It is not hard to see why Kauri Cliffs, within months of opening for play in 2000, was ranked among the world’s top 100 golf courses. It is often compared with the famous Pebble Beach layout, on California’s Monterey Peninsula, which consistently makes the top 10 of that list. But of the two, Kauri Cliffs is the more spectacular. It sits on higher cliff tops, above the Pacific Ocean, and crosses a far more dramatic golfing landscape.
The course was the brainchild of Julian Robertson, the big-time American hedge fund manager, who bought a 4000-acre sheep and cattle farm overlooking New Zealand’s Bay of Islands with dreams of developing a world-class golf course with guest accommodation. He succeeded – perhaps even beyond his own expectations. Designed by David Harmon, who’d previously worked on projects all over the world with Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer’s design companies, the course today occupies more than 800 of Robertson’s 4000 stunning acres.
It is not often you have a course like this all to yourself. Sometimes the only sound you will hear between shots is the whistling of the wind. A busy day at Kauri Cliffs might see 20 or so golfers tee up. This results in minimal wear and tear to the playing surfaces, widely regarded as the best conditioned in New Zealand.
The unhurried nature of a round – tee times are 20 minutes apart – gives you time to drink in the postcard views from the majestic holes Harmon has created. The Cavalli Islands, lying just off the coast, are the backdrop to a handful of front nine holes and five particularly stunning holes later on your journey back to the clubhouse. So many good holes pile up here, one after another, that it is hard to single a few out. But the long par-threes, the 7th and 14th, are really impressive. Both cling to the cliff tops, and despite being of similar length they run in opposite directions, with the 7th slightly uphill and the 211-metre 14th downhill.
The 14th starts an incredible run of holes back to the American plantation-style clubhouse mansion. The 498-metre, par-five 15th is a birdie hole if conditions are right and if you don’t miss the fairway from the tee. A narrow strip of rough separates the fairway from the cliffs, while a dense clump of trees stand right of the driving zone. The closer you get to the green, the more the fairway bends left, like a hook, hence the hole’s name: ‘Cook’s Hook’. Longer hitters can reach the green in two shots, but to do so they must contend with cavernous bunkers short and long of the undulating putting surface.
The following hole, the 16th, is another hook shape, hugging the natural bend of the cliff top. This par-four is known as ‘Temptation’ because, at 335 metres from the championship plates, long hitters may be tempted to launch their drive at the green. From the forward tees, the green is right in the go-zone, and if you hit in a straight line from the elevated tee to the green below the distance is much shorter. Five deep bunkers, though, are positioned along this route. A more conservative option is to set up a short-iron approach to the green, which is set against the turquoise canvas that is the Pacific Ocean.
American pro Brandt Snedeker, after competing in the 2008 Kiwi Challenge at Kauri Cliffs, described the course as ‘Pebble Beach on steroids’. Truly, it is one of the world’s special places to play golf.
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MEMORABLE HOLES 4th, 7th, 8th, 14th, 15th, 16th and 17th WHERE TO GO Matauri Bay Rd, Matauri Bay, Northland BOOK A ROUND (09) 407 0060, www.kauricliffs.com OTHER 120 GREAT COURSES NEARBY Carrington Resort (77.9 km), Gulf Harbour (250 km), Muriwai (270 km) WHERE TO STAY The Lodge at Kauri Cliffs has won several international awards and is regarded as one of the world’s finest boutique resorts. BEFORE/AFTER YOUR ROUND The Bay of Islands, the course’s majestic backdrop, is an aquatic playground. Go on a sailing tour around some of the 144 islands, or perhaps take a charter and go big-game fishing. |