The 10 Best Golf Courses in Australia and New Zealand to Play in 2027

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The golf Down Under spans world-ranked sandbelt classics in Melbourne, raw coastal links in Tasmania, and clifftop stunners in New Zealand. Our Best Overall pick is Royal Melbourne (West Course), a Sandbelt masterpiece where a 2027 visitor round runs about AU$500. The Best Value play is Barnbougle Dunes in Tasmania at roughly AU$165, a top-50-in-the-world links for a fraction of the marquee fees.

This list is for golfers planning an Australasian golf trip, with fees spanning roughly AU$165 to AU$900. Every course below is a real, currently-operating venue ranked on design pedigree, conditioning, scenery, and world standing.

1. Royal Melbourne (West Course) 🏆 BEST OVERALL

The West Course at Royal Melbourne is Australia's greatest course and a consistent world top-10, the crown jewel of Melbourne's famed Sandbelt. Designed by Alister MacKenzie (of Augusta and Cypress Point fame) in 1926, it features firm, fast turf, bold contouring, and brilliantly strategic bunkering.

Visitor green fees run about AU$500 for 2027.

It hosted the 2011 Presidents Cup (often combined with the East Course as a "Composite" layout) and is revered for greens that demand precise angles. The famous par-4 6th doglegs around a sandy waste with a green that repels anything short, and the firm, sloping putting surfaces reward players who attack from the correct side of the fairway.

Royal Melbourne West ranks #1 for its MacKenzie pedigree, its world-elite status, and as the finest expression of Sandbelt golf anywhere. Visitor access is typically arranged on weekdays through the club or a specialist operator, and pairing it with neighboring Kingston Heath and the other Sandbelt clubs makes Melbourne the richest single-city golf destination in the Southern Hemisphere.

2. Cape Kidnappers (New Zealand)

On New Zealand's North Island near Hawke's Bay, Cape Kidnappers is a Tom Doak design set atop dramatic clifftops plunging into the Pacific. Holes run along ridgelines with fairways perched above 450-foot ocean cliffs. Visitor green fees run about NZ$650 for 2027.

The par-5 15th, "Pirate's Plank," runs straight toward the cliff edge. Part of a luxury Robertson Lodge property, it's regularly ranked among the world's top 50. Cape Kidnappers ranks for its jaw-dropping clifftop setting and Doak's masterful routing across one of the most spectacular pieces of golf terrain on earth.

The luxury Robertson Lodge on the property and the surrounding Hawke's Bay wine region make it a destination for a multi-day stay, and pairing it with Tara Iti, Kauri Cliffs, and Paraparaumu Beach builds a North Island itinerary that ranks among the finest golf trips anywhere in the world.

3. Kingston Heath (Australia)

Another Melbourne Sandbelt gem, Kingston Heath is frequently rated Australia's #2 course behind Royal Melbourne. Its bunkering — shaped by Alister MacKenzie — is considered the best in the country, and its conditioning is immaculate. Visitor green fees run about AU$330 for 2027.

A regular host of the Australian Masters and other tour events, it packs a world-class course onto a relatively compact site. The short par-3 15th is a Sandbelt classic. Kingston Heath ranks for its peerless bunkering, championship pedigree, and its place at the very top of Melbourne's revered Sandbelt cluster.

4. Tara Iti (New Zealand)

North of Auckland, Tara Iti is a Tom Doak links on the Mangawhai coast, ranked the #1 course in New Zealand and among the world's top 10 modern courses. It's an exclusive private club, but limited access is available to lodge guests. Effective green fees run about NZ$900 for 2027 (via stay-and-play).

Built on coastal dunes with firm, fescue turf and minimalist design, it's a pure walking links of extraordinary quality. Tara Iti ranks for its world-elite design and exclusivity — the highest-rated course in the Southern Hemisphere, justifying its place near the top of any Australasian bucket list.

5. Barnbougle Dunes (Tasmania) 💎 BEST VALUE

On Tasmania's remote northeast coast, Barnbougle Dunes by Tom Doak and Mike Clayton is a world-top-50 links that plays along the Bass Strait dunes. Astonishingly, green fees run about AU$165 for 2027 — a fraction of comparable marquee courses. It earns the Best Value badge decisively.

Firm, fast, and walkable, it tumbles through marram-grass dunes with the sea ever-present. Its sister course, Lost Farm (Coore-Crenshaw), is equally acclaimed next door, and the property added the Bougle Run short course, giving visitors a full multi-day links itinerary. Reaching Barnbougle means a flight to Launceston and a drive to Tasmania's remote northeast coast, but the unspoiled setting and astonishing value make the journey richly worthwhile.

Barnbougle ranks for delivering genuine world-class links golf at bargain pricing in a stunning, unspoiled coastal setting.

6. New South Wales Golf Club (Australia)

On a rocky headland at La Perouse in Sydney, the New South Wales Golf Club is an Alister MacKenzie design overlooking Botany Bay with spectacular ocean views. Visitor green fees run about AU$350 for 2027.

The clifftop par-5 5th and par-3 6th play right along the Pacific, and Captain Cook's landing site is visible from the course. Exposed to coastal wind, it's a dramatic, links-like test near a major city. NSW Golf Club ranks for its MacKenzie pedigree and one of the most scenic seaside settings in Australian golf.

7. The National Golf Club (Australia)

On the Mornington Peninsula southeast of Melbourne, The National Golf Club is Australia's largest golf complex with four 18-hole courses, including the acclaimed Moonah (Greg Norman) and Old courses set among coastal dunes. Visitor green fees run about AU$250 for 2027.

The rolling, sandy terrain along the Bass Strait coast gives a links-like firmness with dramatic elevation changes. The Moonah course is regularly ranked among Australia's top 20. The National ranks for its breadth of high-quality courses and its appeal as a multi-day golf destination near Melbourne.

8. Ellerston (Australia)

In the Hunter Valley of New South Wales, Ellerston is an ultra-exclusive Greg Norman design built on Kerry Packer's private estate, regularly ranked among Australia's top five courses. Access is invitation-only, but it occasionally appears on rankings tours. Effective green fees (via approved access) run about AU$600 for 2027.

The course winds through a dramatic mountain valley with a river and bushland, offering a parkland test of stunning beauty and difficulty. Ellerston ranks for its world-class Norman design and its mystique as one of the most exclusive and acclaimed courses in the country.

9. Paraparaumu Beach (New Zealand)

On New Zealand's North Island near Wellington, Paraparaumu Beach is the country's finest traditional links, designed by Alex Russell (MacKenzie's partner). It hosted the New Zealand Open numerous times and is where a young Tiger Woods played in 2002. Visitor green fees run about NZ$180 for 2027.

A firm, fast, dune-laced links by the Tasman Sea, it's a stern, characterful test that predates the modern New Zealand boom. Paraparaumu Beach ranks for its classic links design, championship history, and excellent value among Australasia's elite courses.

10. Joondalup Country Club / Cape Wickham (Australia)

Cape Wickham Links on King Island (between Tasmania and the mainland) is a stunning Mike DeVries clifftop links ranked among Australia's and the world's best modern courses. The 18th hole runs along a curving beach beneath cliffs. Visitor green fees run about AU$200 for 2027.

Exposed to fierce Bass Strait wind, it offers ocean views on nearly every hole and dramatic dune-and-cliff terrain. Its remote island setting adds to the adventure. Cape Wickham rounds out the list as one of the most spectacular and acclaimed coastal courses in the Southern Hemisphere, well worth the journey.

How to Choose

A golf trip Down Under spans an enormous geography and several distinct styles of golf, so planning is key. Melbourne's Sandbelt offers the densest cluster of elite courses, with Royal Melbourne, Kingston Heath, and others playable within a short radius, while the truly remote links — Barnbougle in Tasmania, Cape Wickham on King Island — require regional flights and reward the effort with unspoiled coastal drama.

New Zealand's clifftop stunners like Cape Kidnappers and the exclusive Tara Iti deliver some of the most spectacular settings in world golf but command premium fees and, in some cases, lodge stays. Costs range from the astonishing AU$165 value at Barnbougle to the NZ$900 exclusivity of Tara Iti, and coastal wind is a constant factor across the region's links and clifftop courses.

Use these guidelines to build your Australasian itinerary:

• Cluster Melbourne's Sandbelt. Royal Melbourne, Kingston Heath, and other sand-based classics sit within a short radius — the densest elite-golf cluster in Australia.
• Match fee to ambition. Tara Iti (~NZ$900) and Ellerston (~AU$600) are exclusive splurges; Barnbougle (~AU$165) and Paraparaumu (~NZ$180) deliver world-class golf cheaply.
• Build in travel for remote links. Barnbougle (Tasmania), Cape Wickham (King Island), and Cape Kidnappers require regional flights or long drives.
• Pack for coastal wind. Australasian links and clifftop courses are exposed; firm, fast turf can flip to a gale quickly.
• Arrange access to private clubs early. Tara Iti and Ellerston require lodge stays or invitations — plan months ahead.

FAQ

What is the best golf course in Australia?

Royal Melbourne's West Course is the consensus #1, a 1926 Alister MacKenzie Sandbelt masterpiece ranked among the world's top 10, famous for its firm, fast greens and brilliant bunkering. Kingston Heath is the usual #2.

What is the best-value top course in Australia or New Zealand?

Barnbougle Dunes in Tasmania, at about AU$165, offers a world-top-50 links for a fraction of marquee pricing. In New Zealand, Paraparaumu Beach at about NZ$180 is the standout classic-links value.

What is the Melbourne Sandbelt?

The Sandbelt is a region of Melbourne with sandy, free-draining soil ideal for golf, home to a cluster of world-class courses including Royal Melbourne, Kingston Heath, and others, prized for firm turf and superb bunkering.

How do I play Tara Iti or Cape Kidnappers?

Both are tied to luxury lodges. Tara Iti is a private club accessible mainly to members and lodge guests, while Cape Kidnappers welcomes visitors, often via the Robertson Lodges property. Book stay-and-play packages well in advance.

Bottom Line

For the best of Australasian golf, Royal Melbourne's West Course at about AU$500 is the Best Overall — a world-top-10 MacKenzie Sandbelt masterpiece. For incredible value, Barnbougle Dunes in Tasmania at roughly AU$165 delivers a world-top-50 links at a bargain price.

Sources

• *Golf Digest* — World's 100 Greatest Golf Courses ranking
• *Golf Australia* magazine — Top 100 Australian Courses
• *Golf Digest New Zealand* — Top courses rankings
• *Top 100 Golf Courses* (top100golfcourses.com) — Australia and New Zealand
• Royal Melbourne Golf Club — official course information
• Barnbougle and Cape Kidnappers — official resort details
• *Links Magazine* — Australasian course reviews