The Best Golf Courses in Tasmania
In barely two decades Tasmania and its King Island outpost have become one of the world's great links pilgrimages, home to Cape Wickham, the two Barnbougle courses and Ocean Dunes, raw coastal golf on the edge of the Southern Ocean. Our ranked five, with the verdict on each, the designers and indicative 2026 green fees.
Photograph: Tasmania Golf Club, Tasmania Golf Club, via Google
How we chose
Two decades ago Tasmania barely registered in world golf. Today the island state and its smaller neighbour King Island, both lashed by the winds of Bass Strait and the Southern Ocean, hold a collection of modern links that rank among the finest on earth. The land is perfect for it, tumbling sand dunes hard against wild coastline, and the architects who have worked here read among the best in the business. We have weighed the quality and architecture of the course itself first, then its conditioning and standing among the panellists who rank Australian golf, and finally how rewarding the whole pilgrimage is for the travelling golfer.
The result is a tight top five, because what Tasmania lacks in quantity it more than makes up in sheer quality, with several of these courses ranked inside the world's top one hundred. Cape Wickham and Ocean Dunes sit on remote King Island, reached by a short flight, while the two Barnbougle courses anchor the northeast coast near Bridport, and Ratho Farm carries the deepest heritage in Southern Hemisphere golf. A trip here is a links pilgrimage best taken slowly, often combining both clusters by light aircraft and the scenery, food and whisky of Tasmania in between.
The ranking
Cape Wickham Links
Quite simply one of the most spectacular links on the planet, Mike DeVries's 2015 design wrapped around the wild northern tip of King Island beneath its historic lighthouse, with eight holes touching the ocean and a beach playing into the closing stretch. It debuted near the top of the world rankings and has been named the best public access course in Australia. Remote, raw and unforgettable, it is reason enough on its own to make the journey.
Indicative 2026 green fee, peak season. Always confirm directly before booking.Barnbougle Lost Farm
Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw's twenty hole links on the northeast coast, opened in 2010 just across the river from the original Dunes and a fixture in the world's top one hundred. Big, rumpled dunescapes, multiple options off every tee and a glorious natural routing make it a thinking golfer's delight. Together with its neighbour it forms the heart of the Barnbougle resort and one of the great two course destinations anywhere.
Indicative 2026 green fee, peak season · resort. Always confirm directly before booking.Barnbougle Dunes
The course that started the revolution, Tom Doak and Mike Clayton's 2004 links that proved world class golf could be built on a Tasmanian potato farm and drew the golfing world to Bass Strait. Firm, fast and full of width and angles, it set the template that Lost Farm and the King Island courses followed. A true modern classic and the founding pilgrimage of Tasmanian golf.
Indicative 2026 green fee, peak season · resort. Always confirm directly before booking.Ocean Dunes
King Island's second great links, a Graeme Grant design opened in 2016 on the island's west coast with several holes played across inlets and rocky outcrops straight into the Southern Ocean. Exposed, dramatic and at times exhilaratingly wild, it gives King Island a 36 hole pairing with Cape Wickham that few destinations can match. The kind of golf that is as much an adventure as a round.
Indicative 2026 green fee, peak season. Always confirm directly before booking.Ratho Farm Golf Links
The oldest golf course in the Southern Hemisphere, first laid out by the Scottish pioneering Reid family on their Bothwell farm in 1822 and still played over today, with sheep grazing the fairways and hickory clubs in the pro shop. A quirky, historic inland links of crossing holes and rough hewn charm, it is less a championship test than a living museum of the game. An essential, soulful stop on any Tasmanian golf journey.
Indicative 2026 green fee, peak season. Always confirm directly before booking.Designers, opening years and rankings verified June 2026. Rankings reflect our editorial view alongside the established Australian course rankings. King Island sits within the state of Tasmania. Course profiles are added across the site as the directory grows.
Where they sit on the map
Tasmanian golf splits into two clusters separated by Bass Strait. The northeast of the main island, around the small town of Bridport, holds the two Barnbougle courses side by side, about an hour from the regional airport at Launceston. King Island sits out in the strait between Tasmania and the mainland, reached by a short flight from Melbourne or Launceston, and holds Cape Wickham and Ocean Dunes at opposite ends of the island. Ratho Farm lies inland in the central highlands near Bothwell, north of Hobart and on the way to the whisky country. Most itineraries pair the Barnbougle and King Island clusters by light aircraft, with Hobart, the wineries and the distilleries woven in.
Plan your Tasmania golf trip
Tell us the courses you want and roughly when. One concierge costs the whole trip to the head and replies within one working day, with no obligation.
Tasmania golf questions
What is the best golf course in Tasmania?
Cape Wickham Links on King Island, Mike DeVries's 2015 oceanfront design, is the most acclaimed course in the state and one of the highest ranked public access courses in the world. Barnbougle Lost Farm and Barnbougle Dunes on the northeast coast complete the leading group, all three regularly featuring inside the world top one hundred.
How do you get to the Tasmanian and King Island golf courses?
The Barnbougle courses near Bridport are about an hour by road from Launceston airport on the main island. King Island, home to Cape Wickham and Ocean Dunes, is reached by a short flight from Melbourne or Launceston, and many golfers charter a light aircraft to link the two clusters efficiently. We are a guide, not an operator, so always confirm flights, tee times and fees directly before booking.
Is Tasmania a true links golf destination?
Yes, as authentic as any in the modern game. The courses are built on genuine sand dunes hard against the coast, play firm and fast, and are fully exposed to the winds of Bass Strait and the Southern Ocean, which is exactly the raw, ground game golf that links purists travel for. The combination of world class design and wild, remote coastline has made it a bucket list pilgrimage in barely twenty years.
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King Island flight and tee window tips, the best Barnbougle dates and the links pilgrimages worth booking early. Every other week.