The inaugural tournament of the LPGA Tour 2023 season is a fantastic excuse to pack swimsuits and golf clubs and migrate to the warmth and high-quality golf of the Orlando area, at least for 36 holes and 72 hours.

The Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions features LPGA Tour winners from the previous two seasons and celebrity participants –like Michael Peña, Roger Clemens, or Alfonso Ribeiro—who join the champions on the course.

“The event has something for everyone. It mixes a display of the best female golfers in the world with the great fun of the celebrity event. There is definitively a party atmosphere in a spectacular setting,” said Hannah Vazzana, Senior Vice President and Head Communications Officer for Hilton Grand Vacations (HGV).

This first event of the LPGA season also features a live three-day concert series headlined by some of the biggest female names in music.

“All the elements combine to create a unique, fun, and inspiring event, a celebration of women in golf and a platform to support women in other ways,” added Vazzana.

The site of the HGV Tournament of Champions, Lake Nona Golf & Country Club, with a Tom Fazio-designed championship golf course and a fully equipped golf performance center is part of the world-class Orlando courses, including Bay Hill Club & Lodge, host of the PGA Tour’s Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard.

“I practice here a lot during the off-season or during off-weeks. The course is in great shape, it is very challenging,” said Japanese player Nasa Hataoka, tenth in the Women’s World Golf Rankings, member of Lake Nona and one of dozens of LPGA Tour players living in the area.

So, beyond theme parks and family activities, golf is an essential element of Orlando, also home to a good number of LPGA Professionals, including Iowan Dr. Jill Fjelstul, longtime college coach and Associate Professor at UCF Rosen College of Hospitality Management, and Elena Robles, a former Big Break contestant and a Class A Professional at Topgolf Orlando.

Clearly, Orlando offers abundant opportunities for women golf fans to enjoy tournament golf, hone their game, connect, and play with local golfers and network with influential colleagues in the area.

Here is a suggested itinerary and some links to create a grand vacation out of 36 holes and 72 hours in Orlando:

9 holes and 24 hours

Check out and check in at one of the four Hilton Grand Vacations Club resorts in Orlando: Las Palmeras, Tuscany Village, Parc Soleil, or Seaworld.

Warm up your clubs and hone your skills with a LPGA Pro at the Mike Bender Golf Academy to get competition ready.

Play 9 holes as a team or individually with the members of the local LPGA Network chapter and enjoy some celebratory drinks and food at the Dudsbread Golf Club Tap Room.

 

27 holes and 48 hours

With a higher budget and lower handicap, play 18 at one of the top golf courses in the area: Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club, Tranquilo Golf Course, The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, or the Grand Cypress Golf Club.

With a higher handicap and lower budget, play 18 at one of the regular sites of the local LPGA Amateur Golf Association events: Shingle Creek Golf Club, Celebration Golf Club, Orange County National, or Sweetwater Country Club.

Pick your level of afternoon excitement between the Wells’Built Museum of African American History and Culture, Gatorland, or the boutiques and high-end shopping at Winter Park.

Eat like a gator at one of the two James Beard Award nominees Julie and James Petrakis “gastropigs”: The Ravenous Pig in Winter Park or The Polite Pig in Disney Springs.

 

36 holes and 72 hours

Head to Lake Nona Golf and Country Club after a reenergizing brunch at Ana and Danny Otero’s JazTro.

Enjoy the last day of competition at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions following the best female golfers in the world and your favorite celebrities on the golf course and on the stage. 

Put a bow to your grand vacation sharing cocktails and swings at Topgolf Orlando.