Getting To Know: Reunion Resort and Club By Brian Weis

Getting To Know: Reunion Resort and Club

An Insightful Interview With Jake Etherton, Head Golf Professional

By Brian Weis

Whether you have played a course 20+ times a year or looking to play the course for the first time, insights from an insider can help enhance your golf experience. Below is an interview with Jake Etherton who shares some valuable tidbits about the course, memorable holes and must eats and treats at the 19th.

Give Our Readers An Overview of the Golf Course/Property
Reunion Resort is a beautiful 54-hole private stay and play. It features 3 signature design golf courses, the Palmer, Nicklaus and Watson. Reunion Resort is the only place in the world that offers all 3 names in one great, prime location. Set 15 minutes away from Disney and roughly 30 minutes from Downtown Orlando, Reunion gives you the advantage of being far enough away from the downtown business, but the prime location of being close enough to the parks for the entire family to enjoy there stay, for whatever their needs and desires may be.

If Someone Was Looking To Golf In The Area, Why Should They Play Your Course?
Here at Reunion, we offer a variety of difficulty for the beginner golfers to learn and enjoy the game, while also providing a challenge to even the more skilled golfers. For instance, the Palmer Course is geared more toward resort-friendly aspects, with open fairways, and scenic views, this course provides a relaxing and enjoyable experience for all ages and skill levels. Meanwhile, the Watson Course is our primary tournament course where we host several PGA Section events, collegiate tournaments, and major junior tournaments. One unique feature of the course is that unlike most Florida courses, the Watson has no bodies of water on it whatsoever, but 174 bunkers plus waste areas, making it a very challenging and demanding layout. Finally, the Nicklaus Course is our toughest test out of the 3 courses. It is generally thought of as more of a Florida-Links style course, where its wide open off of the tee, but the true difficulty lies in the approach shots to the green. With deep bunkers protecting the greens, and undulating terrain, this course is sure to challenge every aspect of your game.

What Tips or Local Knowledge Would You Provide To Help Them Score Better At Your Course?
It is very important on all 3 courses here at Reunion to secure a great position off the tee to ensure yourself a straight in second shot. Failure to miss your tee shot could force you to lay up out of the waste bunkers, punch out from under the trees or just be blocked out.

Recent Awards or What You Are Most Proud About The Course?
Palmer Course

Golf Digest
America's Top 40 New Courses - No.21 (2005)

GOLF Magazine
Arnold Palmer's Best Golf Courses - No. 1 (2013) The Best Courses Near You, Florida - No.27 (2010) The Best Courses Near You, Florida - No.24 (2008)

Golfweek
Best Courses You Can Play in Florida - No. 19 (2011) Best Courses You Can Play - No. 14 (2010) Top 100 Resort Courses (2009) Best Tour Courses You Can Play(2008) Best Resort Courses - No.59 (2007) Best State by State - No.10 (2007) America's Best State by State List Public Access Courses - No.12 (2006) Florida's Best Public Access Courses - No.12 (2006)

My Golf Spy
Top 10 Courses to Play in Florida - No. 4 (2016)

Golf Course Guru
Florida's Best Courses - No. 4 (2014)

Watson Course

Golf Digest
America's Best New Resort Courses - No.10 (2005)

GOLF Magazine
The Best Courses Near You, Florida - No.9 (2010) The Best Courses Near You, Florida - No.9 (2008) Top 10 Best New Courses You Can Play (2008)

Golfweek
Best Resort Courses (2017)
Best Courses You Can Play in Florida - No. 19 (2013) Best Courses You Can Play in Florida - No.19 (2011) Best Courses You Can Play - No.14 (2010) Best Resort Courses - No.22 (2010) Best Tour Courses You Can Play - No.22 (2010) Top 100 Resort Courses (2009) Best Residential Golf Courses - No.57 (2008) Best Resort Courses - No.57 (2008) Best Tour Courses You Can Play (2008) Best Residential Golf Courses - No.56 (2007) Best Resort Courses - No.36 (2007) Best State by State - No.6 (2007) America's Best Residential Golf Courses - No.38 (2006) America's Best Resort Courses - No.29 (2006) America's Best Public Access Courses, State by State List - Florida - No.4 (2006) America's Top 40 New Courses - No.12 (2005)

My Golf Spy
Top 10 Courses to Play in Florida - No. 10 (2016)

Links Magazine
Top 10 Orlando Courses You Can Play (2011)

The Orlando Business Journal
Top 25 Toughest Men's Golf Courses - No.21 (2009)

YourGolfTravel.com
Best Courses of the World - No.83 (2010)

Nicklaus Course

Golf Course Guru
Florida's Best Courses - No. 11 (2014)

Golfweek
Best Courses You Can Play - No.17 (2010) Top 100 Resort Courses (2009)

The Orlando Business Journal
Top 25 Toughest Men's Golf Courses - No.4 (2009) Top 25 Toughest Women's Golf Courses - No.2 (2009)

What Is The Signature, Most Talked About, or Most Photographed Hole?
Hole #7 on the Palmer course. It's a drivable par 4 over the water with the Resort in the background. From the back tees the carry is roughly 220 yards over the water. This is a great scenic and picturesque hole. Score could be low and score could be high.

What Is Your Favorite Hole? Any Tips to Play It?
Hole #14 on the Watson Course. It's a great risk/reward Par 5, dog-leg to the left. You can either take your tee shot the safe route and play down the fairway to the right, or you can go for it and cut the corner off to the left, giving yourself a much better chance to reach the green in two, if successful.

Must Have Dish or Drink after the round at the 19th Hole?
Our Clubhouse features a back verandah that is a great place to enjoy a meal and a post-round beverage of your choice while still having some great views of the practice facilities to reminisce and discuss the round.

Who Holds Course Record and What Was Their Score?
Austin Truslow/Palmer Course 61 Sebastian Szirmark/Watson Course 64 No current course record for Nicklaus

Back Tee Stats
Par: All courses 72
Yardage: Palmer = 6916 Watson = 7154 Nicklaus = 7219
Slope: Palmer = 142 Watson = 141 Nicklaus = 140
Rating: Palmer = 72.8 Watson = 74.9 Nicklaus = 74.8

More Information
Reunion Resort and Club
7593 Gathering Dr Kissimmee, FL, 34747
407-396-3199
www.reunionresort.com

Revised: 03/05/2018 - Article Viewed 11,624 Times - View Course Profile

About: Brian Weis

Brian Weis is the mastermind behind GolfTrips.com, a vast network of golf travel and directory sites covering everything from the rolling fairways of Wisconsin to the sunbaked desert layouts of Arizona. If there’s a golf destination worth visiting, chances are, Brian has written about it, played it, or at the very least, found a way to justify a "business trip" there.

As a card-carrying member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA), and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG), Brian has the credentials to prove that talking about golf is his full-time job. In 2016, his peers even handed him The Shaheen Cup, a prestigious award in golf travel writing—essentially the Masters green jacket for guys who don’t hit the range but still know where the best 19th holes are.

Brian’s love for golf goes way back. As a kid, he competed in junior and high school golf, only to realize that his dreams of a college golf scholarship had about the same odds as a 30-handicap making a hole-in-one. Instead, he took the more practical route—working on the West Bend Country Club grounds crew to fund his University of Wisconsin education. Little did he know that mowing greens and fixing divots would one day lead to a career writing about the best courses on the planet.

In 2004, Brian turned his golf passion into a business, launching GolfWisconsin.com. Three years later, he expanded his vision, and GolfTrips.com was born—a one-stop shop for golf travel junkies looking for their next tee time. Today, his empire spans all 50 states, and 20+ international destinations.

On the course, Brian is a weekend warrior who oscillates between a 5 and 9 handicap, depending on how much he's been traveling (or how generous he’s feeling with his scorecard). His signature move" A high, soft fade that his playing partners affectionately (or not-so-affectionately) call "The Weis Slice." But when he catches one clean, his 300+ yard drives remind everyone that while he may write about golf for a living, he can still send a ball into the next zip code with the best of them.

Whether he’s hunting down the best public courses, digging up hidden gems, or simply outdriving his buddies, Brian Weis is living proof that golf is more than a game—it’s a way of life.