Fore! MAAC Championships to Return to Walt Disney World Golf Course in 2026

Plus, for the first time in the conference's history, the tournament will have a new format.
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A popular golf championship is set to return to Walt Disney World in 2026, this time taking on a new format for the first time since the conference’s history.

What’s Happening:

  • The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC), Walt Disney World Resort and Arnold Palmer Golf Management have announced the return of the MAAC Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships to Disney’s Magnolia Golf Course at Walt Disney World in 2026.
  • The MAAC will unveil a new championship format, separating the men’s and women’s championships for the first time in conference history.
  • 2026 will mark the first time in 28 years of MAAC golf that the championships will split and both the men and women will have standalone championship weeks at Disney’s Magnolia Golf Course.
  • The Women’s Golf Championships will run April 21-23, 2026. The Men’s Golf Championships will be played April 28-30, 2026.
  • The partnership also continues the MAAC’s collaboration with the Greater Orlando Sports Commission (GO Sports), which helps showcase the Orlando region as a premier destination for collegiate championships and sports tourism. Together with Walt Disney World Resort and Arnold Palmer Golf Management, the MAAC and GO Sports will work to elevate the student-athlete and fan experience while highlighting the growth of golf in the region.
  • Disney’s Magnolia Golf Course has hosted the MAAC Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships a conference-high 15 times and Lake Buena Vista, FL has been the home of the championships annually since 2000. The MAAC Championships have previously been played on Magnolia’s greens in 2003, 2005-08, 2011-12, 2015-22, and 2025.

Golf at Walt Disney World:

  • The Magnolia is one of the two original courses at Walt Disney World, along with the neighboring Palm, both dating back to the resort’s opening back in 1971.
  • Over time additional courses were added (and some removed), with the whole of Walt Disney World now featuring a total of four courses - Palm, Magnolia, Lake Buena Vista, and Oak Trail - the latter of which is a 9-hole walking course.
  • Magnolia (where the tournaments will take place) has been described as a well-manicured par-72 course that has all the earmarks of a top-flight course with elevated tees and greens, rolling terrain and a very popular Mickey Mouse-shaped sand hazard on the 6th hole.
  • The location, which has recently gone through reworking and enhancements, is located near Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa, and was originally designed by Joe Lee - with the new designs coming from Ken Baker, retaining the name that comes from the more than 1,500 magnolia trees surrounding the course.
  • It is also the longest of Disney’s four courses.
  • After the redesigns, each hole now has a Disney theme and an inspiring quote from Walt Disney or golf legend Arnold Palmer. As an example, the aformentioned hole #6 is called “The Mouse Trap’’ and features Walt Disney’s quote “I hope we never lose sight of one thing – that it was all started by a mouse.’’ Hole #15 is called “The Dinglehopper’’ (a reference to The Little Mermaid) with an Arnold Palmer quote featured.

 

What They’re Saying:  

  • MAAC Commissioner Travis Tellitocci: “We are excited to extend our partnership with Arnold Palmer Golf Management and the Greater Orlando Sports Commission to host the MAAC Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. The MAAC has held its golf championships on Disney’s property since 2000, and this continued collaboration reflects our shared commitment to providing a premier championship experience for our coaches and student-athletes. We are proud to align our championships with a globally recognized brand on a course that has hosted PGA Tour events and boasts a rich history of championship golf."
  • Bruce Gerlander, General Manager of Arnold Palmer Golf Management: “For more than four decades, Disney's Magnolia served as a favorite stop on the PGA Tour, and we look forward to welcoming back the MAAC student athletes! We've assembled an incredible team that is devoted to creating the best possible experience for our guests who travel here for a championship caliber golf vacation."
  • Alex Forsyth, Director of Sales & Marketing, for Arnold Palmer Golf Management: “We’re excited to eventually see the completion of the re-imagination project and have Disney’s Magnolia Golf Course fully re-open for play. It is thrilling for us to see our Guests enjoy all of the hard work that has been injected into the course design, and the assembly of all the different components that together comprise an elevated experience for these guests. Disney’s Magnolia Golf Course ties together in the most unique way the Arnold Palmer brand, and that of The Walt Disney Company. The traditional and historical connotations that the Palmer brand carries have been melded together with an element of fun and whimsicalness that the Disney brand is renowned for. Our guests can celebrate the various Disney story lines and characters through the newly assigned hole names, while learning from inspirational quotes spoken by two of America’s iconic pioneers of the 20th century. Even the putting green, now known as “The Greatest Green Ever Played" has a story to tell, and there’s no forgetting “Grumpy’s Gauntlet", holes #14 - #17, which now more than ever serve as a stern test of championship caliber golf to complete your round. All in all, there’s no more memorable and magical round of golf than that of the newly re-imagined Disney’s Magnolia Golf Course!"
  • Jason Siegel, President & CEO of the Greater Orlando Sports Commission: “Congratulations to the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, Walt Disney World Resort and Arnold Palmer Golf Management on extending their partnership to host the MAAC Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships at the renowned Magnolia Golf Course. This commitment not only elevates the student-athlete experience, but also reinforces Greater Orlando’s position as a premier destination for championship golf and collegiate sports. Thank you to our partners at Orange County and Visit Orlando for their continued support of our efforts to secure world-class events for this community."

 

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Tony Betti
Originally from California where he studied a dying artform (hand-drawn animation), Tony has spent most of his adult life in the theme parks of Orlando. When he’s not writing for LP, he’s usually watching and studying something animated or arguing about “the good ole’ days” at the parks.
View all articles by Tony Betti