Best golf courses in Australia: Royal Melbourne, Cape Wickham and more

Golf is the number one sport in Australia as of this year, so it’s no surprise just how good the courses are.

Well over one million people play the game in Australia, the world’s sixth largest country, and lucky them.

At their disposal are some of the globe’s finest tracks, renowned for their stunning landscapes.

The famous sandbelt golf courses in Melbourne are a thing of beauty, while the island of Tasmania is no stranger to a gem, either.

Here are some of the best golf courses in Australia…

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Royal Melbourne

Green fee: From $485

Golf in Australia tops many bucket lists and this is why. Royal Melbourne, a multiple host of the Presidents Cup, is one of the most expensive on the planet, but is acknowledged as the best. It’s a once in a lifetime experience that epitomises sandbelt golf. A truly special golf course.

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Lonsdale Links

Green fee: From $120

At a far more reasonable green fee is Lonsdale Links in Victoria. A unique links founded in 1921 that is known as one of the most fun golf courses in Australia, Lonsdale is picture perfect with dramatic scenery. You’ll want to head right back to the first after coming off the 18th.

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Cape Wickham

Green fee: From $190

Another ranked highly in Australian golf circles, Cape Wickham Golf Links sists on the rugged northern tip of King Island and offers some of the most impressive coastal holes in the game. Swerving around the sea, there’s a hint of Turnberry here, thanks to the on-course Cape Wickham Lighthouse.

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Ocean Dunes

Green fee: From $185

Visitors from the UK will find out that, for under £100 in the low season, Ocean Dunes is remarkable value for money. It hugs King Island’s west coast on the island of Tasmania and runs along 2km of coastal dunes. So much fun and a taste of traditional Scottish links.

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Bougle Run

Green fee: From $140

Barnbougle sits comfortably among the world’s best golf resorts, so Barnbougle Dunes and Lost Farm both deserve a place on this page. But Bougle Run is one-of-a-kind. A 14-hole course, with no fewer than 12 par threes, it opened in 2021 and takes golfers on a 90-minute adventure.