on the premises -- the locker room, grill and on the range. And he's approachable. He actually doesn't mind if you say hello, but I'd probably be wary of asking for an autograph or a picture. As for the course, it's terrific Florida golf, punctuated by two of the best par 5s in the Orlando and a great finishing hole. As you might expect for a tour level course, conditioning is superb and so is the experience.