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Links & Lodgings
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By: Jenny Caspersonn and John Digby, Issue 39 – Winter 2009
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(Golf Courses Australia and New Zealand)
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AUSTRALIANS ARE FORTUNATE TO HAVE SOME OF THE WORLD’S FINEST GOLF COURSES WITHIN EASY REACH. FROM THE QUEENSLAND COAST, TO MELBOURNE’S SAND BELT, WESTERN AUSTRALIA’S WINE COUNTRY OR NEW ZEALAND’S PICTURESQUE BACKDROPS, THE DISTINCTIVE AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND LANDSCAPES MAKE FOR A VARIETY OF COURSES. IF IT’S A GOLFING CHALLENGE YOU’RE AFTER, OR MEMORABLE ON-COURSE ACCOMMODATION, HERE WE LOOK AT MORE THAN 50 OF A GROWING NUMBER OF FIRST-RATE RESORTS IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.
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TASMANIA
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Country Club Tasmania
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Country Club Tasmania on the rural fringe of Launceston has a variety of accommodation ranging from hotel rooms and luxury suites to self-contained villas and a selection of restaurants and bars. Its international-standard golf course was designed by Mike Wolveridge and Peter Thomson and the club also has tennis courts, indoor pools and a health centre.
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Country Club Tasmania
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Quamby Golf and Country Club
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Although only nine holes, Quamby’s elevated fairways have magnificent views to the Ben Lomond Ranges and the Great Western Tiers. The fairways are lined by large mature trees planted in rows with garden avenues, hedgerows, watercourses, lakes and ponds. The homestead was built in the 1830s and is a rare example of Anglo-Indian architecture set in sweeping grounds reminiscent of an English parkland setting.
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Quamby Golf & Country Club
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Barnbougle Dunes Country Club
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Perhaps one of the best links courses in Australia, Barnbougle on the north-east coast of Tasmania was designed by famed American golf architect Tom Doak and Australian Michael Clayton. The spectacular ocean landscape has led to it being voted the 35th best golf course and the 7th best public access course in the world. Accommodation is in cabins close to the clubhouse.
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Barnbougle Dunes Country Club
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SOUTH AUSTRALIA
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McCracken Country Club
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An hour from Adelaide at Victor Harbour, the McCracken golf course is a championship 18-hole links/lakes style track, boasting spectacular views of the Hindmarsh Valley and beyond. Designed by Tony Cashmore, the 74 bunkers and 14 lakes make it a challenging layout. The 4.5-star country club has an indoor lap pool, sauna and spa as well as a state-of-the-art health club, including gymnasium and floodlit tennis courts.
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McCracken Country Club
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Clare Country Club
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Situated in one of Australia’s premium wine regions with more than 35 boutique wineries, this resort has views overlooking lush fairways and the sparkling waters of Inchiquin Lake, and offers gourmet cuisine and stunning wines. The adjacent Clare Golf course is an 18-hole par 72 course of 5,852 metres which is set among vineyards, woodlands, lakes and creeks.
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Clare Country Club
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VICTORIA
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13th Beach Golf Club
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Set on Victoria’s stunning Bellarine Peninsula, Thirteenth Beach is a 36-hole golf and residential complex. The first of the two courses, the Beach course, opened in late 2001, and is a natural links-style track that has been voted among Australia’s top 25. The Creek course designed by Tony Cashmore in conjunction with Nick Faldo, complements the Beach Course.
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13th Beach Golf Club
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Murray Downs Resort and Gold Club
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Situated on the river at Swan Hill, this resort is home to one of the Murray’s top courses in an area which is one of the best and most affordable for golf in the country. Less than four hours from Melbourne, there’s plenty of luxury hotel accommodation. Flowering native gums line the manicured couch grass fairways of this easy walking course that has many water hazards and soft white sand bunkers.
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Murray Downs Resort and Gold Club
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Rosebud Country Club Fairways Resort
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The Mornington Peninsula’s Fairways resort is located on Rosebud Country Club which boasts two 18-hole golf courses and three bowling greens. It’s only a short drive to many of the other great courses on the peninsula.
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Rosebud Country Club Fairways Resort
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Novotel Forest Resort
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This 6,300-metre golf course is a collaboration between architect Tony Cashmore and top Australian golfer Robert Allenby. It has forest-framed greens and fairways set in cathedral-like passages. Situated at Creswick, Victoria, the 144-room hotel has stunning views of the surrounding countryside.
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Novotel Forest Resort
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The Sebel Heritage Yarra Valley
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Golfing god Jack Nicklaus designed the first of the two courses at this fine complex. The St John course, at a long 6,670 metres, is rated among Australia’s top 50 and takes advantage of the Yarra Valley’s natural contours and water features. The Henley course, designed by Tony Cashmore and Nicklaus, is a traditional links track, which has the longest par 4 hole in Australia — the 16th. The hotel has fine dining and luxury rooms.
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The Sebel Heritage Yarra Valley
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Peppers Moonah Links Resort
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Home to the 2005 Australian Open Championship, Moonah Links has two 18-hole courses, one at 6,783 metres from the championship tees, being among the longest in Australia. It offers accommodation in 92 rooms and suites, all with balconies overlooking the courses or putting green. The peninsula is famous for its wineries, restaurants and holiday facilities. Fishing, boating, horse riding, bushwalking, historic parks, food and wine festivals and the nearby towns of Portsea and Sorrento combine to make it a great region to visit.
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Peppers Moonah Links Resort
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Lawson Lodge
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Lawson Lodge in Victoria’s Macedon Ranges is surrounded by bush, a national park and views of Mt Macedon. Luxury accommodation and resort-style recreation facilities, including a nine-hole golf course, are complemented by the nearby wineries, gourmet food and the iconic Hanging Rock.
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Lawson Lodge
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Peppers the Sands Resort
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This resort offers premium golf accommodation minutes from the sandy beaches of Torquay. It has an 18-hole championship golf course as well as tennis courts, an indoor lap pool and gymnasium. The famous surf of Bells Beach is 10 minutes down the road and the area is renowned for its boutique wineries, restaurants, cafes, galleries, fishing and surfing.
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Peppers the Sands Resort
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Shearwater Cape Schanck Resort
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Located on Victoria’s spectacular Mornington Peninsula, this resort offers ocean-view rooms or condominiums, with its 18-hole, par 70 golf course. Other facilities include tennis courts, a heated swimming pool and a jogging track. The course, designed by renowned architect Robert Trent Jones, features huge greens, large open bunkers, wide, tree-lined fairways and sweeping ocean views.
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Shearwater Cape Schanck Resort
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NEW SOUTH WALES
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Bonville Golf Resort
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Voted the most beautiful golf course in mainland Australia for seven years in a row and in Luxury Travel Magazine’s Gold List top five Australian Golf Resorts, Bonville, just south of Coffs Harbour, sits halfway between Sydney and Brisbane. The par 72 championship course rises and dips through strands of rainforest, a sanctuary for a wide range of wildlife, with each fairway isolated from the next. You can stay in one of the 30 rooms overlooking the first fairway.
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Bonville Golf Resort
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Magenta Shores Golf & Country Club
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Ross Watson’s links-style championship course on the Central Coast was recently voted the best resort course in NSW and one of the best in the country. The wide fairways are open to the sea winds, with natural swales bounded by rough, bushland and around 70 bunkers. The first nine holes have ocean views and the back nine heads north along rainforest and national parks. The Quay West resort is a five-star complex with villas built between the beach and course.
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Magenta Shores Golf & Country Club
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Yarrawonga and Border Golf
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Yarrawonga & Border Golf Club is the largest public access golf resort in Australia, with 45 holes. Located alongside the Murray River, the resort also includes lawn bowls, accommodation with varying room types, a tennis court and solar-heated swimming pool. The longest course, the Murray, meanders through towering river gums and sandy river flats with numerous lakes and lagoons.
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Yarrawonga and Border Golf
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Cypress Lakes Resort
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One of the first Hunter Valley resorts to bring golf to the wine country, this championship course offers nine inland links-style holes and nine traditional parkland holes with sloping fairways. The tees and greens have panoramic views of the valley’s famous vineyards and surrounding mountains. Accommodation is in more than 200 luxurious villas.
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Cypress Lakes Resort
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Hunter Valley Gold & Country
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Once known as Portofino, this club is set among the vineyards of the lower Hunter Valley, and reopened three years ago after renovations, complete with a new hotel, the Crowne Plaza. The course is set in a beautiful green valley bordered by the vines that make the area famous and featuring views of the Brokenback Mountains. The hotel offers 175 self-contained condominiums and a health and beauty centre.
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Hunter Valley Gold & Country
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Tallwoods
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Tallwoods is three hours north of Sydney at Hallidays Point, minutes from great beaches and close to Forster/Tuncurry and Taree. Designed by Michael Hurdzan, one of the world’s top environmental golf architects, the course weaves through a residential development with great views from the higher tees.
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Tallwoods
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Mantra Kooindah Waters Golf & Spa Resort
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Golfing favourite Craig Parry designed this new Central Coast championship course at Wyong. The resort offers an extensive range of leisure facilities including a heated lap pool, outdoor swimming pool, spa, sauna, gymnasium, tennis and a children’s playground. Membership benefits include the Dubai Golf Championships Tour in November, which is open to guests. Accommodation ranges from hotel rooms and suites, to villas overlooking the golf course and surrounding wetlands.
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Mantra Kooindah Waters Golf & Spa Resort
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Rich River Golf Club Resort
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Close to the historic port of Echuca, Rich River has two 18-hole championship courses that have become one of regional Australia’s premier golfing venues. The par 72 West Course has traditional tree-lined fairways with small, tricky greens. The par 72 East Course was redesigned by champion Australian golfer Peter Thomson in 1998 and features large greens, wide fairways and his signature bunkers. A 63-room hotel complex surrounds gardens which house pools, spas and a gym.
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Rich River Golf Club Resort
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Mt Broughton Gold Club & Peppers Manor House
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This highly-ranked course in NSW’s southern highlands with lush greens, natural waterways and undulating fairways, presents a tough challenge for any golfer taking on one of Australia’s longest courses. Peppers Manor House’s 41 rooms provide an experience of life at a grand country house. Activities include a massage and beauty salon, swimming pool and tennis court.
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Mt Broughton Gold Club & Peppers Manor House
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The Vintage
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One of the few Greg Norman-designed courses in NSW that is accessible to the public, the Vintage is another spectacular Hunter Valley course that winds around wetlands, water carries, eucalypts and the Beggars Bridge and Bimbadgen vineyards. Two hours from Sydney, it houses the Grand Mercure apartments, four and a half star resort style living with all the delights of the Hunter close by.
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The Vintage
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Le Meilleur Horizons
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This resort is set among spectacular wetlands surrounded by the white beaches and blue waters of Port Stephens and the highly-ranked course, measuring nearly 6,200 metres, has hosted several major championships. The accommodation comprises fully-serviced, self-contained condominiums that fringe the manicured course and apartments that overlook the resort.
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Le Meilleur Horizons
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Cobram Barooga Golf Resort
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Cobram Barooga Golf Resort is on the NSW-Victoria border on the Murray River and has two championship courses as well as luxury accommodation. The Old Course, with many holes framed by red gums and pines, is not long but its clever design and narrow fairways provide a stiff test. The West Course, with wider fairways and larger greens, is a mixture of resort and modern links-style holes.
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Cobram Barooga Golf Resort
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QUEENSLAND
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Capricorn Resort
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Nestled among nearly 10,000 hectares of sprawling tropical landscape, Yeppoon’s Capricorn Resort, 45 kilometres from Rockhampton, features a 36-hole layout of two of the country’s top courses. The Resort course is a classic Thomson-Wolveridge design, but the Championship course, opened in 1992, is a spectacular challenge, routed through natural bush and strands of trees as well as protected wetlands. The ocean-front hotel offers a host of activities.
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Capricorn Resort
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Laguna Whitsundays
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This championship course, designed by former US Open and USPGA champion David Graham, meanders through native bushland, lush rainforest and is framed by the Coral Sea lapping at a number of the fairways. Turtle Point, as the 6,399 metre layout is called, is served by 60 villas which line the fairways.
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Laguna Whitsundays
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Sea Temple Golf & Country Club
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Located on the secluded beachfront of Four Mile Beach, the five-star Port Douglas resort comprises 194 rooms, spa, restaurant, and two bars to complement the links-style championship course that comes complete with its own resident crocodile.
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Sea Temple Golf & Country Club
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Royal Bines Resort
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Royal Pines is home to the ANZ Ladies Masters and other prestigious tournaments. Its 27 holes comprise three distinct course layouts situated in the heart of Queensland’s Gold Coast. Featuring 331 luxury rooms, the resort also has a health club, seven tennis courts, the world class Angsana Spa and four restaurants.
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Royal Bines Resort
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Hyatt Regency Sanctuary Cove
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The Cove’s Pines course is the only Arnold Palmer signature course in Australia and with an AGU rating of 76 is one of the country’s most challenging. The only way for a visitor to play its nearly 6,700 metres is to stay at the Hyatt, styled as a traditional 1940’s grand Queensland homestead and set amid tropical gardens. The other course at the resort, The Palms is an 18-hole resort-style golf course characterised by its unique, century-old Cabbage palm vistas.
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Hyatt Regency Sanctuary Cove
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Sheraton Mirage Port Douglas
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Sparkling blue lagoons with pure white sandy shores will greet you at the Sheraton Mirage Port Douglas, a resort nestled between two UNESCO World Heritage sites — the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree Rainforest. Set in 147 hectares of lush tropical gardens, it has 294 rooms and suites, plus more than 100 villas. The Mirage Country Club has a fine 18-hole championship golf course.
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Sheraton Mirage Port Douglas
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Coral Cove Resort
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Situated on the ocean at the southern end of the Great Barrier Reef, just south of Bundaberg, Coral Cove’s championship course is renowned for having the longest hole in Australia at 635 metres, one of only a few par 6s in the world. The front nine features well-positioned water hazards and the back nine is a rural setting that winds around the housing estate. The par 3 second hole is noted for its toughness. Resort accommodation next to the ocean is in self-contained units and villas and there is a pool, tennis courts and spa.
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Coral Cove Resort
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Hope Island Resort Golf Club
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Set in a 360 hectare residential resort community, the 6,500 metre championship course is another product of five-time British Open winner Peter Thomson and design partner Mike Wolveridge. Initially carved out of a dairy farm, the layout follows the natural contours of the land and the only links course on the Gold Coast has 128 pot-style bunkers. Stay and play packages consist of two- or three-bedroom apartments.
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Hope Island Resort Golf Club
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Novotel Twin Waters Resort
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Another great championship course, a product of the Thomson-Wolveridge partnership this time on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, that is built to suit players of all levels. There are many different accommodation options at the resort including lagoon suites built around an expansive salt-water lagoon.
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Novotel Twin Waters Resort
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Noosa Springs
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Graham Papworth designed this fine championship layout which is celebrating its 10th birthday. Carved out of Noosa’s stunning landscape, just minutes from Hastings Street, the course challenges players to think and then commit. The resort also has accommodation, tennis courts, a fitness centre and fine dining.
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Noosa Springs
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Club Pelican
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Club Pelican is another Sunshine Coast championship golf course that uses the existing natural landscape to deliver a challenging golfing terrain. It’s nestled in the heart of the master-planned community of Pelican Waters, and stretches to 6,359 metres from the black tees with 93 bunkers. The Crowne Plaza Resort & Spa has rooms and apartments as well as the Endota Day Spa and a gymnasium.
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Club Pelican
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The Hyatt Regency Coolum
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Voted this year by Luxury Travel readers as Australia’s best golf resort – and best family resort – the Sunshine Coast’s Hyatt is well known to golfers for hosting the Australian PGA championship for the last few years. Now celebrating its 20th birthday, the resort is undergoing some major changes and renovations including the recently-reopened new spa and six new golf holes due to come into play in time for this year’s PGA event in early December. Golf architect Robert Trent Jones has brought back into fashion some tough new holes to complement his original challenging course with the new front nine now being made up of three par threes, three par fours and three par fives for club players. The back nine, with its tricky signature par 4 16th hole that frames Mt Coolum, remains intact.
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The Hyatt Regency Coolum
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WESTERN AUSTRALIA
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Joondalup Resort Hotel
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Voted one of the top Australian resort courses for three years running, the 27-hole layout designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr, who describes it as “one of the world’s finest golfing experiences,” offers dramatic contrasts, scenic beauty and a robust golfing challenge. The course sweeps across dense bushland, cuts through steep limestone quarries and skirts picturesque lakes. The luxury accommodation is only 25 minutes north of Perth and close to the white sandy beaches of the Sunset Coast.
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Joondalup Resort Hotel
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Novotel Vines Resort
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Another resort close to Perth, this time with two lengthy 18-hole courses, the Ellenbrook and the Lakes, was designed by Ross Watson and Graham Marsh and constantly rates in Australia’s top 20 lists. The Novotel resort was built 13 years ago and has 103 rooms and 54 condominiums along with restaurants, bars and an abundance of facilities.
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Novotel Vines Resort
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All Seasons Sanctuary Gold Resort
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The Sanctuary Golf Resort, located close to Bunbury in the heart of the Geographe wine region, sits amid rolling lawns, lakes and sparkling ocean vistas. Apartment-style accommodation surrounds the pool and spa and the golf course features man-made lakes that come into play in 12 of the 18 holes.
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All Seasons Sanctuary Gold Resort
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NEW ZEALAND
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Cape Kidnappers
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The Farm at Cape Kidnappers, like its older sibling Kauri Cliffs, is set on 6,000 acres of coastal farmland. Just outside Napier on the southeast coast of New Zealand’s North Island, US owners Julian and Josie Robertson have created another world-class golf resort.
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Course architect Tom Doak designed the par 71-championship course utilizing the deep ravines, rugged hills and dramatic ocean-side cliffs, which plunge hundreds of metres into Hawke’s Bay below. Every hole has a view of the Pacific Ocean and as Doak says, “this is seaside golf at its finest”. Everyone seems to agree. Among its many accolades Golf Digest rates Cape Kidnappers as the tenth Best Golf Course outside the US.
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The front nine meanders through lush farmland while the back nine traverses the cliff tops where finger-like ridges extend into the Pacific and players may encounter the prevailing ocean breezes. The generous fairways look inviting enough but approaching the green is where real skill is required. “The player who can control his trajectory will be master of the course,” says Doak.
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As well as a charming Clubhouse with restaurant, bar and fully-equipped pro shop, the course offers a driving range, putting greens, Callaway clubs for rental and a selection of five tees for all skill levels. Caddies are available upon request. Behind the course, enjoying the elevated views of the rolling fairways and the Pacific Ocean beyond, The Farm is in fact an immaculate Relais & Chateaux lodge with accommodation in four internal Lodge Suites, nine adjacent hillside cottages and a deluxe 4-bedroom owner’s cottage. Architects Andrew Patterson, Roger Langley and Paul Rosnell along with Colorado designer Linda Bedell have captured the atmosphere of the working farm with barnlike stone and timber buildings. The interiors are almost industrial yet intimate, with generous proportions, exposed beams, and farming artifacts mixed with deluxe soft furnishings and open fires. The dedicated spa cottage is an important destination for post-golf pampering.
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Outstanding à la carte cuisine provides the opportunity to sample the local, impressive Hawke’s Bay wines and during specific weekends in September and October this year, Kidnappers will showcase the talents of renowned Australian chef Neil Perry and wine experts Neil McCallum, James Halliday and Bob Campbell.
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Cape Kidnappers
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Peppers Clearwater
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Christchurch’s Clearwater Resort is a waterfront property set within beautiful grounds, 15 minutes from the city. At 6,526 metres from the professional tees, this home of the NZ PGA Championship was designed by John Darby in consultation with Sir Bob Charles and combines elements of links golf inspired by the great Scottish courses with parkland golf, more reminiscent of Florida. The course, with five tee positions to suit all players, meanders around spring-fed lakes and trout-filled streams, with views of the spectacular Southern Alps. The premium accommodation comprises suites and villas positioned around the lakes and waterways.
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Peppers Clearwater
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Carrington Resort
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Carrington Resort on Northland’s Karikari Peninsula has 4km of sandy coastline, a winery, a beef stud farm and 400 hectares of restored wetlands alongside its tournament standard golf course which was built six years ago. At 6,417 metres, it encompasses a variety of terrains from rolling vales to challenging water holes and includes one of the longest par 5s in New Zealand at 569 metres, and one of the shortest par 3s at 113 metres. The resort provides lodge and villa accommodation.
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Carrington Resort
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Formosa Gold Resort
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With its cliff top and coastal fairways, Formosa golf course, the longest in New Zealand at 6,650 metres, was designed by local legend Sir Bob Charles and hosted the 1998 NZ Open. Listed in “The Finest Golf Clubs of the World,” it has hundreds of native trees, 79 bunkers and spectacular views over the Hauraki Gulf. There are 50 luxury villas with golf course views and facilities include a squash court, indoor tennis courts, indoor swimming pool and a gymnasium as well as an all-weather under cover driving range.
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Formosa Gold Resort
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Lakes Resort Pauanui
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One of New Zealand’s top courses, the Lakes Resort has more than 10 kilometres of cart paths that meander through the course over stone bridges linking the fairways of this 6,171 metre, par 71 championship course. The 100- hectare tract borders protected conservation areas and embraces 20 hectares of natural wetlands. It is a short drive to many of the Coromandel Peninsula’s tourist spots and offers short stay packages in luxury accommodation.
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Lakes Resort Pauanui
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Terrace Downs
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This international resort course, an hour’s drive south of Christchurch, is situated on the edge of the Rakaia Gorge with views to the mountains and the Mt Hutt skiing area which make it one of the most scenic in New Zealand. Eleven lakes and ponds and some 70 bunkers makes it an interesting challenge. As well as the golf and deluxe accommodation, the resort offers a day spa, jet boating and on-site horse treks.
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Terrace Downs
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Gulf Harbour Country Club
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Located just north of Auckland on the Whangaparaoa Peninsula, the Robert Trent Jones 6,400 metre course has spectacular finishing holes, ocean views and rolling terrain. Four sets of tees assure playability for every calibre of golfer, with several featuring risk and reward opportunities. The front nine is slightly hillier and has an open feeling, while the back nine wanders towards the ocean and culminates with some of the most scenic holes to be found anywhere. Accommodation can be found at Gulf Harbour Lodge, located at the marina village of Gulf Harbour, just a short walk to the golf course.
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Gulf Harbour Country Club
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Millbrook Resort
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Sir Bob Charles’ Millbrook course outside Queenstown, boasts breathtaking views of the Remarkables mountain range and has been designed for golfers of all abilities. The course is fashioned from original terrain with a mixture of undulating to rolling fairways, each hole having its own strategic and scenic feature. The resort has luxury accommodation, restaurants, a spa and a health and fitness centre and is close to the local skiing areas.
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Millbrook Resort
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Kinloch Golf Club and Dunalistair House
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The only Jack Nicklaus signature course in New Zealand can be found in the central North Island, and the designer thinks it’s “heaven on earth.’’ One of golf’s greatest players, Nicklaus has built a challenging course which is part of a residential community and has the added bonus of being a short drive to the Wairakei International golf course. Dunalistair House is a luxury four-bedroom holiday residence with great views and has access to a full range of services.
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Kinloch Golf Club and Dunalistair House
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Kauri Cliffs
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The Lodge at Kauri Cliffs, and its sister property The Farm at Cape Kidnappers, have set the bar at its very highest for golf resorts.
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With the purchase of 6,000 acres of coastal farmland in the North Island’s Bay of Islands, New York-based owners Julian and Josie Robertson set about creating a world-class golf facility. Completed in 2001, the manicured perfection of the David Harman-designed par 72-championship course was immediately awarded Best New International Golf Course by Golf Digest and since then has consistently been ranked in the world’s top 100 courses. Former meadows now form lush fairways, mixing elevated ocean panoramas with ancient marsh forest and fragrant pinelands. Contented cattle observe wayward balls with blasé eyes; the rough can be penal but the fairways are generous and reward good play. Fifteen holes view the Pacific Ocean and the six oceanfront holes offer astonishing vistas from the plunging cliff tops across to Cape Brett and the Cavalli Islands.
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The 6,510 metre course offers five sets of tees for every skill level and offers a complete practice facility, two putting greens, a short game green and driving range. The great news is that this world-class golf course is accompanied by equally outstanding accommodation. The handsome Lodge and eleven hillside guest cottages provide the complete luxury golf package and the property is a deserving member of the elite Relais & Chateaux collection. Auckland-based architect Lawrence Sumich and designer Victoria Fischer have combined an elegant Hamptons feel with relaxed beach house chic. With faultless attention to detail, the spaces are generous, interesting and inviting. Gourmet à la carte cuisine, which is included in the tariff, is delivered with flawless service and accompanied by superb local wines. Beyond the golf experience other diversions include the infinity swimming pool, gymnasium and indoor pool, along with mountain biking, tennis, basketball, big game fishing and sea kayaking.
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Nearby attractions include scenic picnic spot Pink Beach – named for its minute pink shells – and local surfing and swimming spots Takou Bay and Waiaua Beach. The final joy is a magical forest spa with indoor/outdoor treatment rooms complete with open fires.
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Kauri Cliffs
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SIGNATURE HOLES
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Test your skills on these challenging holes.
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Barnbougle Dunes Gold Course
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It might only measure 112 metres from the back, but the par three, seventh hole, one of the shortest in Australia, is also one of the most challenging, more often yielding five strokes than three. Named Tom’s Little Devil, after designer Tom Doak, it has a tricky green and is heavily bunkered, which doesn’t help the cause. Into the wind it’s a long iron or a pitching wedge on a calm day, but if you miss the green, especially long or left, forget about a par.
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Bonville Gold Course
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The par four second at Bonville is probably the most recognisable of its holes. A 346-metre dogleg right winds down from an elevated tee to the turn in the fairway about 220 metres out. There’s ample room on the left, but the view from the tee is obscured by trees. The conservative line really is the play here – the right-side line is also guarded by bunkers. But whatever the choice, it’s always fun to see your drive fire out of the chute.
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Joondalup Resort Course
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The Quarry course’s signature hole is its par three third hole. This area of the Joondalup track is cut from an old limestone quarry. On this 125-metre hole to be short is out of bounds so players must aim for the heart of the green. It’s an intimidating hole, especially if the pin is on the right-hand side. Don’t look down.
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Kari Cliffs
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It’s difficult to single out a signature hole at Kauri Cliffs since so many are spectacular in so many ways. The magazine’s cover image shows the picturesque seventh “Cavalli” so named for its panoramic views north to the Cavalli Islands and southeast to Cape Brett. From the back tees there are also splendid views of Pink Beach. A tricky par 3, it requires accuracy off the tee. Playing short is a ball-plunge to oblivion into a gully of dense fern forest and the waves far below. The wind is a variable and taking an extra club is good advice.
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EXPERT OPINION:
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Golf aficionado Sue Johnson from Voyage Affaires picks her top international golf courses.
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Ireland
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• The K Club
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• Royal Portrush Golf Club
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• The Royal Dublin Golf Club
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Hawaii
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• Wailea Golf Course at Four Seasons Maui at Wailea
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• Poipu Bay Golf Course
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• Princeville at Hanalei Golf Course
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• The Challenge at Manele,
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• Four Seasons Lana’i at Manele Bay Resort
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Arizona
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• TPC of Scottsdale Golf Course
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• Talking Stick Golf Course
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• Whirlwind Golf Course
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• We-Ko-Pa Golf Course
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• Kierland Golf Club, The Westin Kierland Resort & Spa
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Las Vegas
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• Bali Hai Golf Club,
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• Paiute Resort Golf Course
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• Royal Links
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• TPC Las Vegas
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