THE WINNERS

The Pat GC (SA) - Most Outstanding Club, Facility or Place to Play (Metropolitan)

Formerly West Beach Parks Golf, The Pat GC's February 2025 rebrand signalled a fundamental shift in how a metropolitan golf facility sees itself, not as a golf course, but as a community hub where "all golf is golf."

The numbers tell the story: junior membership up 105 per cent, under-30s membership up 150 per cent, Short Course rounds up 24.5 per cent to 35,600, and a 60 per cent increase in driving range bookings following the introduction of TrackMan technology. But the real story is the breadth of what this facility does, from hosting the ISPS Handa Blind Golf Open and providing all-terrain wheelchairs to "Buckets & Bubbles" clinics that engage more than 110 women to Sunday DJ "Chillout Sessions" that break down golf stereotypes.

Half Moon Bay Golf Club (QLD) - Most Outstanding Club, Facility or Place to Play (Regional)

Half Moon Bay Golf Club has made accessibility the centrepiece of its identity. The club has invested in two ParaGolfer machines, installed audible tee signs for blind golfers, partnered with CERGE to build a comprehensive accessibility suite, and employs a PGA Professional specifically trained to coach people with disabilities.

The club offers NDIS-discounted memberships, has signed the R&A Women in Golf Charter, and hosted all-abilities divisions at the Great Barrier Reef Masters Games. Two Players' 1st surveys have directly shaped a new Strategic Plan, and a modernised Constitution reflects the club's commitment to strong governance alongside inclusive participation.

Thornleigh Golf Centre (NSW) - Most Outstanding Club, Facility or Place to Play (Off-course)

With nine PGA Professionals on staff, a two-storey driving range, TrackMan technology and landscaped mini-golf courses, Thornleigh Golf Centre is a community institution in Sydney's north. The centre runs more than 100 school group sessions, 70 junior programs, 50 adult beginner clinics and 100-plus children's birthday parties annually.

Its $5,000 annual Mini Golf Competition attracts players from interstate and New Zealand, while marketing in Chinese-language newspapers alongside traditional channels reflects the multicultural community it serves. Open until 10 pm, all-weather, walk-in-friendly, and with no age or experience barriers, Thornleigh proves that off-course golf is a powerful gateway to the game.

Gove Country Golf Club (NT) - MyGolf powered by Ripper GC Venue of the Year

In Nhulunbuy, a town of approximately 3,000 people in remote Arnhem Land, Gove Country Golf Club achieved 415 MyGolf registrations in FY26, an 87 per cent increase year-on-year and roughly 14 per cent of the entire town's population.

The club accounts for 35 per cent of all MyGolf participation across the Northern Territory's 10 venues. Five dedicated volunteer National Program Deliverers run 22 programs, with 108 first-time participants joining this year alone. The ripple effect is remarkable: 35 per cent of junior golf mums have taken up golf themselves, 25 juniors volunteered to prepare the course for the annual Open, and one junior is working towards NPD accreditation.

The club provides in-kind access to the Dawurr Indigenous Boarding School and aligns with the NT Sports Voucher, ensuring affordability in a remote community. Gove has been running Golf Australia pathway programs since 2011.

Kalgoorlie Golf Club (WA) - Get Into Golf Venue of the Year

In the Goldfields of Western Australia, Kalgoorlie Golf Course is turning first-timers into lifelong golfers. Of 167 Get Into Golf participants across 18 programs, 76 per cent were genuine first-timers, one of the highest new-participant rates in the country.

The unique collaboration between the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder and the Goldfields Golf Club underpins the program's success, with weekly women's on-course sessions, beginner scorecards, short-course distance markers and a growing women's social golfer network. The club has raised more than $1 million for the community through charity golf events over the past decade, reinforcing its role as a vital community asset in Western Australia's regional communities.

Townsville Golf Club (QLD) - Women & Girls in Golf Award

Townsville Golf Club has built a genuine women's participation pipeline, from Come 'n' Try through to full membership, anchored by its signature i-GiGL program, which combines professional instruction, on-course mentoring and a champagne lunch. The name deliberately emphasises "giggle", golf as fun.

The results are compelling: 387 women through Get Into Golf sessions, 58 LGP memberships, and 879 LGP social rounds, a 250 per cent increase year-on-year. A self-sustaining volunteer-mentor model, in which program graduates become mentors for new participants, is driving retention and a sense of belonging. Club Patron and World Golf Hall of Famer Karrie Webb has attended an i-GiGL event, adding star power to a program built on community.

Women are represented on every sub-committee and the Management Committee, and the club has employed a female PGA Associate and committed dedicated tee times during peak periods.

Maribyrnong City Council (VIC) - Local Government Recognition Award

With more than 40 per cent of residents born overseas, Maribyrnong is one of Australia's most culturally diverse municipalities, and it has only one private and one public golf facility. Rather than waiting for residents to find golf, the Council took golf to them.

Through the Active Maribyrnong program, Council partnered with Golf Australia, Westgate Golf Club and Medway Golf Club to deliver golf sessions in parks and community spaces using modified equipment and non-traditional formats. Girls Can Week golf sessions reached capacity, and Get Into Golf registrations filled within 48 hours, demonstrating significant unmet demand for accessible golf in diverse communities.

The program has created pathways from park-based sessions to local clubs and invested in workforce capability-building for coaches and club personnel.  

Tim McAuliffe — Mount Lawley Golf Club (WA) - Volunteer of the Year

An environmental scientist by profession, Tim McAuliffe has helped lead Mount Lawley Golf Club's course volunteer group since 2019, which contributed 4,500 volunteer hours in 2025 alone and oversaw 20,000+ native plantings.

Tim's standout achievement is securing MLGC as a native fauna relocation site with the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, receiving 37 quenda (bandicoots) and building protective "quenda bungalows" on the course. He co-authored the club's Beyond the Fairways Strategy and Vegetation Management Plan, chairs the Environment and Sustainability Committee, drives the water management strategy, including nanobubble technology, and co-coordinated more than 100 volunteers for the WA Open in October 2025.

His work has helped Mount Lawley win state and national sustainability awards, demonstrating the powerful intersection of volunteerism and environmental stewardship in golf.  

The Claude Crockford Sustainability & Environment Award

In conjunction with the Australian Sports Turf Association (ASTMA), Adam Marchant — Royal Sydney Golf Club (NSW)

Adam Marchant, Director of Grounds at Royal Sydney Golf Club for more than 20 years, led the environmental transformation of the club's redeveloped Championship Course, which opened in March 2025.

The project involved planting 500,000 trees and plants, creating greater floral diversity, preserving rare and endangered species, and establishing new animal habitats and wildlife corridors — all while reducing water consumption and chemical and fertiliser use. Partnerships with Planet Ark, the La Perouse Local Aboriginal Land Council, WIRES, Birdlife Australia and Woollahra Municipal Council reflect the breadth of the project's community and environmental impact.

GolfSim Australia (VIC) - The Peter Maddison Supplier of the Year Award

As Australia's first dedicated golf simulator provider with more than 15 years in the industry, GolfSim Australia has installed customised simulators across golf clubs, homes, schools, workplaces, hospitality venues and commercial centres.

The school installations are a standout, principals report positive outcomes among students who previously lacked the confidence to participate in traditional sports. GolfSim showcased technology-enabled golf at the National Sport and Physical Activity Convention, putting golf in front of leaders across sport, recreation and government. Remote diagnostic capabilities reduce downtime for venues, while turnkey solutions from concept through to training and ongoing support ensure clubs and venues maximise their investment.