It is worth pausing to appreciate how improbable this is. Twenty years ago, Tasmania's golf was a handful of fine old country clubs and not much else. Then, in 2004, a sheep farmer and an American architect named Tom Doak proved that the dunes near Bridport were as good a piece of links ground as exists anywhere — and a revolution began. Today the island is a pilgrimage. The list below leans, unapologetically, on the modern links that earned that reputation, but it makes room for the heritage courses and coastal gems that make a Tasmanian golf trip the best in the country. You'll find many of them in our Tasmania directory; a few of the marquee names aren't catalogued there yet, so I've written about them without a link for now.
The quick ranking: 1. Cape Wickham · 2. Barnbougle Dunes · 3. Barnbougle Lost Farm · 4. Ocean Dunes · 5. Tasmania Golf Club · 6. Ratho Farm · 7. Royal Hobart · 8. Launceston · 9. Kingston Beach · 10. Ulverstone · 11. Country Club Tasmania · 12. Bridport · 13. Stanley · 14. Seabrook · 15. Quamby Estate · 16. Freycinet.
1. Cape Wickham Links
The best golf course in Tasmania, and one of the finest modern links anywhere on earth. Out on the wild northern tip of King Island, Mike DeVries and Darius Oliver routed a course around a lighthouse and a crescent of beach, culminating in a closing hole that plays along the sand itself. It is, quite simply, a masterpiece of the "found, not built" school. Make the pilgrimage.
Access: Public · Where: King Island · Designer: DeVries / Oliver (2015) · Don't miss: the 18th, along the beach.
2. Barnbougle Dunes
The course that started it all. Tom Doak and Mike Clayton's 2004 routing through the dunes near Bridport announced to the world that Australia had links ground to rival Scotland — tumbling fairways, wild bunkering, and the sea wind as a constant co-designer. Without Barnbougle Dunes, none of the rest of this list exists.
Access: Public · Where: Bridport · Designer: Tom Doak / Mike Clayton (2004) · Don't miss: the short par-4 4th, a study in temptation.
3. Barnbougle Lost Farm
Its sibling, and very nearly its equal. Coore & Crenshaw's Lost Farm sits across the river from the Dunes and runs to a glorious twenty holes — bigger, bolder dunescapes and some of the most thrilling green sites in the country. To play both in a day is one of golf's great pleasures.
Access: Public · Where: Bridport · Designer: Coore & Crenshaw (2010) · Don't miss: the par-3 14th, perched above the sea.
4. Ocean Dunes Golf Course
King Island's second world-ranked links. Ocean Dunes, a Graeme Grant design, plays even harder against the ocean than Cape Wickham — several holes flirt directly with the Southern Ocean, and the drama is relentless. That a tiny island holds two courses this good is a small miracle of modern golf.
Access: Public · Where: King Island · Designer: Graeme Grant (2016) · Don't miss: the cliff-edge par 3s.
5. Tasmania Golf Club
The best of the mainland clubs, and a links of genuine quality minutes from Hobart airport. Tasmania Golf Club at Barilla Bay is firm, fast and clifftop in places — a short par 67 that proves, again, that length is the least interesting thing about a golf hole.
Access: Public · Where: Seven Mile Beach, Hobart · Designer: classic links · Don't miss: the holes along the bay.
6. Ratho Farm
The oldest golf course in the southern hemisphere, laid out in 1822, and an utter delight. Ratho Farm at Bothwell is a Scottish-style heritage links where sheep still graze the fairways and the history is thick in the air. As a piece of living golf archaeology, nothing in the country touches it.
Access: Public · Where: Bothwell · Designer: heritage links (1822) · Don't miss: the sheer, time-warp character of the place.
7. Royal Hobart Golf Course
A serious championship links at Seven Mile Beach, Royal Hobart is long, exposed and demanding — the kind of stern, traditional test that has hosted state and national events. Underrated next to the island's glamour names.
Access: Private (members & guests) · Where: Seven Mile Beach · Designer: championship links · Don't miss: the wind-blown closing stretch.
8. Launceston Golf Course
The grand old parkland of the north, Launceston at Punchbowl is a handsome, mature members' course — proof that Tasmania's golf pedigree long predates the links boom.
Access: Private (members & guests) · Where: Launceston · Designer: classic parkland · Don't miss: the established, tree-lined feel.
9. Kingston Beach Golf Course
A charming seaside parkland just south of Hobart, Kingston Beach is tight, scenic and a local favourite — the sort of honest members' course every good golfing region needs.
Access: Private (members & guests) · Where: Bonnet Hill · Designer: seaside parkland · Don't miss: the water views.
10. Ulverstone Golf Club
The pick of the north-west coast, Ulverstone is a well-regarded coastal course that rewards a detour on any Cradle Coast itinerary — relaxed, scenic country golf done properly.
Access: Public · Where: Ulverstone · Designer: coastal parkland · Don't miss: the easy coastal rhythm.
11. Country Club Tasmania
The state's resort option, Country Club Tasmania at Prospect Vale pairs a solid 18 with a hotel and the full stay-and-play setup — a comfortable base for a northern golf trip.
Access: Public (resort) · Where: Prospect Vale · Designer: resort parkland · Don't miss: the convenience for a Barnbougle run.
12. Bridport Golf Club
The town club that the Barnbougle pilgrims drive past — and shouldn't. Bridport is a genuinely good, sandy coastal course in its own right, and far cheaper than its world-famous neighbours.
Access: Public · Where: Bridport · Designer: sandy coastal · Don't miss: a value round before the main event.
13. Stanley Golf Course
Played in the shadow of The Nut, Stanley is a windswept little links on the far north-west coast with a setting that belies its modest profile. Wild, cheap and memorable.
Access: Public · Where: Stanley · Designer: coastal links · Don't miss: the view of The Nut.
14. Seabrook Golf Course
A heathland course near Wynyard, Seabrook offers firm, sandy, strategic golf of the kind this island does so well — an underrated stop on the north-west circuit.
Access: Public · Where: Wynyard · Designer: heathland · Don't miss: the firm, running turf.
15. Quamby Estate
A beautiful boutique parkland on a historic estate near Hagley, Quamby Estate pairs a relaxed nine-into-eighteen with colonial-era charm and fine accommodation — a lovely, low-key counterpoint to the big links.
Access: Public · Where: Hagley · Designer: estate parkland · Don't miss: the heritage setting.
16. Freycinet Golf Course
Pure scenery. Freycinet at Coles Bay won't trouble the architecture rankings, but with the pink granite of the Hazards as a backdrop it offers one of the most beautiful rounds in the country. Sometimes the setting is the point.
Access: Public · Where: Coles Bay · Designer: scenic coastal · Don't miss: the Hazards behind every shot.
Honourable mentions
A few more worth your time: Tarraleah (a quirky highland hydro-town course), Tasman and Saint Helens on the east coast, Burnie on the north-west, and Flinders Island for the truly committed island-bagger.
How I ranked them
On architecture and the quality of the golf, first and last. I make no apology for placing four modern links at the top — they are, objectively, the reason the world now talks about Tasmanian golf, and they are better courses than the fine old clubs beneath them. Below the links, I weighed design merit, setting and the character of the experience, with a soft spot for heritage and a hard line against the merely pretty. Where the national panels and I agree, it's because the case is obvious.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best golf course in Tasmania? Cape Wickham Links on King Island — routinely ranked among the best modern links courses in the world, and open to the public.
Are Barnbougle and Cape Wickham open to the public? Yes. Barnbougle Dunes, Lost Farm, Cape Wickham and Ocean Dunes are all public-access destination courses — you book a tee time (and, ideally, a stay).
Where should I base a Tasmania golf trip? Bridport for the Barnbougle pair, King Island for Cape Wickham and Ocean Dunes, and Hobart for Tasmania Golf Club, Royal Hobart and Ratho Farm. The ambitious do all three.
So there is my sixteen. Argue the order of the country clubs if you like, but the headline is beyond dispute: this small, cold, beautiful island has, in twenty short years, become essential. Go before everyone else does — though I fear that ship has already sailed.
Hugh Ferrington is a former landscape architect and Fairway Finders' design critic, writing on golf-course architecture from his base near the Tasmanian links. He plays off 3 and reads a golf course like a text.
