For the golfing holidaymaker, the picturesque stretch of Queensland coastline incorporating Bribie Island in the south to Noosa Heads in the north has it all.
MAROOCHY RIVER GOLF CLUB
Every year since the Maroochy River Golf Club opened six years ago, the Graham Marsh layout has been cemented in the national rankings. In January this year it rose to No.54 in the Top-100 Public Access Courses published by Golf Australia magazine.
This ranking is an incredible achievement considering the quality of the land that Marsh and his design team faced. Given the flood-prone nature of the property, the land profile was raised considerably during construction and provided a relatively blank canvas for Marsh to create a layout, which needed to appeal as a challenge for players of all standards.
He certainly hit the mark on that front. The expanse of land allowed Marsh and his design team to offer wide fairways, big greens and four tees on each hole. The broad avenues of play are welcoming to the high handicapper or casual player, while the accomplished player is offered the opportunity on most holes to take a more aggressive line – skirting a scheme of bunkers or water hazard – to get a shorter or more straight-forward line to a flag.
The par-4 10th is a fine example. From the tips, the slight dogleg right hole stretches to 390 metres but the shortest route to the green is to take on the first of three bunkers near the right edge of the fairway. Big hitters can carry the first bunker but they can get a bounce into one of the two smaller traps beyond. The safe playing line wide of the sand leaves a longer shot and also brings a harder approach where a bunker short left of the green is more in play.
The bunkering is a real feature of the journey. The shape and size varies a lot, and while the depth of many leans towards the shallow side, they are visually intimidating enough to make you second guess your club selection or playing line.
Maroochy River’s playing surfaces and, in particular, the Bermuda Tifeagle greens are fantastic. Marsh’s green contouring and variety of shapes have been complemented by the smooth rolling surfaces and are a lot of fun to putt on. The greens surrounds are also trimmed short enough to add the putter as an option from well off the putting surface.
Green fee: $65 (18 holes).
www.maroochyrivergolfclub.com.au
MT COOLUM GOLF CLUB
Set at the foot of the spectacular monolith Mt Coolum, this par-72 is one of the Sunshine Coast’s most challenging member-based layouts. Those who seek out and discover the delights of Mt Coolum won’t be disappointed.
Variety is one of the great attractions of the course. A mix of tight tree-lined fairways and wider more generous landing zones are scattered throughout. There is also an interesting blend of small, subtle-sloping greens and larger undulating putting surfaces … all of which compensate for the course measuring only 5,901 metres from the tips.
The best holes cover the southern half of the course. These include the challenging trio of holes spanning the 523-metre par-5 4th, 194-metre par-3 5th and the 531-metre par-5 6th, which cut through and loop around wetlands and are heavily lined by melaleucas. These are not only demanding holes for all players, they lie in a beautiful setting where plenty of birdlife abounds.
Mt Coolum has six par-5s – including four on the back nine – with the most memorable being the 433-metre 17th, which doglegs left around a scheme of bunkers before turning back to the right around the edge of a lake. Your approach here can be over water to a well-bunkered green with imposing Mt Coolum in the background.
Green fee: $53 (18 holes).
PALMER COOLUM RESORT
One of the truly iconic courses in not just the region but all of Queensland has endured a tumultuous period in recent years.
Beginning with a redesign of one-third of the golf course in 2009 to establish a sought-after residential quarter on what were formerly the holes nearest the beach, Coolum then felt a change of ownership and management that saw Hyatt depart and Clive Palmer step in. In 2012, the resort bid farewell to the Australian PGA Championship, a staple of the Sunshine Coast sporting scene for a decade.
The design changes implemented by original architect Robert Trent Jones Jnr affected the first six holes, giving the layout an entirely new start at the expense of its original opener and a five-hole stretch across busy David Low Way that began at the 4th. The ‘new’ holes, however, bring play to a previously unused section of the property behind the resort and clubhouse and now give us an interesting par-5 to begin what is now the back nine, after the nines were reversed a few years back.
Palmer Coolum slipped out of the Top-100 Courses ranking in this magazine six years ago on the back of a period of steady decline of the presentation of the course. However, when Golf Australia visited for the purposes of compiling this feature, the layout was in much better shape than it had been for previous visits.
Another promising sign for the future of the course and the resort was a recent pledge from Mr Palmer to invest $100 million in a redevelopment of the resort. How much will be dedicated to the course is not yet known.
The foundations of a Top-100 ranked course remain. There are still thrilling, fun holes, like the downhill waterside par-3 2nd, the short par-4 7th hole that finishes in the shadows of Mt Coolum as well as the iconic 385-metre par-4 9th hole beside the lake and scene of so much tournament drama. Improved conditioning is already evident and with a significant investment Palmer Coolum could recapture some of its glory days.
Green fee: $115 (18 holes inc. shared cart).
PEREGIAN GOLF CLUB
Peregian is arguably the least-known course on the Sunshine Coast simply because it began its existence as a members-only layout.
Today, visitors are warmly welcomed with tee-times available seven days a week.
Designed by Phil Scott, father of 2013 Masters champion Adam Scott, the par-72 can be enjoyed by players of all standards, which is important for a course in the heart of a golf holiday destination.
In my opinion, for a course to be fun for all players it should have a good variety of par-3s, not just in length, but also in the type of tee shots they demand.
Peregian has four very different par-3s and the best of these is the 162-metre (from the back pegs) 14th. As you stand on the tee, the hole appears quite simple, despite the fact you can’t see the bottom of the flag on the slightly elevated putting surface. The hole requires at least one more club than you would normally use to cover the same distance on a flat approach, as the green sits higher than you realise. Three deep bunkers left and another to the right, all lining the front half of the green, will cause problems for any mis-hit tee shot. Club selection is also a challenge, with tall trees ringing the hole and subduing the effects of the breeze … or so you might think.
Green fee: $75 (18 holes).
NOOSA SPRINGS GOLF & SPA RESORT
Trendy Noosa Heads exudes style and sophistication and a day or two spent at Noosa Springs exemplifies this notion.
The Tuscan-style clubhouse and adjoining spa and resort facilities complement a scenic and strategic golf course that is susceptible to the swirling winds whipping off adjoining Lake Weyba.
The 2nd hole brings play closest to the lake. The 339-metre par-4 starts in a chute of trees before opening to a fairway that’s wider than it appears from the rear tee but one lined by dense foliage on both sides. The green is exposed to the fluky breezes and is large but shallow, forcing golfers to pick the right club. The front nine warms up further with an all-carry par-3 over water at the 4th and the best hole on the property at the next.
Designer Graham Papworth gave golfers a simple way of playing the 329-metre 5th, which is bordered by a lake that stretches along the entire right side of the hole. A long iron then a wedge or short iron avoids most of the danger, but the fairway widens about 200 metres from the tee as the hole doglegs gently right and so can be driven in certain wind directions with a powerful left-to-right drive. It’s one of those ingenious holes where pars are simple but bogeys and doubles are irritatingly more so.
The inward nine undulates more than the outward half and winds past Noosa Springs’ expansive residential precinct. Decisions are required on the 15th and 17th tees, the former a long par-5 made even longer by a creek cutting the fairway in the driving zone that effectively forces it to be played as a three-shotter for all but the biggest hitters, and the latter a 340-metre par-4 with water guarding the left side of the green, making finding the right position from the tee paramount.
Green fee: $125 (18 holes inc. cart).
NOOSA GOLF CLUB
Noosa Golf Club is a haven for wildlife and golfers, just 15 minutes’ drive west of the boutiques and restaurants of Noosa Heads’ Hastings Street.
It’s a beautiful setting for the par-72, which dates back to 1937 but has undergone several major redesigns during the past 40 years. The layout was first redesigned in the late 1970s by Jack Newton, while further renovations were made in the early 2000s to enhance the greens and many doglegging fairways.
More changes are on the horizon too as the club has commissioned talented course architect Richard Chamberlain to provide a masterplan to elevate the course to a new level
The course lays across an easy-walking landscape but there is enough movement in the terrain to make for some interesting holes.
The ability to accurately find the correct side of the fairway from the tee is a distinct advantage given the number of doglegging holes on the course. The sharpest turns can be found on the 416-metre 3rd and 321-metre 11th, two par-4s where the ability to shape the ball is advantageous. The 3rd is a big dogleg left that plays far shorter if you can hug the left edge or turn the ball around the corner.
Conversely, the 11th twists right and while distance is less important here, the penalty for erring is greater as huge stands of paperbarks and other assorted towering flora will block any drive lost right or that’s too long and not faded to match the shape of the fairway. Balancing out these tighter holes are several straight holes that allow you to flexing your golfing muscle off the tee.
Green fee: $55 (18 holes).
NOOSA HILLS
If you have plans to take the family to the Sunshine Coast for a holiday, here’s a great excuse to take the clubs with you and introduce the kids to the game.
Noosa Hills is the world’s only 36-hole par-3 course, with holes that can be equally enjoyed by single figure markers and golfing first-timers.
Founded in the late 80s by land owner and passionate golfer Keith Hill, Noosa Hills is set amongst 74 acres of beautiful bushland that is home to lots of kangaroos and other native wildlife. It is a peaceful setting where the only noises are the chirping of birds and the occasional cry of “fore”.
The first 18 holes built at Noosa Hills, the North Course, is slightly longer than the South Course and features plenty of bunkers and a few water carries.
Highlights include the ‘double green’ shared by the 1st and 3rd holes, the gorgeous signature 5th hole, the aptly named “misery” 6th hole – the longest hole on either course at 179 metres – and the massive 45-metre long green on the 14th hole.
The South Course features two distinct nine-hole loops. The front nine is the shortest at Noosa Hills, with no water carries and only a couple of bunkers, which makes it perfect for beginners and kids.South’s back nine features some of the toughest holes at Noosa Hills with the 10th, 14th, 17th and 18th holes all requiring water carries.
Hill sadly passed away a few years ago and the course was put up for sale. Thankfully a local family purchased the course early last year and Hill’s golfing legacy will continue.
Green fee: $35 (18 holes).
NOOSA VALLEY COUNTRY CLUB
There are few, if any, prettier places to spend a few hours playing golf on the Sunshine
Coast than Noosa Valley Country Club.
It is a beautiful nine-hole layout which you might mistake for a botanical garden
if it weren’t for the nicely manicured fairways and greens found between the
trees. It might be the only golf course in the country to have featured on a TV gardening program.
Green fee: $30 (nine holes).
www.noosavalleycountryclub.com.au
COOROY GOLF CLUB
Cooroy lies in the heart of the rolling valleys of the Noosa hinterland, about 25 minutes’ drive west of Noosa Heads.
Of all the courses showcased across the preceding pages, Cooroy Golf Club can rightly be tagged the ‘hidden gem’ among them all.
The club was formed in 1934 at a meeting of 38 people with dreams of turning grazing land with interesting topography into a golf course. Nearly 25 acres of land was cleared with hand tools and within a few months a six-hole sand green course was in play. The course was expanded to nine holes two years later and in 1939 the first three grass greens were put into play. The layout remained largely unchanged for the next 45 years.
The biggest changes took place in the 2000s with the purchase of additional land and new holes – designed by professionals Paul King and Charlie Earp – being built, which culminated in the opening of the current 18-hole course in 2005.
What the course lacks in length (5,359 metres from the back markers) it more than makes up for in interesting holes as it plays nine holes out and nine back, like the Old Course at St Andrews. The short par-4 9th alongside two lakes to the left is a narrow, but exciting, journey from tee to green, while the following hole, a 164-metre par-3, plays along the edge of the aforementioned lake in the opposite direction. It features a narrow green with a long ‘coffin’ bunker left.
My favourite hole starts the trek back to the clubhouse from the far end of the golf course. The 505-metre par-5 14th is a genuine three-shotter that plays over the crest of hill and sees the fairway wind its way around the edge of a lake and on to the wide bunkerless green.
Green fee: $38 (18 holes).
SAVE MONEY WITH GOLF PASS
Now more than ever, visitors to the Sunshine Coast can also add golf onto their to-do list with the Sunshine Coast Golf Group’s Golf Pass.
Three of the region’s most renowned courses have teamed up to offer a golfing experience likened to few other, allowing visitors to play Noosa Springs, Peregian and Twin Waters with one handy and easy to manage Golf Pass.
Individually, all championship courses are of revered quality, yet when combined in sequence they form an exceptionally captivating challenge that differs greatly to the usual golf holiday. Now, the Golf Pass enables the golfer to choose his or her own sequence and itinerary of bookings, allowing individuals and groups versatility, yet also the ability to savour an experience that truly is unique on all levels.
The Golf Pass offers a 20 percent discount on the total cost of green fees and includes share carts with some great availability on tee-times in the purposely built booking engine.
For most traveling golfers though, a holiday is only as good as the golf courses played and for anyone taking up a Sunshine Coast Golf Pass, this delivers on a whole new level in a holidaying hot-spot.
Sunshine Coast Golf Passes are only $239 per person are valid for 18 months and can be purchased at www.golfsunshinecoast.com.au
WHERE TO STAY
MAGNOLIA LANE APARTMENTS
Located just 30 metres from the 1st tee and 9th green of the Twin Waters course, the Magnolia Lane luxury apartments is a good base to explore all the courses of the Sunshine Coast.
The spacious one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments, offer stunning views over Twin Waters. They all boast large balcony areas or terraces, master bedrooms with en-suite, spacious living areas, fully-equipped kitchen, satellite TV, air conditioning and WiFi available. There is also lift access to all apartments.
Stay and play packages start from $310 per person (two nights, one course). Seven nights, with rounds of golf at five courses, start from $980 per person. Rounds of golf can be booked for Twin Waters, Noosa Springs, Pelican Waters, Mt Coolum, Maroochy River, Palmer Coolum, Headland and Noosa Golf Clubs.
For details or to book, call (07) 5448 8777 or visit www.magnolialane.com.au
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