Prefer your round of golf to come with cliffside sea views or be an easy stroll from the centre of town? Keen to try your skills on dog legs or double greens? Whatever your preference, the Eurobodalla’s three golf courses have it, with year-round play to boot (yes, winter conditions really can be fantastic).
Club Catalina, Batemans Bay
This 27-hole championship course has a history – it began its life over 100 years ago as a horse racing track.
Today, golfers zipping around on one of Club Catalina’s 40 golf carts enjoy year-round play across 27 holes; those additional nine holes mean that even in busier months there’s space for social golfers.
While the course is good for all capabilities, Maria Moreta, Club Catalina’s Marketing and Communications Manager, says she faced an additional obstacle last time she played.
“The native kangaroos were out. They adore the course as well,” she laughs.
Toughest hole
The fifteenth. Redesigned two years ago for “maximum challenge” by golf course architect Harley Kruse, Maria says Club Catalina’s fifteenth hole is a step above what you’d typically see in the Melbourne sand belt, let alone the NSW South Coast. “People are a bit surprised. It’s such a brilliant design,” she says.
Most challenging aspect
Each of Club Catalina’s nines offer different challenges, but all three have one thing in common:
“The player must have a strategic approach to their play if they want to get a good score and keep a good handicap,” says Maria.
Element of surprise
“We’re best known for our sublime playing surfaces, but visitors are always surprised at how welcoming our club and our members are,” says Maria.
Moruya Golf Club
When visitors drive through Moruya, most don’t realise that one of the Eurobodalla’s best golfing assets is metres away from the highway.
Locals, however, do – the Moruya Golf Club’s location, right in the centre of town, makes it an attractive spot for a round of 18 holes after work.
“We’re very lucky,” says CEO of Moruya Golf Club, Josh Prowse.While golfers are used to hills, many also appreciate the topography of Moruya’s course: flat.
“That’s very attractive when you are pushing a buggy around,” admits Josh.
Players at Moruya also experience one of the largest double greens in Australia. For better or worse, these two holes meet right in front of the clubhouse.
“You get cheers from the members if you miss the short putt,” Josh laughs.
Toughest hole
The sixteenth. The righthand side features water the whole way along, while the entire left-hand side stretch borders an out of bounds section.
“People really like the idea of it until they play it,” says Josh.
Most challenging aspect
Five dog leg holes: “They are tricky. We’ve got more than most clubs given our landlocked position.”
Element of surprise
“I love it when people realise they’ve discovered the best kept secret on the South Coast,” says Josh.
Narooma Golf Club, Narooma
With its enviable position on the cliffs, and view across the Pacific Ocean to nearby Montague Island, it’s unsurprising that Narooma Golf Club’s 18 holes scores highly…
In fact, the course has been ranked Australia’s 18th best public access golf course.
“Those views are unique. We also get views of the whales in winter for about a month as they go north. Then we get them again, just 100 metres offshore, in September as they head back south,” says General Manager of Narooma Golf Club, Dominic Connaughton.
The unique visuals contribute to what Dominic says is really two courses in one.
“The front nine has the hilltop, cliffs and ocean views, and then out the back we have trees and water everywhere. That’s the way it was designed by John Spencer in the 1970s,” he says.
Toughest hole
The first! “It’s hard to tee off there, you have to be ready to go so there’s no time to ease in gently,” says Dominic.
Most challenging aspect
Narooma’s signature hole is hole three, ‘Hogan’s Hole’, named after actor Paul Hogan.
“It’s only 135 metres but the ocean is to the left, and you can bail out to the right,” Dominic says.
Element of surprise
Newcomers make some incorrect assumptions about winter winds, potentially missing perfect playing days:
“During winter we have lovely warm days suitable for golf, with minimal wind,” says Dominic.
