Ellerston
Hidden deep in the high country of the Upper Hunter, Ellerston is the most private great course in Australia and one of the most exclusive in the world. Built for media mogul Kerry Packer by his friend Greg Norman, with the simple brief to make it the toughest and most spectacular course in the country, it is a par 72 routed through a steep, secluded valley along the Pages River. Almost nobody gets to play it, which only deepens the legend.
Photo: Ellerston Golf via Google.
The verdict
Ellerston is golf's great unicorn, a course almost everyone has heard of and almost nobody has played. Greg Norman spent years persuading his friend, the Australian media baron Kerry Packer, to build a course on the family's vast Upper Hunter estate, and when Packer finally agreed the brief was characteristically blunt: build the toughest and most spectacular golf course in Australia, with cost no object. Norman and his design partner Bob Harrison delivered exactly that, opening in 2001 a par 72 carved through a dramatic mountain valley, with the Pages River, native bush and severe elevation change framing every hole.
It is a course built without compromise and maintained to a standard few clubs on earth can match, which is part of why it sits comfortably inside most rankings of the top one hundred courses in the world. For the travelling golfer the verdict comes with a heavy caveat, because Ellerston is not a place you can simply book. It is a private retreat, played by the family and their guests, and the joy of it is mostly vicarious. What you can do is build a Hunter Valley golf trip around the bookable championship courses to the south, and let Ellerston remain the legend on the horizon.
Ellerston at a glance
- Opened
- 2001
- Architect
- Greg Norman and Bob Harrison
- Type
- Mountain valley
- Par
- 72
- Length
- To 7,300 m back tees
- Access
- Private, by invitation
Designer, opening year and par verified June 2026 from course and ranking databases; Ellerston is a Greg Norman and Bob Harrison design opened in 2001, par 72, stretching beyond 7,300 metres from the championship tees and normally played from much shorter markers. It is owned by the Packer family and is not open to the public, so there is no published green fee. Always confirm any arrangements directly before travelling.
The holes worth the trip
Ellerston is defined by its setting, a steep, narrow valley in remote high country where the land does the talking. Greg Norman and Bob Harrison routed the holes to follow the natural contours of the Pages River and the surrounding hills, which means dramatic changes in elevation, tee shots played from clifftops to fairways far below and greens set into shelves carved out of the slope. There is nothing manufactured or repetitive about it; no two holes feel alike, and the scale of the surrounding landscape makes the course feel both intimate and enormous at once.
The design philosophy was to reward the bold, well struck shot and to punish the loose one, exactly the test Packer asked for. The bentgrass greens are fast and firm, the native bush waits for anything wayward, and the river is in play at several turns. Built with multiple tee options, the course can be set up as a brutal championship examination beyond 7,300 metres or scaled back to a far more playable round, which is how it is usually enjoyed by the family and their guests.
What stays with those lucky enough to play it is the sense of total seclusion. There is no resort, no passing traffic, no tee sheet of strangers, just a world class course in a private valley maintained to immaculate condition. It is the purest expression of golf built purely for the love of it, and a fascinating counterpoint to the resort and members golf that the travelling player can actually book.
How to get on
| What to know | Detail |
|---|---|
| Access | Strictly private. Not a members club and not open to visitors; played by the Packer family and their personal guests |
| Green fee | None published. Ellerston does not sell tee times or green fees |
| Realistic route on | A direct personal invitation from someone connected to the estate, which is rare |
| Bookable alternative | The Hunter Valley wine country to the south, with championship resort golf you can actually reserve |
| Getting there | Remote, gated estate near the village of Ellerston, roughly a three to four hour drive north of Sydney |
| Best months | The southern spring and autumn, roughly September to November and March to May, for the kindest high country weather |
Access details verified June 2026; Ellerston remains one of the most private golf courses in the world and is not bookable by the public. If your goal is championship golf in the region that you can play, we will build the trip around the Hunter Valley. Check tee time availability.
Where to play and stay nearby
Since Ellerston itself is off limits, the smart move is to base in the Hunter Valley wine country an hour or so to the south, the heart of bookable golf in the region. The Vintage, a Greg Norman designed resort course, and Oaks Cypress Lakes are the standout championship rounds, set among the vineyards with comfortable resort accommodation, fine dining and cellar doors on the doorstep, an easy and very enjoyable golf and wine escape from Sydney.
For a grander trip, pair the Hunter Valley with Sydney's sandbelt and coastal courses, or push further to the famous Melbourne sandbelt for the best concentration of golf in the country. One planner can shape the itinerary, secure the tee times and arrange a base that suits your group and your dates.
Looking for a base? See our recommended hotels and resorts in the Hunter Valley.
Plan a Hunter Valley golf trip
Ellerston may be out of reach, but the Hunter Valley is not. We pair The Vintage and Oaks Cypress Lakes with vineyard stays and Sydney golf, secure the tee times and cost the whole trip to the head. Tell us roughly when and who is travelling and one concierge replies within one working day, with no obligation.
Ellerston questions
Can the public play Ellerston?
No. Ellerston is one of the most private golf courses in the world. It is not a members club and it does not sell green fees or take visitor bookings. The course sits on the Packer family's Ellerston estate in the Upper Hunter and is played almost entirely by the owners and their personal guests. The only realistic way on for an outsider is a direct invitation from someone connected to the family, which is rare. For bookable championship golf in the area, the Hunter Valley wine country an hour or so south is the answer.
Who designed Ellerston and when did it open?
Ellerston was designed by Greg Norman with his longtime design partner Bob Harrison and opened in 2001. Norman spent years persuading his friend Kerry Packer to build a course on the family estate, and Packer's brief was simply to create the toughest and most spectacular course in Australia, with cost no object. The result is a par 72 routed through a dramatic mountain valley along the Pages River, regularly ranked among the top one hundred courses in the world.
What is the par and length of Ellerston?
Ellerston is a par 72. From the championship tees it can stretch beyond 7,300 metres, which is extreme by any measure, but the course was built with multiple tee options and is normally played from far shorter markers to suit the group. Its defence is not only length but dramatic elevation change, the Pages River, native bushland and fast bentgrass greens set into a steep, secluded valley in the high country.
Where is Ellerston golf course?
Ellerston is in the secluded high country of the Upper Hunter region of New South Wales, north of the Hunter Valley vineyards and roughly a three to four hour drive north of Sydney. The estate is remote and gated, set deep in the hills near the village of Ellerston, which is part of what makes the course so private. The nearest bookable golf for visitors is the Hunter Valley wine region to the south.
Why is Ellerston so famous if nobody can play it?
Its mystique comes from the combination of an extraordinary site, a no expense spared build by Greg Norman and Bob Harrison, a famous owner in Kerry Packer and near total inaccessibility. It consistently ranks among the best courses in Australia and the world, yet so few golfers have seen it that it has become a kind of holy grail, talked about far more than it is played.
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Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Designer, opening year and par verified June 2026; access status verified June 2026. Last reviewed June 2026.