The Country Club of Orlando opened in 1911 with nine holes built by Tom Bendelow, one of the most active early-American golf architects. Contemporary local reporting and subsequent research indicate that when the club expanded to eighteen in 1918, Bendelow likely returned to re-plan the course. For much of the twentieth century the club credited Donald Ross with the 1918 work; however, the best available documentary synthesis suggests Ross’s role was, at most, advisory—perhaps a submitted routing—but not the executed build. The absence of surviving club plans or Tufts Archives correspondence specific to Orlando leaves the matter unresolved; what is clear is that the expansion to eighteen occurred in 1918 and the club thereafter evolved significantly.
A major reconfiguration occurred in the 1950s when Robert Trent Jones Sr. constructed three new holes—today’s fifth, sixth, and seventh—on newly acquired ground, a change that altered the sequence and character of the opening half. Later decades brought additional incremental renovations (documented by the club in 1960, 1976, and 1990), further distancing the course from any single early-era author.
In 2016–2017, the club commissioned Ron Forse and Jim Nagle to undertake a full reconstruction with the explicit brief of restoring a traditional, early-20th-century aesthetic and strategic feel. Forse and Nagle concluded that a “restoration” was not feasible given the patchwork of prior alterations; instead they rebuilt all eighteen greens and associated features, drawing on a “Ross greatest-hits” playbook informed by period photography (notably 1931 images of Seminole) and their fieldwork on verified Ross courses. The project also modernized drainage, added environmental swales, rebuilt the driving range, and created a three-hole short course; Landscapes Unlimited executed the construction. The course reopened in December 2017.
Unique Design Characteristics (as seen today)
The present layout showcases a series of newly constructed greens and hazards whose inspirations are traceable to specific Ross precedents:
No. 2 (par 4)—a demanding mid-length two-shotter with the green offset left, guarded by a pond short-left and flanking bunkers, including the course’s deepest bunker on the left. The water hazard terminates before the putting surface, encouraging a bold line from the fairway while punishing over-drawn approaches.
No. 3 (short par 4)—a right-dogleg around a prominent fairway bunker with additional left-side bunkers that pinch the landing. The green’s internal swale references the fourteenth at Country Club of Buffalo, a Ross original Forse studied closely.
No. 6 (par 3)—built on the RTJ corridor but reimagined as a “Ross Redan,” presenting a long diagonal green influenced by the fourteenth at Peninsula G&CC and the sixth at Hyannisport. The angle and contouring promote a running shot that uses the green’s fall.
No. 9 (par 4)—a “double punchbowl” green of two bowls separated by a spine, a modernized riff on punchbowl tropes Forse and Nagle observed at Ross’s Wannamoisett (No. 12) and Cohasset (No. 9).
Nos. 14–15 (back-to-back par 5s)—a consecutive pair uncommon in Florida, using landforms and bold green contour to create scoring volatility late in the round.
No. 18 (par 4)—finishes at the course’s largest green, explicitly inspired by Oyster Harbors’ closing surface, allowing a wide variety of approach trajectories and pin placements.
Because the 2017 work rebuilt all greens and most bunkering, the clearest “surviving examples” of historic authorship are corridors rather than surfaces—especially across the inner “core” holes that predate RTJ’s expansion. Within these corridors, Forse/Nagle’s contouring seeks to re-center play on ground angles, diagonals off tee hazards, and elevated targets that mimic Ross norms, even as the features themselves are modern reconstructions.
Historical Significance
Within Florida’s pre-Seminole chronology, the Country Club of Orlando stands out for its early (1911) founding and for being a golf-only urban property—a rarity in the state, where many clubs developed with real estate components. Its import to Ross scholarship lies less in pristine originality than in the historiography: Orlando illustrates how attributions formed in club memory can persist absent primary documentation, and how contemporary practitioners approach such sites—choosing thematic, precedent-based reconstruction when a literal restoration is impossible. The course’s century-long evolution includes RTJ’s mid-century intervention and a 2017 rebuild that has since hosted routine USGA qualifying (e.g., U.S. Junior Amateur local qualifying), maintaining competitive relevance while presenting an historically informed aesthetic.
Current Condition / Integrity
Integrity to any single “original Ross” state is necessarily limited. By the 2010s, multiple generations of changes (including the RTJ trio of holes and various 1960/1976/1990 renovations) had obscured early-era features. The 2017 project therefore reconstructed all eighteen greens with elevated pads and pronounced internal movement, rebuilt or repositioned bunkers throughout, rationalized tree canopies, re-engineered drainage, and regrassed the course to eliminate winter overseed—changes that clarify lines of play and restore firmness. Practice infrastructure was rebuilt, including the range and a three-hole short course used for member development. What has been preserved are several historic corridors and the core-golf land use; what is new are the green complexes, most bunkers, and the hole-by-hole ground game calibrated to Ross precedents. Members and raters have responded positively to the resulting “vintage” feel, even as the club correctly acknowledges that the work is a renovation rather than a strict restoration.
Sources & Notes
Adam Lawrence, “Country Club of Orlando: Ross’s greatest hits,” Golf Course Architecture (feature), Aug. 11, 2020. Establishes Bendelow’s 1911 nine, the 1918 expansion (likely by Bendelow), RTJ’s 1950s holes (5–7), and details of the Forse/Nagle 2017 reconstruction with hole-specific inspirations; notes lack of primary documentation and use of 1931 Seminole photos as guidance.
Sean Dudley, “Positive feedback for Forse Design’s work at CC of Orlando,” Golf Course Architecture (news), Jan. 30, 2018. Confirms scope: rebuilt greens with Ross-style feel, drainage re-engineering, environmental swales, renovated range and three-hole short course, construction by Landscapes Unlimited.
Country Club of Orlando, “Golf” and “Our History” web pages (accessed 2025). Club asserts a Donald Ross designed course; history page documents the 166⅓-acre campus and lists major renovation eras; golf page notes reopening in December 2017 after full renovation. Note: these are club-authored statements and not primary architectural plans.
Disputed / Uncertain Points
Ross’s role c. 1918: Club tradition credits Ross with the 1918 eighteen-hole course. Adam Lawrence’s reporting—based on local newspaper accounts—finds stronger evidence that Tom Bendelow replanned the expansion, with Ross’s involvement (if any) limited to a proposed routing; lack of surviving plans or correspondence prevents a definitive conclusion. Verification would require discovery of original drawings (Ross office), invoices, or club minutes specifying the designer of record for the 1918 work.