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Planning a golf trip to Australia or New Zealand belongs on every serious golfer's bucket list. The region punches well above its weight on the world stage - think rugged clifftop links, legendary sandbelt classics, and dramatic coastal layouts that rival anything in Scotland or Ireland. Whether you're routing a two-week itinerary or chasing a single once-in-a-lifetime round, the best golf courses in Australia & New Zealand will stop you in your tracks before you've even taken a club out of the bag.
This guide covers the courses worth building a trip around - where to play, what makes each one special, and how to get the most out of every round with Hole19 in your back pocket.
What makes Australia and New Zealand such exceptional golf destinations?
Australia and New Zealand together offer a rare combination of world-class golf, dramatic natural scenery, and a golf culture that takes the game seriously without taking itself too seriously. Australia alone has produced some of the finest sandbelt and links layouts on the planet - several of which consistently appear in global top-100 rankings. New Zealand counters with jaw-dropping coastal and mountain settings that feel almost impossibly cinematic.
The climate helps too. Australia's south and New Zealand's north offer year-round playability, while shoulder seasons (March-May and September-November) deliver ideal conditions without the summer heat or peak-season crowds.
How can Hole19 help you get more from every course?
Before you fly halfway around the world to play one of these layouts, it pays to know the course before you arrive. Hole19 gives you GPS distances to the front, middle, and back of every green, hazard carry distances, and fairway landing zones - hole by hole, on over 50,000 courses worldwide including all of the courses listed here. Pair that with Shot Tracker and post-round stats review, and you're not just playing these courses - you're understanding them. Smart club selection on an unfamiliar layout starts with accurate yardage data, and that's exactly what Hole19 puts in your pocket the moment your round begins.
Download Hole19 free and start exploring every course in this guide before you book your flights.
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Best golf courses in Australia
Melbourne's sandbelt is the heartland of Australian golf. The sandy subsoil of Melbourne's southeastern suburbs produces natural, fast-running turf that plays unlike anywhere else in the southern hemisphere. Multiple world top-100 courses sit within 20 kilometres of each other here - a concentration of quality that rivals any golf region on earth.
Royal Melbourne Golf Club, Melbourne
Royal Melbourne is the benchmark. Its West Course, designed by Alister MacKenzie and Alex Russell, is consistently ranked among the top five courses in the world outside the United States. The bunkering is masterful - seemingly placed to catch every slightly wayward shot - and the greens are among the fastest and most complex you will ever read. When the composite course is assembled for major events, it draws on both the West and East nines to create a layout that has hosted multiple Presidents Cups and World Cups of Golf. Playing Royal Melbourne is not just a round of golf; it is a lesson in strategic design.
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Kingston Heath Golf Club, Melbourne
Kingston Heath sits just down the road from Royal Melbourne and belongs in the same conversation. The bunkering, revised by Mick Morcom in the 1920s, defines the character of every hole - deep, steep-faced, and placed exactly where your eye wants to land the ball. The native banksia scrub lining the fairways creates a natural drama that makes every decision off the tee feel meaningful. Kingston Heath consistently ranks in Australia's top three and is a must-play for any serious golfer visiting Melbourne.
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Commonwealth Golf Club, Melbourne
Commonwealth is the third pillar of the inner sandbelt triumvirate and arguably the most underrated of the three. The routing is tighter than Royal Melbourne, which rewards precise shot-making over power. The par threes are outstanding - each one demands a different shape and a clear commitment to your line. If your Melbourne itinerary has room for only three rounds, this is the third booking to make.
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Cape Wickham Links, King Island
Cape Wickham is the wildest golf course in Australia. Perched on the northern tip of King Island in Bass Strait, the layout wraps around a historic lighthouse with ocean views on almost every hole. The wind is relentless, the turf is firm and fast, and the risk-reward decisions are constant. Getting here requires a short flight from Melbourne, which only adds to the sense of occasion. Since opening in 2015, Cape Wickham has climbed into global top-50 lists and earned comparisons to the finest links courses in Ireland and Scotland. It is not a course you play and forget.
Use Hole19's GPS data here and you will quickly see why yardage alone does not tell the whole story at Cape Wickham - the wind and elevation shifts mean every hole plays differently on the way out versus the way home. Hole19's hole-by-hole hazard distances help you pick your lines and manage the round intelligently rather than just reacting to whatever the weather throws at you.
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Barnbougle Dunes, Tasmania
Barnbougle Dunes on Tasmania's northeastern coast was something of an accidental masterpiece when it opened in 2004. Built over potato farmland by American designer Tom Doak, it uses the natural duneland to create a links experience that feels authentically Scottish in character. The ground game is rewarded, the wind is a constant playing partner, and the views over Bass Strait are remarkable. Its sister course, Lost Farm, sits next door and offers a longer, more dramatic playing experience - a two-for-one that makes the trip to Bridport an easy decision.
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New South Wales Golf Club, Sydney
For the Sydney-based itinerary, the New South Wales Golf Club at La Perouse is the priority booking. The Alister MacKenzie design sits on a spectacular headland overlooking Botany Bay and the Pacific Ocean, with a collection of par threes that rank among the best on any course in the world. The setting alone would make it worth playing - the course quality makes it unmissable.
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The Australian Golf Club, Sydney
The Australian is Sydney's most storied club and another MacKenzie design, substantially restored in recent years to bring it closer to his original vision. It has hosted more Australian Opens than any other course and the layout reflects that championship pedigree - demanding tee shots, precise approach play, and greens that reward reading the slopes carefully. For anyone serious about golf history in Australia, a round here is essential.
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The Lakes Golf Club, Sydney
The Lakes offers a slightly different flavour - a challenging layout threaded between water hazards and mature trees on the edge of Sydney's eastern suburbs. It rewards course management over raw power, and the proximity to the city makes it one of the most accessible top-tier rounds in New South Wales. A great option if you are in Sydney for business and want to fit in a serious game.
→ The Lakes Golf Club on Hole19
→ If planning your travel around golf, [this guide to the best fall golf destinations](https://www.hole19golf.com/the-19th-hole/best-fall-golf-destinations) covers timing and logistics for international golf trips.
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Best golf courses in New Zealand
New Zealand's golf scene is less concentrated than Australia's but no less impressive. The courses here tend to play with the landscape rather than against it - meaning dramatic elevation changes, coastal exposure, and settings that stop you mid-round just to take in the view.
Cape Kidnappers, Hawke's Bay
Cape Kidnappers is the course that put New Zealand on the international golf map. Designed by Tom Doak and opened in 2004, it sits on a series of ridgelines above the Pacific Ocean near the town of Napier. Several fairways drop away to sheer cliffs, and the views from the back nine are genuinely vertiginous. It is golf in a setting that feels like nowhere else - and the course quality matches the spectacle. Cape Kidnappers regularly appears in global top-20 lists and is one of the most photographed layouts in the world for good reason.
Hole19's GPS distances are essential here. The visual drama can make distances deceptive - what looks like a mid-iron often plays more with the elevation and prevailing wind off the ocean. Knowing your exact carry distance to the pin and the front edge of the green takes a lot of the guesswork out of what is already a challenging round.
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Hawke's Bay Golf Club, Napier
If Cape Kidnappers is out of reach on budget or availability, the Hawke's Bay Golf Club in Napier offers a genuinely enjoyable parkland round in a beautiful setting at a fraction of the cost. It is the kind of club that reminds you why golf in New Zealand is so accessible - friendly, well-maintained, and immediately welcoming to visiting golfers.
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Waitangi Golf Club, Bay of Islands
For golfers combining a golf trip with some North Island sightseeing, Waitangi Golf Club in the Bay of Islands is a rewarding detour. The layout uses rolling coastal terrain with ocean glimpses throughout, and the club's historical setting adds an extra layer of atmosphere. It is not a world-top-100 contender, but it is a thoroughly enjoyable round in a stunning part of New Zealand.
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Jacks Point Golf Club, Queenstown
Jacks Point is the course that defines Queenstown golf. Designed by John Darby, it runs along the shores of Lake Wakatipu with the Remarkables mountain range as a constant backdrop. The combination of mountain scenery, lakeside holes, and a genuinely challenging layout makes it one of the most visually stunning golf experiences in the world. Every hole frames a different view, and the risk-reward design ensures you are always thinking rather than just hitting.
Tracking your round with Hole19 at Jacks Point is especially rewarding post-round - the Shot Tracker and stats review reveal exactly how the elevation changes and prevailing lake breeze affected your distances across the 18 holes. It is the kind of data that sharpens your game for the next round.
Millbrook Resort Golf Course, Queenstown
Millbrook Resort sits in the Arrow River basin near Arrowtown, just outside Queenstown, and offers a resort-style experience that complements the more rugged character of Jacks Point. The course plays across multiple levels of terrain with mountain views throughout, and the resort accommodation makes it an excellent base for a multi-round Queenstown stay.
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Kelvin Heights Golf Club, Queenstown
Kelvin Heights is Queenstown's most accessible course and should not be overlooked. The peninsula layout on Lake Wakatipu means water is in play throughout, the greens are well-maintained, and the views are genuinely spectacular - all at a green fee that makes it a smart addition to any Queenstown itinerary. A great warm-up or cool-down round alongside the premium bookings.play throughgreen feeround
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Paraparaumu Beach Golf Club, Wellington
Paraparaumu Beach is New Zealand's closest thing to a pure links. Designed by Alex Russell - the same hand behind the refinements at Royal Melbourne's East Course - it sits on the Kapiti Coast north of Wellington and plays across duneland terrain with the Kapiti Island as a striking backdrop. It has hosted more New Zealand Opens than any other course and remains the country's finest traditional links experience. Wind management and ground game are the skills that win here.
→ Mastering course management before a links round is time well spent - [this breakdown of golf course management](https://www.hole19golf.com/the-19th-hole/golf-course-management-game-plan) covers the strategic thinking that separates smart golfers from strong ones.
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Wairarapa Golf Club, Wellington Region
For golfers spending time in the Wellington region and looking for a second round away from the coast, Wairarapa Golf Club offers a pleasant parkland experience in the Wairarapa Valley. Straightforward green fees, friendly membership, and an enjoyable layout make it a low-key but worthwhile addition to a Wellington golf visit.
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Royal Wellington Golf Club, Wellington
Royal Wellington is the city's most prestigious parkland club and has hosted multiple national championships. The layout demands accuracy off the tee and precise approach play, and the elevated sections offer sweeping views across the surrounding hills. A serious test by any standard, and an excellent counterpoint to the links character of Paraparaumu Beach.
→ Royal Wellington Golf Club on Hole19
How do you plan a golf trip to Australia or New Zealand?
The easiest starting point is to anchor your itinerary around two or three marquee courses and build in supporting rounds at accessible clubs nearby. Melbourne-to-Tasmania (or vice versa) is one of the great two-week golf routes in the world - sandbelt classics, Cape Wickham, and Barnbougle Dunes cover an enormous range of golf experiences without too much travel stress.
For New Zealand, the North Island-to-South Island split works well: Cape Kidnappers and Paraparaumu Beach in the north, Jacks Point and Millbrook in Queenstown in the south. A week per island is comfortable; two weeks gives you room to breathe between rounds and enjoy the country.
→ If golf travel is something you want to do more of, [this look at the golf travel boom](https://www.hole19golf.com/the-19th-hole/golf-travel-boom) explains why more golfers than ever are planning trips around courses rather than the other way round.
Join 4.8M+ golfers worldwide today. Download now!
Hole19 is the leading golf app for tracking scores, navigating courses with GPS precision, and unlocking performance insights.
What is the best time of year to play golf in Australia and New Zealand?
For Australia's south - Melbourne, South Australia, and Tasmania - March to May and September to November are ideal. Summers can be very hot (mid-40s°C on Melbourne's sandbelt is not uncommon), and the courses play extremely firm. King Island and the Tasmanian courses are playable year-round but wind exposure peaks in the southern winter.
New Zealand's golf season runs broadly October to April for the South Island, with the North Island playable year-round. Queenstown winters are cold and some courses reduce their offering, but Cape Kidnappers and Paraparaumu Beach both hold up well through the cooler months.
Are these courses suitable for mid-handicap golfers?
Yes - with a caveat. Most of the courses listed here are championship-standard layouts that will test every part of your game, but none of them are punitively difficult in the way that some American target-golf courses can be. The sandbelt and links-style layouts reward smart course management and accurate iron play far more than raw distance. A 15-handicapper who thinks clearly and manages the course well will have a brilliant time at Cape Wickham or Barnbougle Dunes - even if the scorecard does not reflect their best game.
Using Hole19 throughout your round helps with exactly this - real-time GPS distances, hazard carries, and layup options mean you are always playing the right shot rather than the heroic one. Smarter golf almost always means more fun golf.
→ Building a solid pre-shot routine before a trip like this pays dividends on courses you have never seen - [this guide to pre-shot routines](https://www.hole19golf.com/the-19th-hole/pre-shot-routine-golf) covers the habits that keep your game together under pressure.
Explore every course with Hole19
Every course in this guide is available on Hole19. Explore the full catalogue, save your favourites, and go into every round knowing your yardages before you step on the first tee. Whether you are planning the trip of a lifetime or just looking for inspiration, discover golf courses on Hole19 and start building your itinerary today.
Track your shots, review your stats, and play smarter - from the Melbourne sandbelt to the cliffs of Cape Wickham and beyond.
Mafalda Gil
Customer Service Agent