New South Wales Golf Club: 2026 Access and Booking Update
The New South Wales Golf Club is one of the great clifftop courses on earth, an Alister MacKenzie design draped over the headlands of La Perouse on the southern shore of Botany Bay. Here is where the course stands for 2026, what its famous holes are like, and how its limited visitor access works.
Photo via Google.
The news: a private clifftop classic, with limited 2026 visitor access
New South Wales Golf Club sits at La Perouse on the northern headland above Botany Bay in Sydney, on land now bordered by Kamay Botany Bay National Park. Laid out by Alister MacKenzie, the architect of Augusta National and Cypress Point, with Carnegie Clark from 1926, it is consistently ranked among the very best courses in Australia and inside the world's top hundred, and it remains one of the most coveted tee times in the southern hemisphere.
Nothing about the course's standing has changed for 2026; the news each year here is simply access. This is a private members club, and visitor play is limited and tightly controlled rather than freely bookable, so the practical question for any traveller is how to secure one of the small number of guest times. Below is what the course is like and how that access works for 2026.
The course, and the famous 6th
The MacKenzie routing runs out across rugged coastal ground, with several holes set hard against the Pacific and the wind a constant factor, in the tradition of the great clifftop links. It plays as a par 72 and is celebrated less for length than for drama, strategy and the way the holes use the natural fall of the headland, the hallmarks of a MacKenzie design.
The signature hole is the world famous par three 6th, played from a tee on the Cape Banks headland across an inlet of the ocean to a green beyond, a short hole so exposed that in a strong wind players aim out over the water and let the breeze bring the ball back. It is regularly named among the best short holes anywhere, and along with the par five 5th, which can flirt with the sea, it gives the course a stretch of coastal golf as thrilling as any in Australia.
How to play it in 2026
Access is the whole story here. New South Wales is a private members club, and visitor play is limited, generally offered on weekdays only and subject to the club's calendar and member events, with no general weekend access unless you are the guest of a member. Where visitor times are released they must be booked in advance through the club, and the green fee is set on application at a level in keeping with Sydney's other premier private courses, so treat it as a premium, confirm directly and book as far ahead as you can.
Because the windows are narrow, the reliable way in for most travellers is through a golf tour operator or concierge with access to the club's visitor times, packaged into a wider Sydney or Australian golf trip. Plan around a weekday, build the round into an itinerary with the Melbourne sandbelt or other Sydney courses, and always confirm the tee time, the fee and the dress and handicap requirements directly before you travel.
Our take
Our take is that New South Wales is worth every effort it takes to get on, a MacKenzie clifftop course whose setting and famous 6th put it on any serious golfer's list. The golf is excellent and the drama of the coastline is the kind you remember for years, but the experience is defined as much by its exclusivity as its architecture.
If you are planning a 2026 Australian trip, treat New South Wales as a marquee weekday round to secure early rather than a casual booking, ideally through an operator who can guarantee the access. Paired with the Melbourne sandbelt it makes the backbone of a world class Australian golf tour. Confirm the visitor window, fee and requirements directly before committing.
Plan your Sydney golf trip
From a marquee weekday round at New South Wales to the wider Sydney courses and the Melbourne sandbelt, tell us roughly when and who is travelling and one concierge will work to secure the access and build the trip, with no obligation.
Questions
Can visitors play New South Wales Golf Club in 2026?
Yes, but access is limited. New South Wales is a private members club that offers a small number of visitor tee times, generally on weekdays only and subject to its calendar and member events, with no general weekend play unless you are a member's guest. Times must be booked in advance through the club, and many travellers secure access through a golf tour operator. Confirm the current visitor policy directly before planning.
What are the green fees at New South Wales Golf Club?
The visitor green fee is set on application and is pitched at a premium level in line with Sydney's other top private courses. The club does not publish a simple walk up rate, so the fee is quoted when a visitor time is arranged. Treat any figure as indicative for the 2026 season and always confirm directly with the club or your operator before booking.
What is the New South Wales Golf Club course like?
It is an Alister MacKenzie clifftop course from the late 1920s at La Perouse, playing as a par 72 across rugged headland above Botany Bay. Its signature hole is the world famous par three 6th, played across an inlet of the Pacific, and the course is regularly ranked among the best in Australia and inside the world's top hundred.
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Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Course, access and visitor policy details verified June 2026 from club and golf travel sources; visitor windows and green fees change, so always confirm directly before booking. Last reviewed June 2026.