Making a Splash at Celebration Golf Club
By Tim Cotroneo
Creating a splash is a sensation a golfer rarely wishes to experience on his or her first swing of the day. At Celebration Golf Club in Kissimmee, FL, the good news is a splash is all part of the story to tell after an 18-hole journey that never ceases to amaze.
When the Disney Company pulled back the curtain to unveil Celebration in 1996, they introduced golfers to a practice range featuring floating greens. There’s a certain buzz generated when hitting wedges-to-drivers onto a shimmering lake. Golfers will soon learn that shots on the lake is the first of many thrills for those fascinated with the idea of playing a course co-designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr. and Robert Trent Jones Jr.
Your initial Celebration property walkthrough features a sprawling yellow clubhouse, a giant clock to remind you of your upcoming tee time, and two 1928 Dodge Brothers sedans all bringing you back to a kinder, gentler period. The Disney philosophy of making everyone feel welcome holds true in this colorful throwback golf environment.
Mother Nature’s Always Right
When RTJ Senior and Junior took over the design reins of the 180-acres dedicated to Celebration, they followed a mantra that holds true for each of their courses located in 45 countries around the world. Father and son surveyed Celebration’s rolling topography, natural wetlands, and native trees. From there the duo’s design and subsequent construction was all about “following Mother Nature’s lead,” as Robert Trent Jones Jr. likes to say.
What golfers discover today is a 6.700-yard layout that has a rhythm seamlessly connecting one hole to another. When asked if Celebration has a signature hole, RTJ II offered a reply that fits all the courses in his portfolio; “We write our signature on all 18 holes,” Jones said.
The Jones’ exposure to timeless international traditions is evident as you observe that each Celebration golf hole is adorned with a name. Naming golf holes is something that began in Scotland in the 19th century. The Jones family transported this whimsical custom to Kissimmee. Your foursome will enjoy conjuring their own story behind monikers like Black Thursday on the 6th hole, Hell’s Bunker on the 7th, and Alligator Alley on number 17.
An Array of Magical Celebration Moments
Like their Disney World neighbor, Celebration Golf Club is all about unique experiences and making memories. One golfer in a threesome playing Celebration for the first time had a phone app alerting him to the SpaceX Falcon rocket launch taking place that day at nearby Kennedy Space Center. When the three golfers from Mississippi, Maryland, and Minnesota made the turn at the 10th hole, the rocket took off. Looking due east, the golfers could see red flares popping through the blue sky and clouds.
Wildlife lovers enjoy Celebration’s natural habitat and protected wetlands. Chances are good that you may spy an alligator, turtle, otter, white-tailed deer, eagle, or heron. During their round the three amigos were treated to two red-crowned sandhill cranes doing a mating dance near the third hole tee box.
The Jones family always places a premium on their Par 3 designs. Golf buffs will revel in the knowledge that Celebration’s Par 3, 196-yard, 13th hole design is the mirror image of Augusta National’s 16th hole.
A Big Finish
Celebration’s rhythm reaches a crescendo on the last four holes. Robert Trent Jones Sr. handed down the idea to son Robert that the final four holes should include a Par 3, a Par 4, and a Par 5. Robert Sr. always felt that he didn’t want a player with a particular skill set to have an advantage. The finishing holes shouldn’t be too long to the advantage of a big driver, or too difficult around the greens to the advantage of a golfer with an exceptional short game. Everyone has a chance playing a Jones design.
The Par 5, 579-yard 18th hole owns a fitting name: Keeping Up with the Jones. As the group from Mississippi, Maryland, and Minnesota gathered on the 18th tee box, it was noted that they were just a few shots from wrapping up a round they would long remember.
Upon completing their Celebration golf journey, the threesome headed past the Dodge Sedan and on to the clubhouse’s Windmill Restaurant. To culminate a round that felt wrapped in golf history, the threesome ordered Arnold Palmers to quench their thirst. The golfer from Maryland asked for extra ice to chill his drink. The bartender responded by dropping a cube, with a kerplunk, into the tall glass. After playing an amazing 18 holes at Celebration Golf Course in Kissimmee, Fl, it seems fitting that a day that that began with a splash should end with a splash.
www.experiencekissimmee.com. https://www.celebrationgolf.com
