Gold Coast but can fly anywhere

[MileHighGuye]

Hello-

 

I am going to be in Australia for a conference for 5-6 days in May (May 2-8). Trying to squeeze some golf in. Any recommendations on a great day trip.

 

I am open to flying.. I had thought about going to Cape Kidnappers in NZ but figured for a day flight each way it may be too much?

 

Any other ideas?

 

Barnbougle in Tasmania?

Cape Kidnappers in NZ?

Cape Wickham?

 

Any help is much appreciated!

[benno_r]

Hello-

 

I am going to be in Australia for a conference for 5-6 days in May (May 2-8). Trying to squeeze some golf in. Any recommendations on a great day trip.

 

I am open to flying.. I had thought about going to Cape Kidnappers in NZ but figured for a day flight each way it may be too much?

 

Any other ideas?

 

Barnbougle in Tasmania?

Cape Kidnappers in NZ?

Cape Wickham?

 

Any help is much appreciated!

 

I have been to Cape Kidnappers, Barnbougle, and will be going to Cape Wickham next weekend. I would recommend Barnbougle over Cape Kidnappers. It's a quarter of the price, has 2 courses, and is a better course (though not as scenic).

 

Any of those options will be a hassle to get there though, unlikely to be doable in a day trip. Factoring ease of access to an Airport, I would recommend:

 

1. Fly to Sydney and play NSW Golf Club

2. Fly to Adelaide and play Royal Adelaide

 

You should be able to fly down and back in a day, and still get some good golf in.

 

You could also fly to Melbourne and play anywhere on the Sandbelt, but it is much further to get from/to the airport. The obvious bonus is Royal Melbourne, Kingston Heath and the rest being your course choice.

 

I am partial to Royal Adelaide though. It is one of my favourite courses in the country, and a true hidden gem when it comes to talking about the top courses in the world.

[JR11]

Depends on what kind of courses you want to play. Gold Coast weather in May will be perfect and there is no shortage of good resort style courses there. If you are after more classic courses (i.e. the sandbelt down in Melbourne) you will have to travel but the weather down in Victoria in May could be anything.

 

Recommendations for the Gold Coast courses would include Sanctuary Cove, Lakelands and The Glades.

[MileHighGuye]

Any preference of Cape Wickham vs Barnbougle? I would most likely go down for a couple of days...

 

Thanks!

[MileHighGuye]

Would you guys choose Royal Melbourne and Kingston Heath over Cape Wickham or Barnbougle?

[benno_r]

Would you guys choose Royal Melbourne and Kingston Heath over Cape Wickham or Barnbougle?

 

I will know in exactly 1 weeks time about Cape Wickham, but if you are talking RM/KH vs Barnbougle, I would pick RM and KH.

 

Barnbougle has plenty to offer - it's cheap, the location is insane, and the courses deserve all the credit they get. But RM West, is RM West.

[Tocgolfer]

Instead of playing the big name courses go for a real challenge and find a true Aussie goat track or sand scrape to play and the more obscure the better. Why you ask? Because everyone wants to play a world ranked course to tick off the bucket list but playing a true country course or sand scrape gives you more credibility as a true golfer who can play any type of course and score well. You can even score a neat golf shirt from a country course and be assured that not many others will have played or even heard of it.

[MileHighGuye]

One more thing....

 

I am thinking this itinerary.

 

Fly to barnbougle and play two days

Fly to Melbourne and play Kingston Heath and Royal Melbourne.

 

That’s five straight days which may be a lot.

 

I could change my flights and fly in early and make this happen.

 

1) is this too much?

2) am I crazy?

[MileHighGuye]

Another option I had thought of is doing ocean dunes and cape wick ham and then barnbougle.

 

I could skip Kingston Heath. I think Royal Melbourne would be pretty special.

 

Just trying to pair it down it possible.

[benno_r]

One more thing....

 

I am thinking this itinerary.

 

Fly to barnbougle and play two days

Fly to Melbourne and play Kingston Heath and Royal Melbourne.

 

Thats five straight days which may be a lot.

 

I could change my flights and fly in early and make this happen.

 

1) is this too much?

2) am I crazy?

Not at all, sounds great.

[anth]

^^^agreed. If you can pull that off go for it.

 

Just be prepared for the weather. May in Victoria and Tasmania could be cold, but you can still get some nice days

[MileHighGuye]

Would you play Barnbougle and Royal Melbourne/Kingston Heath and the first to drop would be Wickham Links? OR would you drop Kingston Heath and make it one day shorter.

[benno_r]

Would you play Barnbougle and Royal Melbourne/Kingston Heath and the first to drop would be Wickham Links? OR would you drop Kingston Heath and make it one day shorter.

 

Would depend exactly how many days you have. You can get flights that do Melbourne - King Island - Barnbougle, but they are charter and really need 4-8 people to make it cost effective.

 

I would think Barnbougle is a must for the simple fact they don't charge exorbitant rates for foreigners. I just noted the rates at RM and KH are crazy for foreigners. King Island courses have moderate mark ups.

 

Maybe RM and the 2 Barnbougle courses might be the best bet. The decide if you have the time/money to add the rest in.

[benno_r]

OK, King Island done. Short summay:

 

Ocean Dunes is brutal, a real tough slog. A very unforgiving course.

 

Cape Wickham, is for lack of better words, the best course in Australia (and I adore Royal Melbourne).

 

My selection is:

Fly to Melbourne, play Royal Melbourne and Kingston Heath, then fly to King Island and play Cape Wickham. If you are up for it, add Ocean Dunes in before Cape Wickham.

[MileHighGuye]

Would you play cape wickham and ocean dunes over barnbougle?

[MileHighGuye]

Also one more thing...

 

I’m going to be playing by myself and thought without caddy option cape wickham and ocean dunes may be tough.

 

Thoughts?

[benno_r]

Would you play cape wickham and ocean dunes over barnbougle?

 

Hard call. Cape Wickham offers the best golf, but the courses are a long way apart and not affiliated, so it's a bit harder on the logistics front. Barnbougle has a great setup with everything you need not to leave the property. Probably for that reason I would suggest to you to go for Barnbougle if you are looking at the total package.

[aussieb]

Research the weather down Tasmania in May. It's brutal and can be unplayable most bad weather days. Makes Scotland look inviting. Better off picking Royal Melbourne, Kingson Heath and Gold Coast. When in GC, can get you on some great courses.

[Old mate]

Gday. Just my opinion but I would rather minimise my travelling time. Choose one place and enjoy it without rushing around. I would either stay near the Goldie, go to tassie or go to Melbourne.

I love barnbougle/lost farm. Stay on course and immerse yourself in golf. Play both courses twice. Get the staff there to join you up with other golfers. All self contained. You would have to fly to Launceston and hire a car. Weather might be sketchy in may though...

I can’t speak for Melbourne but the world rankings of the courses speak for themselves. I love the Aussie coastal bush style of course that kh/rm etc typify. Lots of courses on the Mornington peninsula as well.

On the Goldie I like hope island the most. I find many Goldie courses lack character- resort style.... I like a few others but they aren’t in the best condition.

I love brookwater which is near Brisbane- tough and lots of character. May is a nice time of the year up there. Hamilton island is also a cracking course for somewhere different. Throw in some fishing/diving etc...

Something out of left field would be a road trip from the Goldie to Sydney via hire car. Play Murwillumbah, bonville, tuncurry, Newcastle, magenta shores, nsw. A couple of hours between each.

Old mate.