Perth’s temperate climate and beautiful natural scenery make it a great place to play a round of golf – just beware of rogue kangaroos hopping across the course! Of the many fantastic public courses around the city and its suburbs, here’s our pick of the best:
Photo by Fevi Yu
Located to the north of the city, Joondalup Resort’s unique golf course was designed by internationally famous golf course architect Robert Trent Jones Jnr, and is considered to be one of Australia’s best. The course features three nine-holes – Quarry, Dune and Lake – of which Quarry and Dune are the original and arguably the most thrilling. Shaped around a former limestone quarry, they both contain challenging elevation changes and incredible cliff scenery. The Lake nine was designed around a series of peaceful lakes, fringed by native bushland and scented with eucalyptus. Visitors are welcome seven days a week but advance booking is essential.
The Vines Resort & Country Club
With a superb location in the beautiful Swan Valley, just twenty minutes from Perth’s CBD, The Vines is surrounded by native bush teeming with wildlife and boasts two excellent eighteen-hole courses, the Ellenbrook and the slightly higher rated Lakes. Both courses have hosted some of the all-time greats of the golfing world during the Heineken Classic and the Johnny Walker Classic and its tree-lined, open parkland layout will be sure to delight all who play here. Visitors are welcome on weekdays and weekends but must book in advance.
Photo by jurvetson
Surrounded by State forest and the Canning River, in the hills overlooking a verdant valley, Araluen might just win for spectacular scenery. If you can tear your eyes away from the views, the challenging course will give you a great day of golf. It is praised for its large, undulating greens, elevation changes, water hazards and its beautifully maintained fairways. Visitors can play weekdays and weekends but bookings are essential.
Arguable one of Australia’s best seaside links golf courses, The Links Kennedy Bay (approximately a 40 minute drive south of Perth) is a true links course in the Scottish and Irish traditions, crafted from gently undulating bush-covered coastal dunes. Running parallel to the Indian Ocean, the eighteen-hole, par 72 championship links golf course is fast, tight and both mentally and physically challenging. Book in advance to play throughout the week and weekend.
Meadow Springs Golf & Country Club
Another course designed by Robert Trent Jones Jnr, Meadow Springs prides itself on offering ‘golf as nature intended’. Located half an hour south of Perth, close to the coastal resort town of Mandurah, the course follows native bushland and is dictated by the land’s natural features. Stunning Tuart trees tower over the wide fairways and undulating greens and, due to the twisting and turning design of the course, both the next holes and those playing on them are often out of sight, making this one of the most peaceful courses in the region to play on. Visitors are welcomed throughout the week and on weekends but must book in advance.
Emily Buckley is a travel writer who often visits Perth, a city which boasts native bushland, pristine beaches, a sparkling river, and all that a bustling metropolis could possibly offer, including the Burswood Entertainment Complex.
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