Mornington Golf Club is a true municipal course. I was first seen with a golf club in hand on the municipal golf course of Knightswood in Glasgow. These courses are – not country – not rustic – not local – not a community – but municipal. Probably council workmen will cut the grass – maybe with a little less passion than a local club. At Mornington Golf Club, you pay at a parking meter by the first tee – a long way from the picture on the website of a green fee custodian in the 1920’s taking green fees.
I didn’t know much about this course, never really felt the need to play here. It is a golf course for everyone and was born in 1915. This was the vision of Robert Cameron, a Scot and maybe the originator of the first public golf course in New Zealand. The history of the course has to commended by bringing golf to the common man. I am one of those, but who isn’t really?
I met one fella walking his dog, “ Lots of golfers out today!” he barked, the man, not the dog. It seemed like an odd thing to bring up, on a golf course. Another man had a dog with him as part of the four-ball, actually a five-ball with the dog. He played a hole with his dog by his side, I watched him chunk a chip and then another one and then he barely made the green with his next chunk. The dog looked dismayed and wandered away, missing the blasted putt up the green. It gave him no chance of making a two-putt for his up up up and down down down.
I heard his partner ask what were you in for there? “Put me down for a 6” he announced, even the dog looked embarrassed.
There were Frisbie Throwers on the second fairway, throwing down towards me as I teed up. What’s going on? This place is just a big shared park. Then I recognized the metal Frisbee catcher on the fairway. It is actually a Frisbee golf destination shared with an actual golf course.
True community cross usage. If you are having a bad round bring a Frisbee and maybe a dog or a kite.
I puffed all the way around here, the course is a collection of greens, tee boxes and hills. Trees are added in because they grew here. But it is a fantastically irritating golf course.
Lots of short par 4’s from one side of a steep valley up to the other. Looking down the barrel of a 224-meter par 4 normally is a thrill. But the greens are up in the sky at the top of a hill. Tee off into the hillside in front of you, hit a blind approach and pump your legs up the hill to find out where it landed. REPEAT UNTIL you go home.
There is a treat of a 203-meter par 3, early in the round, making the walk to the elevated tee still enjoyable.
The ninth is a hoof of a hole off of the top of the course down into a valley and up to an elevated green. A par 5 that you’d like to think you’d reach in 2 at 409 metres.
This part of the course is shared by the inner city loop track as if dog walkers and Frisbee chuckers weren’t enough, ramblers were added.
I got attacked by a magpie on the 11th – the noise I made was something I was not proud of. I quickly tapped in my putt to get away from the little bugger. Play with your sunglasses on top of your hat like eyes in the sky that will keep them away. Apparently.
The greens were soft and large, easy to land on in the main. The putting surface was okay but it took a lot of concentration to focus on the “just get it in” mentality.
You whip across the busy Adelaide road to finish your round. The course has a long history from its inception and works well for a community alongside the bowls club and other rec areas.
But it is not a place for a leisurely day out. The hills were a nightmare and the set up was nothing short of annoying. You do get some great looks out across Wellington as you move up and down the course. So take a moment to enjoy them before tackling another hill climb.
There is nothing like Wellington on a good day. It was a very good day when I ripped back my curtains. I was on a rustic tour of NZ golf courses. Is it me that is rustic or the golf courses?
Titahi is more than rustic, 9 holes of a community golf course near Porirua only a short 15 minutes from central Wellington. On a cracking morning like this one, it was definitely the best way to start my day.
Funny thing, I lived in Wellington for 10 plus years, I did not know this course was here. I visited Porirua many a time but never ventured around the coast a little bit to discover this great wee 9 hole golf course. It is short at 5,133 metres for the gents.
There were a couple of groups out in front of me when I got there. The man in the shop let me know these slow buggers might get in my way. I made the decision to just go easy, enjoy my own company and soak up the surroundings.
This is the home of the 2005 US open champ – Michael Cambell. This club is obviously exceptionally proud of the success this New Zealand golf legend had.
Cambo was a natural golfer and stood next to the greats to win a major and compete for many more in his golden era. Cambo visited my son’s school in Queenstown with the US Open Trophy, I realised that day how hard it would be for a kiwi lad to beat the rest of the world at this crazy game. And more difficult to beat Tiger Woods on the day who was his closest rival.
Our spend a few more minutes and get the full story ..Click here
I spent a little time on the practice putting green. The view from here was awesome, a glimpse of the water and the sweeping course looked beautiful. I was still focusing on getting my putting game on track. Dr. Bob Rotella would be proud, as his words played over in my mind. Just put it in clear your mind and hole the putt.
The course felt on the municipal side, a course for everyone of all abilities. But not unloved, with massive sweeping fairways on the edge of the bay. It offered up some interesting stances in the fairway.
The course was in good condition, the greens were a little on the soft side but flat and true. A little links-like with limited trees to annoy a poor drive.
The view from the 3rd tee shows off the course and I felt pleased with my decision to visit Titahi Bay today. A 265-metre par 4 that makes you think you are good enough to reach the green.
The 4th was a lovely driving hole, I enjoyed a birdie on the 4th, following a sweet 8 iron to a few feet.
The golf here offers you good risk and reward dog legs 281 metre 5th and 239 metre 7th. The opportunity to score well is on offer but not a giveaway. On the 5th I lipped out for birdie number 2 in a row. High confidence and high on the location, I was loving the game of golf today.
The 8th is a par 3 into the prevailing wind at 190 metres it needed a bullet of a hit to make the green.
Sitting up on the 9th tee ready to play the number 1 stroke hole, the elevated tee was a nice spot to reflect on a golf course that I’d put on the top of my 9 hole golf course list. A tractor was swooshing across the fairways breaking my silence.
I could have been swayed by the weather or the presence of Cambo. It may have been sitting there on the final tee 1 over the card for 8 holes.
Heading up the hill to the 9th green in front of the clubrooms is a difficult approach. I had a messy double-bogey 6 on the 9th but this didn’t dampen my enthusiasm for the course.
Titahi is a must-play when the sun is up in the Wellington sky. Unassuming but impressive none the less, you’ll feel much better about life after a couple of hours here.
A weather bomb hit us coming out of Napier on the self-named “Rustic Golf Tour of NZ”, we were heading towards Taupau Golf Club. The driving sleet and 5 degrees of temperature dampened my spirits. It said on the updated weather app, 5 degrees, feels like 2 degrees. This really puzzles me, it is either 5 degrees or 2 degrees – not a combination of feeling and actual temperature. This scale never works up the way, 5 degrees, feels like 10 degrees…This weather distraction sitting in the car park of Taupau G.C. blew us all the way down to Shannon and up the driveway of Buckley Golf Club.
There was a little break in the weather once I got the car over the hill at Woodville. If you haven’t been across this hill through the Te Apiti Wind Farm it is worth doing one day. The majestic tall white turbines stand strong all around the roadside over the hill. It is pretty cool.
This is a windy part of NZ so it was a good thinking the wind farmer who chose this location to set up their eco-business. The temperature rose somewhat heading into Shannon and the sun made a welcome appearance.
Driving through the 2 farm gates into Buckley Golf Club you get a nice look at the course. From the attractive arrival driveway there are 3 holes in view, they looked typical country golf – flat and tree-lined with an excessive smattering of sheep with lambs in tow. The clubrooms although basic were set amongst the trees and looked fine.
There were cards for 9 or 18 holes, I wasn’t sure if this was an 18 hole course or 9, you can’t see the expanse of the course until you go around to the back of the clubhouse.
Ahh now, this looks more interesting as the flat arrival holes give way to undulating terrain and I spotted water features that may please the eye.
There were actually 16 holes, 2 holes doubled up to make 18, I hadn’t seen that before. Also, the 9 hole card was a combination of the holes from the 18, not a straight front 9 back 9 affair. You started on 16 played 17 and 18. Then 5, 10, 11, 12,1 3 and finish on 4. I liked the thinking.
By the time we sorted our clubs and teed off the weather bomb had followed us, the wind blew like an irrational teenager, which made for difficult conditions. The fairway grass was long in places where the sheep didn’t get to, so I had a war chest of excuses for my scoring on the day.
For sure, the hole of the day was “Drop Shot” into the teeth of the wind a sheer drop to the awaiting green below. It looked wet around the green so missing it could result in plugged and soggy problems. 121 metres directly down is always hard to judge. Sponsored by a septic tank company called Long Drop.
Look out for the Dangers ahead.
The holes named “Pond” and “Hazard” were inviting trouble as the hole naming committee obviously didn’t deliberate long on the choice of their handle. Although “Crocodile” left me wondering until I saw the concrete statement piece.
The course grew on me as we fought our way around in the wind, the elevated tee of “Plateau” and the short 15th were a delight to play.
A man in a ute drove towards us over the fairways to check if we had seen any fallen trees on our journey. He had a chat about something that was lost in the wind, maybe checking we had paid our green fees. He then got out of the ute to make a point and his hat flew off. He recovered it and drove away to start the chainsaw on his catch for the day up by the clubhouse.
Six par 3’s and 5 par 5’s is an unusual combination for the par 71 over 5,245 metres. But nothing is normal here, it is rustic golf in this beautiful country.
This Rustic Tour of NZ Golf brought me here unexpectedly but what a surprise to discover this local course with golf architecture in a country environment. Buckley Golf Club needs your attention if you are the area.
“Homeward” might be a typical finishing hole but Buckley is no typical golf course.
The first hole here at Te Pohue Golf Club starts from an elevated tee, you get to see around the beautiful golf course and back towards the clubrooms of this rustic charmer. From “Lookout” it looks awesome.
The car park had one only car filling the spaces, mine. We pulled over on the way to Napier to check out this notorious nine-holer. The choice of golf courses in this area is vast. There are 18 courses in Hawkes Bay and this would be my first. I could claim to be heading to Cape Kidnappers but I was getting my rustic rabbling shoes on for this trip.
Back at the first tee, the tempting downhill par 4 perfectly highlights the green below you. With no particular easy or obvious place to lay up it got my blood pumping in the blustery conditions. A boggy stream guards the green so you need to carry the whole 256 metres.
This hole was a sobering introduction to rustic golf in Hawkes Bay. With a solid triple bogey for me and no better off than my partner who lost a ball and then he marched unknowingly through the hidden hairy boggy stream. He was left sporting a muddy pair of white socks for the rest of the round.
It would appear that “Lookout” was referring to the concealed stream and not the view.
The elevation changes throughout the course were good and made for interesting golf. The 2nd was a good driving hole as you head up toward the 2 water tanks behind the plateau green. A 424-metre par 5 called “Putter” who would know why?
The 9 holes here are well thought out, using the landscape that the course was born into. As I stood on the 2nd green eyeing a birdie putt the weather was having a field day. There was a 100-year weather bomb cutting across NZ – not long before we stopped the wind was moderate and the temperature was 16 degrees when I got out of the car it had plummeted to 6 degrees – the wind was crazy at this point.
I made the putt on the 2nd green for birdie, but no time to celebrate – it was freezing.
It was lambing season – between the wind, all you could hear was the bleating from mother and child trying to find each other. Much better to listen to than inner-city bleating about the traffic on the way to the course for Twighlight. The sheep, the wind, the countryside all seemed to fit the moment.
“Airstrip” and “Donga” were the next 2 holes, followed by “Ridge,” some solid par 4’s in a nice part of the course.
The first par 3 on the course is the 6th, “Paradise” at 173 metres – the hole names here are cool up to this point. I am picking that the name of the 6th has nothing to to do with the toilet facilities located here. The loo was a valuable addition to the course, luckily I didn’t need to go, it appeared to be held down from the wind by a whisp of a wire. Unfortunately, this loo did not make it to the list of top on course toilets.
The greens were ringed with fences that didn’t seem electric but kept the sheep at bay none the less. The soft country greens were mainly in a good flat condition. My putting has never been anything to write home about – like my mother would want to read about my putting in a letter.
Dear Mum, I three putted the last from 6 feet for a triple, how’s your leg holding up after the fall?
I squeezed in a short game lesson a few weeks back and talked with Ross about what’s on your mind during the art of putting. He put me onto the book by Dr. Bob Rotella called “Putting out of your mind” This was my first chance to get out and test his words of wisdom after I listened to it on a work trip.
The key rationale is that the only thing to think about when about to putt is getting it in, seems simple right? Don’t think to lag it up or avoid 3 putts or get it within 3 feet from here. Just think to get it in. What better place to test my resolve on some soft country greens. I don’t nail many putts I’ll admit. But today I slotted 4 solid 10 foot plus putts, 2 for birdie. Not all strokes were a raging success but I certainly stood over each putt with a better mindset. I rolled a few putts well past the hole. But I merely stepped up and knocked in the testing return.
So if you need to sort your putting out try the Audiobook as I did. The Audible app is a cool way to get through books to help you learn. You can listen in the car or on a bus.
Audible offers a free book when you sign up, so listen to Dr. Bob for free and tell me I’m wrong. Click the link and you might find the putting focus you need.
The last three holes were quite delightful in amongst the sheep. The course here at Te Pohue is a credit to the locals. They did resort to a simple finish with the hole names, “Gully” “Willows” and “Pines.” A truly unique rustic experience which is as much part of golf in New Zealand as the lavish spotlight courses like Cape Kidnappers.
The finishing 9th was a 134 metre flip back towards the clubhouse to a 2 tiered green. A nice way to complete your round. I landed on the second tier and had to putt down the extensive slope. I had forgotten my stimpmeter but on a slick green, this would have been unplayable. With my new found putting focus, I finished up with a par.
Glad to be back in the car out of the wind but not glad to be leaving Te Pohue. Enjoy this course if you find yourself driving Taupo to Napier. It won’t take long but it will last long in your your memory.
Formosa Golf Resort is a wonderfully crafted golf design. The legend that is Sir Bob Charles, used his years of experience to good creativity to come up with this golf course.
The NZ Open was held right here in 1998, with that the course was surely aiming for greatness. In a few quick years, the gloss came off and so did the wheels.
I played here a couple of years ago and lost a ball in the middle of the 1st fairway, plugged somewhere into the sopping wet pastures. The course was a mess, I won’t elaborate but such beauty had fallen from grace. The atmosphere in the pro shop and bar were all wrong, defeated.
I came back one late afternoon when the weather looked settled and after a stretch of rainless days. A golf course that should give you more, deserves another chance so I drove the 40 minutes from Auckland city with no thought that I would need a tee slot secured.
When I got close to the driveway I remembered how impressive it was to pull up to the large grounds and make my way to the clubrooms.
I was hoping this old Supermodel wasn’t sat there clutching a beer on her porch, with a toothless mouth and false teeth sitting in a jar. With her belly fat sitting low over her filthy shorts giving herself a hair cut. Shouting obscene comments to the players as they passed her by.
I received a very friendly welcome in the shop from the Pro who had a passion for talking golf. Unfortunately, I could only play 9 holes due to the time I arrived, shame really. I took the front nine as the back nine was busy.
There are new owners and big hope for a resurgence of Formosa Golf Resort. I do hope this is true and this course gets back on its feet.
The tees range from a manageable 5,704 metres off of the whites, up to 6,633 off of the blacks. So the variety of golfers that can enjoy the magical location and well crafted course is wide.
There are panoramic views of Waiheke Island and Rangitoto from the course as you walk the clifftops and coastal fairways. A glimpse back across to Auckland CBD in the distance reminds you we aren’t far from the city of sails.
Formosa Golf Course has all the bones of a classic, palm trees swaying in the wind. A resort feel and wonderful sweeping driving holes, there are water features and picture-perfect greens.
The place stinks of a lack of water when it needs it and holding too much fluid when it doesn’t. Let’s hope the new owners get the drainage and the sprinklers back in action.
The Front Nine
Number 1
The first is a good way to get your round going, a down hill shortish par 4 with a palm tree framed green. You should get off to a good start.
1st Green
The 2nd is a 165-metre par 3 into a tiered green over a wee pond that doesn’t really come into play. A long par 5 number 3 has a sandless fairway bunker to catch your pushed drive.
2nd
4th
4th
5th
6th
8th
The 4th tee shot needs an accurate drive through an encroaching tree tunnel. Formosa style is on show off of the 5th, from the elevated tee box, a pond asks you to take on the corner. More water on the 6th I was warming to the challenge and ignoring the rough fairways.
Hole of the Day
7th Tee
The 7th is a canny par 3 to a long 2 tiered green, the tee box is a great place to be, looking up at the green framed by the overhanging trees.
7th green
I was sad to be standing on the 9th tee box, a great par 5 to take you back to the clubhouse. Nine holes at Formosa was not enough on this lovely evening. I wished I had arrived a little earlier to make it a full 18.
I managed to par the last with an up and down from the only bunker on the course with sand in it. The previous owners must have stolen all the sand to pay for their taxi ride out of here.
9th Green
Missing out on the back nine was a shame, it has some great holes and better coastal views. I put the clubs away and promised to come back to play the rest and keep an eye on the progress of this once great golf course.
I had a good yarn with the pro and it seems work is underway to put the lipstick back on this pig. It will take a lot of puff and some mouth to mouth to resurrect Formosa. Good luck to the people here in their mission to put this course back at the top of great New Zealand golfing destinations.
I got out of the airconditioned car and stepped into a pizza oven. It was roasting in the Waikare Golf Club car park.
The chap in the shop had a history, 80 years he’s been attached to his club. His Grandad was the first president in these parts. I pleaded for a cart, even if it were only for nine holes. He said he would be gone soon, but he didn’t live far so gave us a cart and asked if we could park it up after our round. He’d come back later to put it away.
I was getting the sense that there was a love of their club here at Waikare. A golf course in the Waikato not far from Lake Waikare.
Waikato was burnt to a crisp, and so was Waikare Golf Club. But the greens were in excellent condition. The brown fairways and open nature of the course was a pleasure to play. Stocked up with drinks and sunscreen a good day out followed.
There are plenty of features at Waikare. The top of the course offers a fantastic vista and the collection of statues and pond life leaves you feeling like this is more than a dry old golf course.
Statue friends
A golf hole needs a name, a golf hole name needs some thought, Waikare has a collection of names to rival most. No “Westward Ho” in sight, no “Homeward Bound” and I’ll let them away with a “Devil’s Elbow”
“Rangitoto” starts your round from an elevated tee to a short 420 metre par 5. It’s not such a long way to “Tipperary” 317 metre par 4 2nd. The course is a par 70 at 5,160 metres. Not a long course with 3 reachable par 5’s – 2 of them in the first 3 holes. “Tea House” number 3 has a large landing area from an elevated tee box. An opportunity to start well before the heat sucked the life out my golf swing.
The 5th is only 299 metres, “Tomos” has 3 hollows (or Tomos) to catch your tee shot and give you coin flip stance in the process. I have played Waitomo golf course, so I should have known what a Tomo was, I soon found out when my ball ended up in one.
There are 3 par 3’s in the last four holes of the front nine. The first of these is “Whizz-Bang” my pick of the hole of the day. The carry to the green over the pond and the name win the day! This is a great part of the course.
“Bella Vista” starts the short back nine. Scoring should be easy looking at the card, but this course punishes poorly positioned shots. And there is always a pond to keep you on your toes.
I was looking forward to getting to the 12th “Devil’s Elbow” you know it is a risk or reward slog off the tee. A cracking wee hole at 254 metres with a pleasant and perfectly placed pond to sink a sliced drive.
I birdied the 13th “Waitare” the last of the par 5’s. By now it was a windless boiler of an afternoon. I was so glad of the cart.
“Outlook” up on the 15th tee has a great view across the countryside. Fully exposed to the heat, I made a mess of this hole and the classic 16th “Jerico” which has a lovely framed green with a pond short of the green to catch your eye.
The life was drawn out of me by the time I got to “Temptation” the 17th – we all know that this name for a hole is telling us to hit an iron off the tee to the 277 Metre par 4. Or just take on the tree and irrigation storage pond with a driver. I gave way to the temptation and managed an easy par.
Heading up “Clubhouse ” to finish my round I was certainly pleased to have visited this Waikato staple. I was for sure planning to come back when there was more green on the fairways, to see it at it’s finest.
The clubrooms were excellent and overlooked the course. No one was there when I came off the 18th, sweating buckets and looking for a beer.
A country course that is well looked after and a friendly place to play. The bunkers across the course were well placed, the water features too, the statutes really pulled it all together. Well done Waikare, I see you when it rains!
Waiterimu Golf Club in Waikato is not easy to find, off the beaten track, with not a lot of web presence. I knew about this course from the man at Huntly Golf Club.
Coming off State highway 1 just before Huntly I couldn’t bring the course up on the maps app. I stopped on a deserted road to do some research and find the place.
A hard-working car pulled up alongside me, a worn and weathered man barked something at me. I couldn’t make out a word. I rolled down the window and spoke at him, ” I’m looking for a golf course”
He lights up, ” Are you Scots??” He told me he was a laird, the rightful owner of Castle Inch. Following this information, he affirmed, “I’ve never been to Scotland” He then rattled off a long story starting with him being born on the side of the road in America, “on Highway 66!”
His nationality was an extraordinary mix of Scots, American, Welsh, Portuguese – possibly the father of Rohanldo – and something about having a connection to the German Reich. He did look Maori.
He owned land all over New Zealand and heard this area was up for sale that’s why he was here. He also heard a rumour that an International golf resort was planned for the area, he winked at me knowingly – I was the buyer for sure.
Pulling into an empty car park is a nice feeling. I was looking forward to the nine holes ahead of me. I get more of a kick out of a true country golf course than some courses who think they are something that they are not.
Unpacked and ready to get out there, a rain shower came through and turned into a thunderous 10 minutes of a downpour. We cuddled under the clubrooms parapet until it passed. There was a great outdoor area for post-round socialising.
A healthy mob of sheep roamed freely on the course. Electric fences kept them off the putting surface. The greens were soft and smooth and pretty good really.
This little country course was no pushover, substantial par 4’s and tough par 5’s. The 9th was the hole of the day 140 metres in full view of the nobody watching from the clubrooms.
This journey was taking me to places I never knew about. The countryside here is lovely, rolling farmland. To know that this course exists in rural New Zealand is heartwarming.
The Greenkeepers were friendly all the way around and seem to maintain the fairways will dedication. Although I did get a shit lie now and again.
A Shit lie
As a course layout I was impressed, not a cookie cutter design. A local design to keep you challenged. The first was a tempting dog leg a bit early in the round to smash the driver over the corner, or was it?
Number 3 needed your attention off the tee at 389 metres with a dogleg it was deserving of number 1 stroke hole status.
The 5th is a deceptive par 3 at 162 metres. Followed by another dogleg at the 6th tee.
The 7th, a par 5, was a good driving hole narrowed by the trees in front of the tee box. A sloping fairway and tricky elevated green made the short par 5 a little harder than it may appear. The front nine suggests it is stroke 17 but playing it again on the back gives it stroke index 2 as it drops down to a par 4.
Number 8 is another par 5 longest on the course at 444 metres. But the hole of the day is the finishing hole. 140 metres back up to the clubhouse. A beautifully framed way to complete your round in front of those watching from the deck.
Time to go
A word on the loo. Was it a loo on the 5th? If you don’t need to go on course, don’t go is my humble advice. On the card it said toilet so let’s assume you can go there.
I’m not in a position to judge this or add it to the list of top 10 on course toilets. If it was, in fact, a toilet.
THE LOO?
What I will say is that on the clubhouse wall there is an amazingly informative sign making sure you know where the toilets are.
By No.10 Tee apparently, which is where the 1st tee is and also this sign.
If you are nearby Waiterimu drop in for the loo or better still a round of golf on the Kiwi classic.
I dropped my wife at Auckland airport for a business trip away. Huntly didn’t seem that far, so I headed south to the Waikato.
I arrived and headed up to the clubrooms to find someone to give my $25 green fee. There was a hot and thirsty looking collection of men settling into their chairs. The man behind the bar took me downstairs to get a card.
He told me the group in the bar were too thirsty to play more than 9 holes today. It was a stinking hot day.
“What brings you around this way?” the man asked. I looked a wee bit townie and obviously not local. I unfolded the dream to play every golf course in New Zealand at his feet.
He bobbed his head and shoulders in appreciation of the task. “There are nearly 400??” he learned and quickly processed the challenge ahead of me. “If you do one course every month – you’ll be dead before you finish.”
I agreed and rushed to the 1st tee, I better get a move on.
It was a dry intense heat beating down on the Huntly fairways. This had been the weather story for a while. The course was a light brown colour like many more in the New Zealand countryside at the height of summer.
I was sporting a new pair of golf shoes, a half size bigger than normal to allow for swelling of the plates of meat. They were exceptionally comfortable.
The front nine passed me by as I struggled to get in a rhythm. The dry course was generous off of the tee. If you hit a straight drive you would feel good with the added run metres, I couldn’t muster much of that. You had to hit the green or else the miss was magnified by the hard ground around them. The greens themselves were in good condition.
Foolishly unprepared, there was no water in my bag so at half time I was glad that the man was still around to sell me much needed hydration before he packed up for the day.
I picked water from the fridge and noticed a box of Speights. ” Can I grab a can ?” – the man wondered why I had asked that “Looks like you need it.”
On the 10th tee I demanded more from myself, I drank all the water. I will keep the very cold can of beer in my bag until my game improves.
Number 10 was a par 3, a nice hole to get the back nine started. I thinned an eight iron onto the green for par. This was the start of a good stretch of golf.
A drivable dogleg of 259 metres was a nice 11th hole. If you can find a power fade you’d be happy. Another par on 11 and following a great iron shot into the par 3 12th, there were signs I would soon crack the beer. I’ll drink it if I nail the birdie putt… Missed it.
The 13th is a tough 354 metre par 4 needing a good drive. I came off the green with another par. I was wondering if I could keep this up and I was wondering if the beer was getting warm.
The 14th was a par 5 and made for an easy 5th par in a row. I couldn’t take the risk any longer on the beer temperature and I had played well enough to deserve it.
Time for a beer
I sat on the lovely 15th tee and whipped off my sweat sodden hat and delved into the bag for the can of Speights. Yes, it was still cold. There was no one anywhere in sight, it felt right to pull off my shirt and lie back on the tee box.
I’ve never been shirtless on a golf course in my life. I must take this moment to apologise to the good people of Huntly. For the disregarding of all etiquette rules on your golf course. Any one who may have seen the sun reflect off of my white Scottish skin and wonder what was going on, to them I apologise too,
The beer and the moment was such a pleasure. I got ahead of myself ( again) and dreamt of a bogey-free back nine. 3 quarters of the can already drunk, I stood up and stared down the 15th, a mere 168 metres later I came off with a double-bogey 5. The beer and the sunshine knocked me off my pedestal.
I finished the can, put my shirt back on and made sure that I was dressed appropriately for the final stretch.
Melting back to the clubrooms, it was a tough final 3 holes, wishing for more cold Speights but no luck as everything was locked up.
I enjoyed the back nine here at Huntly, the course is well worth a visit. I was glad there were no hills to tackle in the heat of the day. I was glad I took the drive to the Waikato to experience the 18 holes. I felt the tinge of sunburn on the way home, best to keep my shirt on in the future.
The day couldn’t have been better driving into Paraparaumu Beach Golf Club. The warm Kapiti Coast sun was high in the sky and watching down on me.
The night before I slavered over the history of this golf club and watched videos of the course. This is not my style. I prefer the turn-up, play, discover and enjoy model. But I had an inkling that this was going to be momentous. I have to admit there was a little goosebump in my hotel room as I thought about what was to come.
The club president was meeting up with me to show me around. Dave Buck is a storyteller and very good golfer who started his golfing life as a caddie at PBGC when he was 10 years old.
The entrance is unassuming just through the village, near but not on the beach. The welcome is friendly and interested, not like an exclusive club showing off its silverware. In a small community town steeped in history, this is a place for locals to meet and play and pick fun at each other and sometimes to wager on their abilities.
“Alex” is hole number 1, paying tribute to the designer, his name and his work are held in high regard across the globe. This is the only golf course Alex Russell designed outside of Australia. A man from Scottish heritage, he had a pedigree for sure. The guile he used amongst these dunes to create PBGC would mesmerise even the Scots.
In the clubrooms, the history of how this club grew into a world powerhouse is on display, but not too much.
In 1949 the job was finished, Alex had created his masterpiece. Only 10 years later the first NZ open was played here, and the country took notice of PBGC. A total of 12 opens later is a story in itself.
I asked if there were plans for a future Open to return – no confidence in this idea was voiced. It would be a damn shame if we can’t get the Open back at the home of New Zealand golf.
“Alex” starts with a slightly blind tee shot as your introduction to the mind games you have signed up for. I made a good shot into the green – there was greenkeeper watering. He enjoyed a good bit of laughter as I got over my putt and a gust of wind blew my ball a further 15 feet back down the steep green. A sign of greens to come.
Dave told me only 4 greenkeepers work the land and still, it is an immaculate links beauty. The locals help out with additional work when required, like a real golf club.
I was regaled with tails of great players who have walked these fairways, – Tiger -Bob Charles – Peter Thompson – Cambo. But there are golfers from all around the world putting this golf course on their list. I heard of one American chap in the clubhouse who only had time for 1 game of golf in NZ – a good choice that man.
Tourism New Zealand has a plan to elevate Aotearoa as a world-leading golfing destination and they have chosen courses across the country to be poster boys for the campaign. PBGC is firmly in that plan and should, in my opinion, head it up.
The members often caddie for overseas visitors, this is a special offering not only to play PBGC but with someone on your bag that lives and breaths the place. Not many carry a yardage book or laser scope, just years of experience.
I started brightly with 2 pars in the first 4. I was loving being with Dave and was looking forward to pushing onto a solid score. The greens were firm and in impeccable condition, a joy to putt on with many challenges, Tiger 4 putted the 2nd so I was please with my solid 2 putts.
How many was that?
The 5th is a beautiful par 3, delicate and slim, hanging on its pedestal with deep hollows on all sides. Te Motu – “The Island”.
I ended up in the left-hand hollow from the tee, like a fool I swaggered up to the chip, unaware and underprepared – I made 2 excellent chips that ended back at my feet, still with no fear, the third chip ended up over the green and into the right-hand hollow. This story of chipping goes on, more like ping pong than golf. I’m not proud of the 9 I put on the card. I am proud of the fact that Frank Nobilo registered a 7 here, whilst leading the open. I haven’t scored 9 for a while but I do have some satisfaction that PBGC got me in the most unassuming way.
Dave had a wee chuckle going on as we left the green behind.
Glad to see the back of the 5th.
After the wake-up, I played well and really enjoyed, the combinations PBGC has for you. Tee shots need to be put the right place, seemingly normal approach shots need more care than you know and the devilish greens are firmly in control of your ball. Maybe the course was playing me rather than the other way around.
Having a local and expert on the course with me was worth a few shots off of the card. The advice was priceless. “Don’t miss left, and you don’t want to be right here, I would suggest the middle of the green would be a good place to be.”
Hole names are in both English and Maori. None more so than Morearea Iti – Little Danger. This is my favourite hole on the course. If you played it 6 times you would have a different plan each time. Dave and Leo, the GM, both agree that number 8 takes the cake. A small green stares you down, daring you to put your puny little ball on the little smooth surface. Not the most beautiful hole but a golfing challenge you will relish.
Others have different ideas on the hole of the day, which shows you the strength of PBGC right across the 18 holes.
The 8th is the story here, play the course as it was designed. Make the shots it is asking you to make. Fight against it and you will be in a world of hurt.
From the 13th at the bottom of the course, you see the whole brilliance of the place chosen to put this golf course. The view of the Tararua ranges from here is magical. “The Divide” number 13 needs an out of the screws drive across a swale then up to an elevated green. This hole is brilliant, miss short and end up in “Russell’s ravine” – however, the back of the green is even worse.
The 14th is a tempting par 3 downhill with a full view of the pot bunkers. On the 15th tee box, the hole askes for “Blind Faith” out over the dunes to a fairway you will see when you get there. What a great stretch of 3 holes. Surely the course has run out of ideas by now.
16th Tee
The 16th is not unlike the postage stamp at Royal Troon. There is no easy way to tackle the 126 metres in front of you.
The 17th is world-class, a split fairway is an idea not used often enough. Choose a safer and shorter route up the right but face a harder approach or try to reach the left-hand fairway for a much easier shot at the green.
Standing on the 18th, I felt a little disappointed that my round was coming to an end. But a birdie-able Par 5 finishing hole lifted my spirits. This hole is a favourite of many, historical finishes of the Open have been witnessed here. A plaque in the fairway shows where Grant Waite holed out for a double-eagle in 1992 using a 2-iron.
Holing out for a par on the last, I was only 2 over on the back nine, I felt like a champion, I would have gleefully started again and played another 18 holes, but we settled for a beer instead.
I met a Calgary couple who get out of their winter in the Northern hemisphere for 4 months and hole up here playing PBGC every day. If you are looking for a life hack that is one you should focus on.
The Jewel in the Crown
Is this the Jewel in the New Zealand crown? I am a sucker for a links golf course, but it takes clear design and vision to lay on a course that beats all others. The best courses in the world take you on a journey, and the very best make every moment of that journey worth the trip.
Hollows and humps, moguls if you will, dunes, pot bunkers, no need for bunkers, big greens, little greens, tiers on the greens and in the eyes after the 5th and Dave’s company all made this day out very special.
Golf is about today, the course, the weather, the company but it also is about history. It is about community and friendship. Paraparaumu Beach Golf Club is all of these things rolled into one helluva golf course, which must be the home of golf in New Zealand. The best golf course I’ve played in New Zealand and straight to number 1 on the list of New Zealand’s top courses.
At the bottom (or top) of Lake Wakatipu. Kingston Golf Club is the most northerly of the clubs that make up the Southland golf district. Kingston is the southern gateway to the Queenstown Lakes district. Just under 50 km’s along the Devil’s Staircase from here will bring you into Queenstown.
I played here many moons ago when there were fences around the greens to keep the sheep at bay. I was surprised to see them gone and the course was in good condition.
We came across a full course with the annual sponsor’s tournament in play. We squeezed onto the course between the field. At the clubrooms, there were no scorecards in the honesty box. A friendly local on the course offered to go and find me one, but I settled on taking a photo of his card. We had a laugh at his score so far, as they headed off in front of us.
A straight forward short par 4 to start the round should boost your confidence. The par 4’s at Kingston are all around the 300-metre mark so quite accessible for good scoring.
An uphill par 3, number 2 was named after Michael Hills poor brother. A testing hole needing a solid shot to get you up to the green. But once up there the view back down towards the lake is remarkable.
THE HILLS
The undulating mounds at the back of the course were an interesting feature going down the 3rd. The first of 2 par 5’s at 418 metres. A nice looking driving hole with a tricky green.
3rd Green
At “Ben Nevis” the 140 metre 6th we bumped into another of the tournament players who insisted we come to the clubhouse for a beer after our round. I was beginning to like the good people of Kingston.
The 7th was a tough driving hole with a narrowing fairway. What made it tougher was the weather that was galloping up the lake at us. A quick stop to hide under trees ensued whilst we waited for it to blow through.
Here comes the weather
I can offer some advice on the 8th, a short 288 metres, asking for a ripper off the tee. Don’t take your driver from the bag. An easy 7 iron will leave you far enough back to get over the substantial tree guarding the green. I took the driver.
The clubhouse was full of people when we finished. I sometimes forget to de cloth my cap when entering the clubrooms. It is a tradition to remove your headgear in clubrooms through the land. Golf people are quick to give you notice, by looking at you and tapping their heads. In Scotland that is code for your mental/crazy.
The prize table was laden with prizes, for their biggest tourney of the year. The president came and introduced himself – we found out the club was born the same year as us ( me and the wife) 1968.
There was news of thousands of houses planned for the area and with this comes the fear that course may be taken from these good people. We met a few other local people and shared stories of great courses in the Southland area, including the deceased Oreti sands in Invercargill.
It turned out that one of the ladies in the room was a relative of the first-ever person to tee off at Oreti sands.
These clubrooms were full of a great bunch of people enjoying their big day. For me, another lucky day to play a local course which had been immaculately presented for the tournament.
The difficulty to get the community to look after the course year-round was raised. New people coming in to live but not utilizing the golf course. We can’t accept this fate, we need Kingston golf club to survive another 50 years. I’ll be back to play in the tournament next year proper. A Brilliant day out and a course worthy of being on the Best Nine Holes of New Zealand list.
The toilet didn’t make the list of top on course toilets.
The journey to play every golf course in New Zealand
