What are our best finishing holes?
What makes a great 18th hole for our golf tours? I reckon it is an exclamation mark on a great round of golf or even one that elevates an average golf course. It is memorable and you look forward to playing it again.
This list of mainly NSW golf course holes are from tours that we run. A lot of golf courses have some bland finishing holes. You often feel that golf course designers could have tried harder. This is a list of that fitting last challenge or a wonderful, inspiring end to your golf for the day.
Royal Canberra Golf Club
Probably only the 18th at Cape Wickham rivals this final hole on the Yarralumla nine as the best final walk in Australian golf. At 502m it is a straight away par 5. But the walk up through the avenue of trees, along the manicured fairways to the clubhouse sitting on the hill, can complete your round on this beautiful layout.
It is not the hardest par 5 on the course eventhough the redesign work of OCCM has put a couple of levels into the green. But it is fine finishing hole where attack could make a round. Check out how you could include it in a Canberra Golf Tour with us.
Bonville Golf Resort
Bonville has a strong finish. A demanding tee shot on the par 4 16th, a shot over water to a narrow green on the par 3 17th and an Augusta like par 5 on the 18th. At only 460 m it may seem not much on the scorecard but the uphill tee shot makes you want to try and clear the top of the hill. Probably will take a bomb.
Then the fairway sweeps sharply left and down to a pond in front of a raised green surrounded by bunkers. The golfer is left either with a tricky lay up shot or a brave shot across the water and the bunkers. Sitting behind watching the drama is the verandah bar and colonial style resort building.
Just a great finishing hole for a memorable day’s golfing. See our itinerary options that include Bonville on a Coffs Coast Tour with us.
Narooma Golf Club
Narooma is one of the most spectacular golf journeys in the country. Nine holes out on the links, on top of cliff faces with great views of the coastline. The other nine through a beautiful forest, navigating your way around coastal lagoons.
The back nine emerges from the forest and has one more tilt at the links with the 18th. An uphill dogleg of 463m, the tee shot must be precise to avoid running down into the thick forest on the right that also hugs the corner. You also want to give yourself the right angle for the layup or the brave shot over the bush to try for the eagle.
The green is suspended on a point with commanding views over Montague Island and the Glasshouse Rocks. A memorable finishing hole. Check out how we incorporate Narooma on a South Coast Tour.
The Grange Golf Club
The Grange is an 18 hole tree lined course in south Wollongong near Kembla Grange racecourse. Most of the very good holes at Grange are close to the banks of Mullet Creek. The 18th is a prime example of this.
A 140m par 3 uphill to a green on the other bank of the creek with the elegant clubhouse to the left. It is fine finishing hole where a fat or thin shot could leave a bitter taste in the mouth about the round. Often playing into a north easterly, this hole plays longer than the yardage would imply.
You can try your luck on this hole with an Illawarra tour with us.
Black Bull Golf Club
Whilst most of the attention about signature holes is attempted to be diverted to “the Bull Ring” at Black Bull, the best trio of holes is 16 through to 18. The 18th is a signature hole for Peter Thomson’s design career. Black Bull was his last design.
Whilst most of the course veers away from Lake Mulawa, this par 5 of 452m blasts along the lakefront. It is such a links hole that you feel you could be at Turnberry. If you can avoid the bunkers from the tee you feel you can get it close to the green but with all Thomson/Perrett designed par 5’s, a full wedge maybe best as an approach.
With the dead trees of Lake Mulwala eerily stalking in the water and the Sebel and it’s bar beckoning from the point, it is a fine conclusion to this championship golf course. Check out how we include this course in our tours of the Murray River.
Highlands Golf Course
When I was a young golfer and sitting in the back of my parent’s car following the Hume Highway when it used to go through Mittagong, I used to adoringly look across at the 18th at Highlands.
Now it is just a pitching wedge when then it would have been a mid iron. But it is still a beautiful ending to a funky golf course in the Southern Highlands. The small green concentrates the direction, the pond in front concentrates the contact. Include this experience on a Southern Highlands trip with us.
Horizons Golf Resort
The Ross Watson designed Horizons is a deceptive layout. The fairways are often wider than it seems from the tee but water is lurking.
And there is a strong finish to this Salamander Bay layout with a par 5 18th of 495m. Water follows you all the way down the left hand side and surrounds the green. Bunkers discourage you from the right hand side. The fairway slopes toward the water so your shots will naturally veer there.
Like most of the course, it is about placement of shots as you negotiate its length. A good strong finishing hole to this former top 100 golf course. Check out how we include in a Port Stephens tour.
Federal Golf Club
The uphill 9th and 18th holes at Federal are the hardest par 4’s in Canberra. The 18th is the sterner test. If I par it, you won’t see me around. I am off doing a victory lap!
At 387m it plays over 400m and you are discouraged from the right corner of the dogleg as the fairway slopes down there to overhanging trees. The green is steep and is protected by two deep bunkers which have recently been renovated.
A tough test at the end of a round. See how we include this golf course in our Canberra Golf tours.
Queanbeyan Golf Club
The Queanbeyan Golf Club’s 18th hole is a fine and beautiful way of finishing a round there. A dog leg right of 355m , it will catch the wild drive left with the Queanbeyan River and out of bounds will catch you if you are wide on the right.
Your shot into the flag is onto a small bunkered and tiered green with the newly renovated clubhouse sitting behind. The verandah at the clubhouse is the best 19th hole view in the Canberra region. Overlooking the green, cheering your mates on and particularly in autumn, enjoying all the colours that line the final fairway.
Kooindah Waters
This Ross Watson/Craig Parry design is one of our favourite resort courses in NSW. Whilst most renown courses are working hard to muster up two really great holes, Kooindah Waters has about six, easily. One of those is the par 4 18th.
Off the tips it is 397m and it is tee shot at first that will get your attention. How much of the lake that lurks on the left can you safely chop off to leave you a shorter shot into the green. But then there is the bunkers on the right if you wimp out and go too conservative. The lake continues up along left hand side of the fairway and around the green and even intrudes in the front as well. So your next shot is over water and bunkers to a virtual island green. The hole is intimidating.
This course is accessible to our groups even on the weekend (afternoon tee times). So how we include in a Central Coast tours itinerary.
