The Kinloch Club - Taupo, New Zealand

[Aotearoa_Brad]

The Kinloch Club, Kinloch, Taupo, New Zealand

 

 

 

Nicklaus' home in Middle Earth

Late August for the last three or four years has seen me journeying to the Bay of Plenty for a conference. I stay at a friend's Bach (holiday home) and pass The Kinloch Club every year. It wasn't until last year that I decided to find out a bit more about this little gem. Having made the decision to leave New Zealand in November, this course moved up the bucket list pecking order.

 

The course itself is located about 20 minutes from Taupo (one of the adventure tourism hotbeds of New Zealand) but we drove from Auckland, which is a three hour drive. It is not really a day trip from Auckland, but if you base yourself in Taupo there are some additional exceptional courses within a day trip, such as the Wairakei International GC. The Kinloch Club butts up to Lake Taupo, which is the largest freshwater lake in Australasia, and its mountains featured as Mt Doom in the Lord of The Rings trilogy. There are a number of excellent accommodation options in and around Taupo, however there is the option of staying on course in one of two luxury holiday homes.

 

I had read one review of this course, but it was the photos I'd seen that really made this a ‘must play' for me. It didn't take much to tempt three mates from University to join me for a mission to play golf in middle earth.

 

 

I have set out this review according to GolfSpy Matt's Course Review Criteria & Rubric

 

The Review:

 

Ranked in 2013 in the Top 100 in the World by Golf Course Architecture Magazine, The Kinloch Club was also rated on opening in 2007 as the top new golf course outside North America by the US Travel and Leisure Golf Magazine. It is the only Jack Nicklaus Signature Course in New Zealand.

 

The par 72 eighteen hole Championship golf course measures:

• 6734 metres (7363 yards) from the Blue tees.
  
• 5961 metres (6519 yards) from the White tees.
  
• 4640 metres (5072 yards) from the Red tees.
  

 

Slope & Ratings:

Men's Blue Tees: 139/77.4 –

Men's White tees: 135/72.7 – Ladies White Tees: 149/79.8

Men's Red Tees: 116/66.0 – Ladies Red Tees: 125/71.6

 

 

 

Course Conditions

 

It was the last week of winter when we visited (Southern Hemisphere remember ), and there was a chill in the air, but no rain in sight. Quite frankly, the course was in amazing condition, and it could have been the last week in Spring. My understanding is that when it was designed, particular attention was paid to the drainage, and bravo I say, as it really has paid off.

 

The bent grass Greens are quick and true, the fescue fairways are mown in a beautiful checkerboard pattern and are super short. Tee boxes are in excellent condition, and while not large, provide a perfectly flat base. One of my companions commented on the ‘rustic' tee-box markers (sections of native driftwood with ends painted), but I felt like they fitted perfectly into the surroundings, and are much better than some of the horrible giant painted golf balls that you sometimes see. While The Kinloch Club is open to the public, it maintains the feel of a premium and exclusive private course.

 

Score: 9/10

 

 

 

Beauty/Scenery

 

The course is carved out of farmland, many of the tee-boxes have you looking toward the beautiful Lake Taupo, and snow covered mountains beyond. While some may find the sheer volume of tussocky rough and bunkering between your ball and the green difficult to look at, I say “Boo” to you, and “Man up”!

 

You cannot see the course from the road, and you cannot see or hear the __________ (insert whatever modernity you wish) from the course, and that is one of the truly spectacular parts of this as a golfing experience. One of the other beauties of Nicklaus' design is that the bunkering is not your typical manmade butter-bean shape, but fits perfectly with the contours of the course.

 

 

Score: 9/10

 

 

 

Customer Service/Guest Experience

 

I called Tom, the Director of Golf, the day before our scheduled tee time to confirm the booking, dashing my hopes for an instant by saying there was no booking … before revealing he was just kidding and that everything was sorted. He let me know what the weather was looking like for the following day, and said that the course was in great shape. This exchange epitomises my experience – professional, helpful and not a sniff of pretense.

 

Three of us arrived an hour before our scheduled tee time, but this was no problem. Tom explained the course layout for the day, the pin placements and what to aim for with some of the blind tee-shots, then pointed us in the direction of the practice facilities while we waited for our fourth member.

 

The service is friendly, but this is not a country club. If you are expecting a bag drop, caddies etc then you may be disappointed.

 

Score: 8/10

 

 

 

Amenities

 

The clubhouse is understated, but functional and welcoming. The logfire was burning, golf on the flatscreen, cold beer at the bar and the restaurant serves simple but tasty food options. The locker rooms are comfortable and well provisioned, but not noteworthy.

 

I was a little disappointed by the pro shop. It is a little poky, and is stocked more with souvenir logo apparel than anything else. Aside from gloves and tees, equipment was scarce.

 

Again, you'll be disappointed if you expect to see a cart offering snack/beverages, or a snack shop along the way. To be fair, there were only three groups on course the whole afternoon we were there, so it would not make a lot of sense to provide some of the amenities you may expect to see somewhere else.

 

Carts were in good condition, clean but sans GPS units. We were given complimentary yardage books when we arrived, which was extremely helpful.

 

Overall, the amenities were simple, but more than adequate, and appropriate for the number of golfers using the course on the day we were there.

 

Score: 8/10

 

 

 

Practice Facilities

 

Excellent, excellent, excellent! This is one area where The Kinloch Club is very well proportioned. The practice range is wide, has five greens on it a different distances, as well as rough and bunkering that mirrors what's found on-course. The range is located directly behind the clubrooms.

 

The large practice green again mirrors both the condition of the on-course greens, and the undulations found on the course. The practice green is located between the driving range and first tee, and is directly alongside the cart path.

 

Score: 9.5/10

 

 

 

Accessibility to All Skill Levels

 

The tees are very well spaced out (7363, 6519 & 5072 yards, respectively) and do provide an excellent opportunity for all to challenge themselves against this course.

 

Just one man's perspective, but most Par 4 and 5s seemed to provide a wider fairway entrance and get progressively narrower the further you are aiming from the tees, so there are good options for the shorter hitter or more conservative amongst us.

 

…If you spray it regularly, that's another story…

 

Score: 10/10

 

 

 

Difficulty

 

Overall, this course provides a very fair challenge. If you are accurate of the tee, and hit your approaches to good safe areas of the green, there are birdies to be had. There are very few trees on the course and there are opportunities to shorten some holes if you hit the long-ball, but managing the risks that the hazards present is key.

 

The fairways are very undulating, so putting your tee shots in the right part of the fairway (not just somewhere on the fairway) is an important consideration and also opens up better approaches to the greens. Likewise, the greens are undulating and heavily protected by some epic bunkering, particularly around the front. They do run true though, so will reward a good read.

 

For me though, the most ever-present danger to low scores on this course is the rough. It is thick, deep, tussocky, and about two feet from the edge of the fairway, right around the course. IF you can find your ball in there, all luck to you in making good contact … walking away with bogey from that position is fantastic!

 

Score: 9/10

 

 

 

Variety

 

One of the distinct features of this course is that it is built into the foothills of some quite mountainous farmland. The elevation changes, while not extreme, are evident from hole to hole, and it would certainly be a workout if you were carrying or using a pushcart. Views of rolling farmland greet you in one direction, and gorgeous lake vistas in the other direction. Individual holes weave around hills, some have blind tee shots, split fairways, forced valley and/or water carries etc.

 

The par-3 15th plays 224m (245yards), from the blue tees, across a valley to an elevated green and into the predominant wind coming off Lake Taupo. The par-5 18th plays 523m (572yards) as a double-dogleg ‘S' shape between the hillside and a large lake, with the front edge of the green rolling directly into the lake.

 

Score: 8.5/10

 

 

 

Value

 

The Kinloch Club is open for public tee bookings, and offers a range of different pricings depending on the time of year and player affiliation. For a full schedule, click here. We were able to take advantage of one of their regular special rates, $NZ350 ($US273/$CAD289) for the four of us. This is an exceptional deal for this calibre of course, and works out to about $NZ88 ($US69/$CAD73) each including cart hire and range balls prior to play. The fact that there were a total of about ten golfers on the course the whole day we were there is certainly a nice little sweetener.

 

Because of the three-hour drive to get to The Kinloch Club it is not a course that I'll be visiting regularly, but I'll certainly be making a return visit when I'm in the area, and would certainly arrange another trip specifically to play this course – especially if I can take advantage of one of their specials!

 

Score: 8.5/10

 

 

 

Memorability

 

I have never played a course quite like The Kinloch Club. While I personally found the course challenging … well … yes, let's call it challenging … at times, the tussock-lined fairways and mountain/lake vistas truly are something to behold. The fact it was time spent with three good mates, we had perfect weather the last weekend of winter, and I won by one-stroke on the final hole from two of them certainly adds to that.

 

I'll certainly remember that 18th hole for a long while.

 

Score: 9/10

 

 

 

Conclusion

 

While there weren't actually any hobbits to be seen, you really do feel like you're in a ‘middle earth' environment at The Kinloch Club. The geography is very special, and Jack Nicklaus should be commended for not going over the top with the design of this course. It feels like this is exactly where this course should be.

 

It is understated, and the off-course facilities are simple but the condition of the course cannot be faulted. The practice facilities are impeccable, and the course should provide an excellent challenge for a wide range of abilities. Ultimately, I thoroughly enjoyed my experience at The Kinloch Club, and would not hesitate to visit again.

 

In terms of on-course experiences, it is my favourite thus far, and is a “must visit” in my opinion!

 

Total Score: 88.5/100

 

VISIT WEBSITE: The Kinloch Club

 

 

[BestGrips.com]

WOW! Great review, awesome course!

[GolfSpy WD]

Nicklaus does love his bunkers

 

Beautiful course. Only a B+? Sounds like it should have done better. The course I went today was fantastic and didn't even have grass tees and I would have given that somewhere in the A range if I could have played more than 4 holes.

 

Great writeup though. I really really want to visit NZ someday, this is going to be one of my stops.

[RoverRick]

Awesome course and awesome review, but for some reason I was expecting people with bigger feet.

[Aotearoa_Brad]

Nicklaus does love his bunkers

 

Beautiful course. Only a B+? Sounds like it should have done better. The course I went today was fantastic and didn't even have grass tees and I would have given that somewhere in the A range if I could have played more than 4 holes.

 

 

It is definitely an 'A' course, but GolfSpy Matt's review rubric makes it really tough to get an 'A' overall. Let me explain. If you look at the areas that are specifically related to playing an actual round of golf - Course Conditions, Beauty/scenery, Practice Facilities, Accessibility to all skill levels, Difficulty and Memorability - then the course would score 55.5/60 (easily an 'A').

 

After emailing with Tom Long, the director of Golf, this morning it seems that there are plans to expand some of the off-course amenities over the next 18 months. This is where the course did not score quite as highly, but that is mostly because it is very difficult to do so with the rubric (and rightly so) - you won't find a bag drop or carts with GPS here (or basically anywhere else in New Zealand), but the amenities are definitely sufficient and in no way detract from the experience.

[whiskey golf]

Great review, it looks very nice over there. Makes me want to go out and play.

[Hula Rock]

Course looks absolutely stunning, and a Grave Yard for golf balls. AWSOME Review Brad....

[JBones]

Great review, Brad. The course looks amazing.

[Aotearoa_Brad]

Thanks guys, funnily enough Hula I was helping find one of my mates balls from an errant tee shot and picked up 7 other lost golf balls. I only lost one on the round so came back well up ... what's more interesting is one of the balls I found was a branded Waialae Country Club (Hawaii) branded ProV1!

[Aotearoa_Brad]

oh, I was gaming yellow Q-Stars as well, which I might add, are actually quite easy to find in the tussocks ... not saying I spent a lot of time in there ... but you get the picture ...

[The Dansome]

This is an awesome review Brad and a shining example for members looking to write their own course review.

 

Well done, I look forward to more.

[Hula Rock]

Thanks guys, funnily enough Hula I was helping find one of my mates balls from an errant tee shot and picked up 7 other lost golf balls. I only lost one on the round so came back well up ... what's more interesting is one of the balls I found was a branded Waialae Country Club (Hawaii) branded ProV1!

 

Nice !!!! It is always good to find additional Easter eggs. Those Waialea balls are everywhere, I found one in Florida playing the Magnolia Golf Course in Florida, gamed it the next hole and carded a triple....... guess the darn thing did not want to be found after all. It now lays in a watery grave ...

[Aotearoa_Brad]

Nice !!!! It is always good to find additional Easter eggs. Those Waialea balls are everywhere, I found one in Florida playing the Magnolia Golf Course in Florida, gamed it the next hole and carded a triple....... guess the darn thing did not want to be found after all. It now lays in a watery grave ...

 

hmmm.... maybe I'll give that ball to someone else then

[Balding Eagles Golf NZ]

Hey Brad, top review man, she certainly is a "bugger" of a course - we played her in a very strong westerly "breeze" - can see why NZ pro's constantly rate her as one of their favourite courses, certainly not a hackers track

 

The Balding Eagles have some unfinished business there and are planning the return voyage to this stunner - looking to play her and to spend a little time in the sand at Wairakei (for those who don't know - Wairakei has the largest number of bunkers of any course in the southern hemisphere)

 

What's this little bit in the review I read that you have decided to leave good old New Zealand ?

[Blade]

I don't know how missed this when you first posted it, but that was a really good job Bradley! It does look like balls would disappear in that stuff quite easily. Thanks for putting it together.

[Aotearoa_Brad]

Hey Brad, top review man, she certainly is a "bugger" of a course - we played her in a very strong westerly "breeze" - can see why NZ pro's constantly rate her as one of their favourite courses, certainly not a hackers track

 

The Balding Eagles have some unfinished business there and are planning the return voyage to this stunner - looking to play her and to spend a little time in the sand at Wairakei (for those who don't know - Wairakei has the largest number of bunkers of any course in the southern hemisphere)

 

What's this little bit in the review I read that you have decided to leave good old New Zealand ?

Yeah, taking the family to Hawaii to live ... don't feel too sorry for me

My plan is to play a lot of golf over there - and visitors will be welcome of course!

[Aotearoa_Brad]

I don't know how missed this when you first posted it, but that was a really good job Bradley! It does look like balls would disappear in that stuff quite easily. Thanks for putting it together.

Thanks Keith! It really was a great experience - and I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who makes the trek to middle earth. Course was in fantastic shape - even though it was the end of winter.