Course no. 26, Tathra Beach, NSW
18 holes utilising 12 greens, with the river-hugging par 5’s the highlight
Nomadic_golfer : March 2020
Par 71, 5891m, slope 123 , green fee $30
5 par 3s from 153 – 168m, 9 par 4s from 328 – 380m, 4 par 5s from 448 – 501m
Sun glistening off the river at Tathra
We left Gippsland, and Victoria in mid March and set anchor in Kalaru (between Tathra & Bega) for a few days to taste the wares of the Sapphire Coast in our first stay in NSW proper. First up for golf was Tathra Beach Country Club, in the lovely little beachside town of Tathra, population 1,650 and where the Bega River flows into the sea.
Its a nice setting for a fun golf course; you get to see the river plenty of times and you can hear the waves rolling in on the beach and smell the sea, but you can’t see it. The course make-up is of kikuyu fairways, bent greens and a few bunkers. Its a clever layout with many strategic tree placements dictating a preferred angle of approach.
There are 18 holes utilising 12 greens, the fairways were quite patchy but greens good and smooth. The course was teaming with kangaroos in the early evening.
The first 2 holes shape left to right with the river serving as OB on the right. The 2nd (& 11th which is 30 metres shorter) is the signature hole (pictured above; 500 metres left to right, water trouble all the way down the right then trees encroach at ~60m from the green on the left, favouring a tee shot down the right, taking on the river. The river wraps around the back of the green also – it’s spectacular and water is always front of mind as you play the hole. 5 is a strong 385m par 4 out of the river mud flats with trouble right but trees short and left of the green, again favourng the bold drive down the right. I also liked 14; 153m with the river over the back and large tree short right; very appealing to the eye (main photo below)!
It is an aesthetically pleasing course, that makes the most out of the small parcel of land it occupies. The surrounding water is it’s greatest asset and they have done a good job of routing some interesting holes and providing some challenge to the golfer.
