Yes, more of my CRAPP for those of you interested. I played Narooma Golf Course today, which is another course on my bucket list. Thankfully I was out early (7 am) before the wind picked up as it would have been a difficult course to play in the wind. Particularly the first 7 holes, which are very open and situated on the top of the headland.

The course is basically two courses in one as it maximises the land available. The first 7 holes and the last 2 are on the open part of the course, basically a links style, similar to King Island in some regards. The other 9 holes are on the lower ground close to the beach in a more parkland setting, along the same lines as Mollymook up the highway.

Interesting the last 5 courses I’ve played have been top notch and all of them have 7 day memberships at around $1000 per year. Certainly way less than what you have to pay in Melbourne for something equivalent. What has been disappointing on the south coast is the cost to play as a visitor. As I mentioned last week Mollymook was way too much and whilst Narooma was less, I still think its over the top especially when compared to Blackheath which is basically a Sydney course. Maybe its a south coast thing, with plenty of visitors and willing to pay the cost. Although if you were staying here for a few months I think you’d be best to invest in a short term membership if you wanted to play regularly.

So here is my ratings for Narooma.

Design – 18 out of 20 (The course does maximise the available space but the walk between the 16th green to the 17th tee is very long and steep. Obviously its a result of the 2nd nine being built long after the original 9 holes, other than that the design was very good).

Condition – 19 out of 20 ( the course overall was in great condition. Rain over the last few months as it in great nick. The greens were pure but the fastest I’ve experienced on any course on the trip. I’m sure you’d get used to them after playing them for awhile but very hard first time up)

Cost – 15 out of 20 (Per my comments above, I thought $60 was a bit high for 18 holes and this was mid week, not a weekend rate).

Visual Appeal – 19 out of 20 (No problems here, as the photos below show).

Facilities – 20 out of 20 (Top notch, nothing is missing and it would be a pleasure to be a member here).

Ambience – 9 out of 10 (Right from the time you park your car you feel comfortable. The local members I played with were very good to play with and made my time enjoyable).

So the overall score comes in at 89, which places Narooma, equal second tied with Toowoomba City Golf Club. I did feel like I was back on King Island at times and I’m sure had the wind been up in the morning it would have been similar. I managed a respectable 31 points but like Mollymook, I fell apart on the last 4 holes, mainly because I was buggered from walking and pushing my buggy. The time has come now for the next step in my golfing life with a proper electric buggy!