Lesser known courses to try on your golf holiday
This is this year’s try out list of golf courses that you may not have known much about but you could play. Many of them you could include on an itinerary on one of our tours!
Safety Beach Golf Club
Safety Beach is operated by the Woolgoolga RSL and is a demanding driving course of lurking water and tight landing areas. It maybe not as well known as it’s illustrious neighbours in Bonville and Coffs Harbour, however we have come to use it for clients when those courses for some reason are not available. The highlight hole of the course is the short par 3 11th (above). Check out how you would incorporate this course in our Coffs Coast Tours.
Harden Country Club
If you are in the NSW regions, the first time you may hear about Harden is it’s advertising on the US Masters broadcast. For a golf club from mid-western NSW that would normally be a major expense. However the club has had a wealthy local benefactor who left them a very large sum of money and put it into a trust account for the club’s use. That money has been well spent.
Harden Country Club is an undulating, tree lined par 71 course that you may feel will take some local knowledge after the first round. But it is the greens that are the sensation. Although the greens are small and heavily sloped, the bent grass is kept in such a fast and true condition that a big city golf club would be proud of them. All done by a green staff of three people!
On top of that is a multi-million dollar clubhouse that has just been recently completed. Just a great 19th hole venue. Harden is a 90 minute drive from Canberra and could be used as rural departure on one of our Canberra golf tours.
Narrandera Golf Club
A bit further west than Harden is Narrandera Golf Club. Contained within a flat landscape it was carved out of undulating pine forest. It is the topography of the course that give the course it’s challenge. There are a number of uphill shots to small, slopey greens.
A strong par 70 at 5752m, Narrandera is known as one of the best courses in western NSW. So put your $20 for the round in the honesty box and give it a go!
Calderwood Valley Golf Course
Calderwood Valley Golf Course is part of that ongoing trend of 100% social golf courses. Seven days a week, social play is available at anytime. Set up hard against the Illawarra Escapment west of Albion Park , Calderwood is a highly scenic Par 70 of 5005m . That may seem short but there are some short uphill par 4’s that play longer than they feel they should.
Designed by local golf course architect, Ken McKay who also designed Shoalhaven Heads and Mollymook Hilltops, Calderwood manages to tread that much sought after line between making it challenging for low markers but enjoyable for high handicappers. There are some rest holes and then some par 3’s across water and dogleg tight par 5’s.
We use Calderwood for our “weekend only” clients who don’t have a GA handicap as a course to play on the way down to the Illawarra or Shoalhaven for a South Coast Tour.
Shepparton Golf Club
Shepparton is again one of those country courses surrounded by a flat landscape but occupies the best topography for a golf course. Situated on ancient sand dunes by the Goulburn River, this rolling course is like playing a Melbourne sandbelt course but it is tighter.
A par 72 at 6081m, “Shep” is a searching test of good driving down through avenues of trees and precise iron play to well bunkered greens that are often above you. I gather the greens are often placed on top of the dunes to escape the flooding waters of the river.
Shepparton is a great addition to one of our Murray River golf tours. Either on your way from Melbourne or elsewhere in Victoria and as a one hour side trip from your base in Echuca.
Mooroopna Golf Club
Mooroopna is really a satellite town of Shepparton and they too have a very good golf course. This par 73 course of 6123m is over flat terrain covered by large gum trees. Again like it’s nearby neighbour in Shepparton, it is tight course where your fairway wood is going to be your best friend.
New holes for 11th,12th and 13th have been built on reclaimed land and they are still growing into the course. My only criticism of the course management (and this is similar for Shepparton GC) is that some gum trees have been allowed to grow over the fairways, restricting shots after good drives. But still a worthy side trip for a Murray River golf tour with us.
Wodonga Golf Club
Perhaps it is on the wrong side of the river but Wodonga Golf Club does not get nearly as much attention as it’s Albury neighbours do. Without the poke machine revenue, it probably has had to battle harder. However this is an interesting layout.
It nines radiate out from the clubhouse in different directions. They climb in figure eight loops around the nearby hills. A strong par 72 at 6289m, the uphill holes will have you searching for more club as you seek the right lines around this twisting layout.
The course has suffered from the reputation of being a soggy course especially during Albury-Wodonga’s wetter winters but drainage work has been done on the low lying areas. Certainly a course to include on a Murray River golf tour with us if you are based in Albury.
