Blog 111 – Burra

Nomadic_golfer : February 2021

Par 72, 5693m, green fee $20, Slope 116

4 par 3s from 102-180m, 10 par 4s from 283-410m, 4 par 5s from 418-457m

Burra is a fascinating town to visit. During the mid 1800’s, Burra was the 5th largest town by population in Australia, on the back of it’s copper mining and immigration from Cornwall, Scotland & Wales. Now with less than 1k people, there are some fantastic trails and historical landmarks to view.

It is a unique sort of golf course. Condition wasn’t its strong point at the height of summer but you wouldn’t expect that out here; fairways bone dry but new bore will enable the club to water 100m out from each green and in. Santa-anna greens are very interesting; they actually putt ok but chipping is tough; one will prop and stop, the next will take it’s run. You need to chip and run and get it running before the green. There aren’t any bunkers.

Boundary fences are the course’s best defence; there are heaps of them and typically on the left. Fairways are quite narrow, and combined with the firmness, makes them difficult to hit. A good number of gums (currently culling pines and other miscellaneous trees) provide a moderate penalty when fairways are missed, despite the lack of hazards and deep rough. Finding the white ball in the dry surrounds, with many leaves on the surface , is also difficult.

The 15th (180m par 3 with OB fence left and trees 20m right) and 18 (350m right to left off the tree with a copse of diagonally placed trees in front of you off the tee, turning back to the right for the second then up quite a steep hill to an elevated green) are challenging and the best holes on the course (see photos below). The par 5s are all well within reach as are 4 of the 4s in summer.

There aren’t many golf options in this neck of the woods, and this is an interesting little track where the experience is doubled if you can play in the local Saturday comp with the characters that call this home.

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