Lord Howe Island

Lord Howe Island Golf Club sits roughly 700 kilometres north-east of Sydney, on a World Heritage-listed speck in the Tasman Sea. The club was started in 1969 on what had been a market garden. In the decades since, it has been developed and expanded into what is surely one of the most picturesque courses in Australia.

The 18 hole course is nine holes, played twice, with slightly different tees the second time round. The 18-hole course measures just 3,787m from the men's tees and 3,471m from the women's, with a par of 62.

There are no par 5s at all. Instead, the course is built around ten par 3s and eight par 4s, and the longest hole on the property, the 15th, stretches to 397m. The 3rd/12th, at 96m and 98m, are at the other end of the length spectrum, but not to be dismissed too easily as the hole plays across the prevailing wind with a water carry.

The 3rd/12th Hole

The 1st/10th and 2nd /11th holes take you through a lush forest of Kentia Palms and then the rest of the course is wide undulating fairways with the ocean never far away. The par 3 5th/14th, plays with the Tasman Sea running down its western side, a water hazard on a scale no architect could ever have designed.

The 5th/14th looking back to the tee

This is a holiday course, and it should be judged as one. Nobody travels to Lord Howe expecting Augusta National greens or Royal Melbourne bunkering, and anyone who does has rather missed the point. What you get instead is a golf course that feels completely woven into its surroundings: palms, mountains, salt air and the sea at nearly every turn. Golf here is relaxed, the pace is unhurried, and the game is played for the sheer pleasure of being outside.

9th/18th green in foreground and 1st/10th green under Mt. Lidgbird and Mt. Gower

The club also has a charm that is increasingly rare. Green fees and club hire are on an honesty system, and balls and tees come from the drink vending machine. You can buy a sleeve of new balls or for $7 you can get 5 second hand balls. The hire clubs were good enough and there were plenty of sets available and payment is by credit card. It cost $70 for one round which includes club hire. You can join for a week for $120.

The 2nd/11th green looking out to the ocean

Sunday is the main club competition day, and island visitors are welcome to join in. On Friday afternoons the club puts on a Chook Run, a stableford event played over 12 holes. Golfers also come from far and wide for the annual Lord Howe Island Open, which fills its limited field of 50 players each year.

When the golf is done, the day is far from over, especially on a Friday. The bar and restaurant open on Friday afternoon, and there are few better spots on the island for a sundowner. Settle in with a cold drink as the light fades over the island, then stay on for dinner. It is a spectacular setting and the perfect way to end a round, or indeed a week.

Lord Howe Island Golf Club will never feature on a list of the world's most demanding courses, and it has no interest in doing so. What it offers is something every golfer should experience: a friendly, characterful and strikingly beautiful layout. Bring your clubs or hire a set, leave your expectations of manicured perfection at the airport, and savour every hole. It is a fantastic golfing experience.