Golf in Australia

This page describes golf in Australia, which has over 1500 courses. The game arrived with prosperous European settlers in the lusher landscapes of Sydney and Melbourne - the first documented games were in 1839 at Grose Farm, now part of Sydney. It spread out to broader income brackets, and onto harsher terrain. The governing body is Golf Australia, formed in 2006 by merging the men's and women's associations. The premier tournament is the men's PGA Tour of Australasia, played in the austral summer predominantly in Australia with occasional matches in New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Fiji.

Destinations

 * Queensland:
 * Brisbane courses include Victoria Park and St Lucia Links.
 * Sunshine Coast: Nambour, Caloundra. Horton Park and Cooroy.
 * Noosa: Noosa Valley, Tewantin, Kabi and Noosa Springs.


 * New South Wales: Sydney Moore Park, Royal Sydney and Monash are all close to the city.


 *  Victoria:
 * Melbourne Sandbelt, a region of sandy soils in the city's southeast suburbs, has many notable golf courses. Pride of place goes to the West Course at Royal Melbourne GC at Black Rock.


 * Tasmania: Courses are grouped around Hobart, along the north coast, and there's one on King Island.


 * South Australia:
 * West Adelaide is a sandbelt with the top courses in the city: Royal Adelaide GC in Seaton, Kooyonga in Lockleys, Glenelg in Novar Gardens, and Grange GC.


 * Western Australia: Courses are concentrated around Perth, notably Royal Perth, Mount Lawley and Maylands.


 * Northern Territory: Alice Springs GC is a desert course that has hosted the PGA Seniors tour, as well as the Masters Games and the NT Open.