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| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Lake Buena Vista, Florida |
| Established | 1971 |
| Course(s) | Walt Disney World Resort (Magnolia & Palm courses) |
| Par | 72 |
| Length | 7,516 yards (6,873 m) (Magnolia) 6,957 yards (6,361 m) (Palm) |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Format | Stroke play |
| Prize fund | US$4,700,000 |
| Month played | November |
| Final year | 2012 |
| Tournament record score | |
| Aggregate | Individual: 262John Huston (1992) 262Duffy Waldorf (2000) Team: 246Vance Heafner andMike Holland (1981) |
| To par | Individual: −26as above Team: −42as above |
| Final champion | |
 Charlie Beljan | |
| Location map | |
TheWalt Disney World Golf Classic was an annualgolf tournament on thePGA Tour. The tournament was played on the Palm and Magnolia courses at theWalt Disney World Resort. It was played under several names, reflecting sponsorship changes.
The tournament was founded in 1971 as theWalt Disney World Open Invitational. From 1974 to 1981, the tournament was played as a two-man team event with a better-ball format. Title sponsors have includedOldsmobile,National Car Rental,Funai,[1] andChildren's Miracle Network.[2]
From 2007 to 2012, it was the final event in thePGA Tour Fall Series, and also the final official event of the PGA Tour season. As such, it was a final chance for many players to earn or retain a PGA Tour card through winning or getting into the top 125 on the Tour's money list. The 2010 and 2012 winners,Robert Garrigus andCharlie Beljan respectively, were both outside the top 125 before their wins.
The tournament was removed from the PGA Tour schedule for the 2013–14 wrap-around season afterChildren's Miracle Network declined to renew their sponsorship and no others were found.[3]
The 2012 purse was $4,700,000, with $846,000 going to the winner.
The event was televised byESPN andABC Sports, until the demotion of the event to the Fall Series in 2007, when it was relegated to cable-only on theGolf Channel. While ESPN and ABC, which are owned by Disney, covered both courses as a form of publicity for both, the Golf Channel covered only the Magnolia course with highlight packages sent in from the Palm. However, this is the manner in which the network has always covered tournaments with multiple venues.
The Magnolia Course at Walt Disney World is known as more "tour"-style than its sister the Palm Course.[citation needed] The Palm course is known as the prettier of the two, however.[citation needed] In the 2006 telecast, one commentator is quoted as saying that the Palm course has the better greens of the two courses.[citation needed] The Magnolia has grown to 7,516 yards to battle the usual low scores during the tournament's history.
The nearby Lake Buena Vista golf course has also been part of the tournament, along with the Palm and Magnolia.
