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Disney’s Magnolia course to reopen following Ken Baker redesign

  • Magnolia
    Walt Disney World Resort

    Walt Disney World Resort will reopen 14 holes of the Magnolia course in December following a redesign by Ken Baker

Richard Humphreys
By Richard Humphreys

The Magnolia course at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, will reopen following a redesign by Ken Baker of One Club Limited.

Magnolia will initially reopen on 12 December as a 14-hole layout while the finishing touches are made to the remaining four holes, with the full 18 open early in 2023.

The Magnolia layout was one of the original Walt Disney World Resort golf courses when it opened in 1971. Its redesign follows major changes on the Palm course in 2013, Oak Trail in 2014 and 2018, and Lake Buena Vista in 2018.

The project at Magnolia has included redesigning the fourteenth hole from a par five to a four, with players hitting to a new green; relocating and converting the par-three fifteenth into a long par five; shifting the par-four sixteenth to play with a dogleg left; and converting the seventeenth from a par four to a three. The project also includes the construction of a bridge that will connect the sixteenth and seventeenth holes.

Work on the Magnolia has also involved building new tees, rebunkering and renovating greens. Contractor Heritage Links has executed the work.

“These are going to be dramatic changes to the Magnolia course that will create a playing experience that will be challenging yet fun for all golfers,” said Faron Kelley, vice president of Disney Sports.

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