Rio Pinar Golf

With prices in Orlando thru the roof , trying to play golf on vacation could be expensive. While trying to play on a budget, Rio Pinar was well above expectations.
The starter told us of the FEW bad spots on the course and some of the history as well. Very tight track. Trees on the front and less trees on the back, but both 9s are very target golf. The history of this course makes it a little oooler .

I cannot say enough good things about the investment put into the club over the past few years, from the clubhouse, to the branding (squirrel logo), to the new range, to the new fairway bunkers and waste areas. I thoroughly enjoyed my round this past weekend and think Rio Pinar is now one of the best values in Central Florida.

That said, at some juncture, they will have to redesign and expand the green complexes. Right now, the greens they have are rolling great, but they have gotten comically small, particularly Nos. 4 and 5. There is anywhere from 5-10 feet or more of encroachment from the fringe and fairways on nearly every green - you can see the old mow lines - and some of these were smaller putting surfaces to begin with.

This is definitely not a knock on the current product. Everything is headed in a positive direction. But the size of the greens is now the obvious spot for improvement. If they can expand and redesign them over time, they'll have something special on their hands.

The new owners are putting in lots of work to upgrade the course and the facilities. The range will be a Trackman facility when complete.
Once the rainy season starts, the course will be in much better shape. It is a bit dry at this time similar to other courses in the area.

Played with another single "Jim" and we had a nice round. Enjoyed some food and libations at the grill. Every day should be this good!

Our group flew into Orlando to attend Bay Hill on Saturday and play golf in Florida. The weather was perfect and this was our first course to play on this trip. The
Cost was ridiculously low - high value. Conditions were a little rough but mo complaints for the money spent. We all remember when this course hosted a PGA Tour event and we’d watch in the locker room at our home course when snow covered the ground. We had a great time kicking off our trips first day of golf.

Once a PGA stop in the ‘50s-‘60s, Rio Pinar is a bit of a faded star. While the clubhouse is clearly mid-century modern and appears to have been recently restored, the course has some issues. The good news is the layout is a real gem with strategically placed bunkers, well designed greens that require a deft touch, and landing areas that favor the player that can work the ball both ways. However, the fairways are sparse with large barren areas and many of the tees are in bad shape. Even so, the greens are in pretty good shape, roll smooth, and are a decent speed. In sum, the course simply needs some some TLC and an opportunity to grow some grass which, given the time of year and business reality, is not going to happen. Indeed, the day I played (a Thursday) the course was packed and pace of play was marginal, at best. Overall, if you can snag a GolfNow Hot Deal like I did, Rio Pinar is worth a try especially given it’s historical significance as the direct ancestor of this week’s Bay Hill Classic!

this is a good course without many really challenging holes...some water to carry and some distance but not really all that difficult. This time of year with the winter visitors, who mostly can't play golf worth a sh.t...the rounds can take a really long time...nice carts, restaurant, beverage cart and a starter...not many course have all those anymore

Played the final round of our golf trip here and glad we saved one of the best for last!!!!! The brunch was amazing. The clubhouse and check in was nice and smooth. Loved the carts because it kept score and distance to greens. The course was beautiful and couldn’t have picked a better way to finish up our trip. I would definitely play here again.

Was the last day of our golf trip and couldn’t have picked a better course to finish with. Beautiful landscape, fairways, and greens. Would definitely play this when I come back!!!!!

Greens are as hard as a rock. Fairways are ok. Overall a nice course. My biggest complaint is the cart restrictions. It is the most frustrating thing to have to deal with. If you’re within a foot off the woods, the whole cart basically shuts down. They were complaining about the pace of play, but if it wasn’t for the dumb carts we would have cut an hour off hour day. Not exaggerating. This course is not worth the price, and I do not recommend. Probably will never play here again.

ALMOST EVERYTIME I try to get a yardage from the cart I have to close out of an ADVERTISEMENT that blocks the ENTIRE screen.

I think we paid enough to not look at ads the whole day, it just takes you out of things when you’re trying to hit your approach shot!

If you’re going to play here you might want to bring and use a range finder so you’re not closing out advertising 20 times a round.

We enjoyed the classic layout of this course. Small greens were in good shape. Fairways could be improved but overall an enjoyable round was had. The course has a great history.