New Zealand - The Kinloch Club

If you've played a Jack Nicklaus designed resort course, you're probably used to a perfectly manicured, TPC style golf course. However, that's not the only style of golf course Nicklaus can design. Maybe it was due to his collaboration with Tom Doak on Sebonack, maybe it was an attempt to capitalize on the "minimalist" trend, but when I arrived at The Kinloch Club near Taupo, New Zealand, I was absolutely stunned.

Earlier that day, Malaika and I had driven to Taupo from Hamilton. I had a few hours left in the afternoon and Malaika wanted to relax so I took the clubs and drove to Kinloch. I didn't know exactly where the golf course was, just that Nicklaus had designed a golf course called Kinloch near Taupo. Using a old map as my guide, I drove towards the town. Noticing something that vaguely resembled patches of green grass surrounded by brown fields, I took a left and saw a sign leading to the course.

The links style golf course sits above, and has views of, Lake Taupo. The giant lake is in the center of the North Island of New Zealand and was created when a super volcano erupted around 30,000 years ago. Lake Taupo is a center of recreation for the Kiwis, and if you're a golfer, you should stop by and play the course. I was blown away and you probably would be as well.

The opening hole is a dogleg right par 4 of about 390 yards with the landing area bunkered heavily to the right and not quite as heavily to the left. Picking the appropriate line is a matter of knowing your carry distance and finding the correct bunker to hit over.

If you can avoid the fairway bunker in the picture above, your approach shot will be to a green protected by bunkers left and right. The best approach is from the left side of the fairway, as the green is designed for a fade.

The second hole is a reachable par 5. Your tee shot should be played to the right side of the fairway to avoid the potentially reachable bunkers left, but there's an added speed slot if you manage to do so. While this will shorten your approach, the green is best approached from the left so if you're laying up, avoid the two bunkers and you'll be fine. For those trying to get home in two, you'll probably need to hit a fade or get lucky.


The third hole is a par 3 with water short and right. The green is more receptive to yet another fade, but at 160 yards, it's probably not necessary.

The next hole is a departure from any prior Nicklaus course I've played. The tee shot is uphill and blind to a fairway that curves around bunkers on the left. Your approach shot is downhill to a green that's set just beyond a waste area.

The next two holes are short par 4s although they play rather differently. Finding the fairway is paramount on the 5th hole as the green is narrow and well protected.


The right side of the fairway gives the better look of the putting surface and offers the better angle as well. Your target is framed by the hillside giving the illusion that the green is further away.

The sixth is listed on the cards at 360 yards but the long hitter can attempt to drive the green. If you're playing safe, the fairway right runs out at 240 yards from the tee. Your second shot will be downhill to a small green which is trapped in front by a small bunker. For the bolder souls, your drive is blind although your target line is between two tall trees. A carry of 270 yards is need to reach the fairway with another 20 yards or so to the front of the green although it doesn't play nearly that long. It's downhill and when I attempted to drive the green, I found my ball had bounded beyond the green.

Hole seven is a rather nondescript par 3 but hole 8 is an interesting par 5. Your tee shot needs to avoid several bunkers although a longer hitter could carry past all of them. Depending on how well you've struck your drive, you have the option of going for the green, which is elevated and well trapped. If you plan on laying up, you have the option of choosing between two fairways. The lower fairway plays to the right and is the easier layup, however your approach would be uphill and blind. The upper fairway allows for the better look at the green but is surrounded by bunkers, and if you pull your layup, could land in the mounds and high grass. The green is shallow but wide and has a lower tier and upper tier with the upper tier rather narrow in spots.

The ninth hole is a medium length par 4 of about 380 yards. The tee shot can either be laid up short of the bunkers or you can pull out a driver and aim for a small sliver of fairway. The approach is uphill to a shallow green.

The back nine starts with a view of Lake Taupo and a downhill, dogleg left par 4. Just left of the fairway bunker is your line, although there's more room left than it appears from the back tee.


The right side of the fairway is the best angle to the green. A miss left with your drive really brings the front bunker into play on your approach.

Hole 11 is a par 3 that requires a mid-iron to a green surrounded by bunkers and mounding. If you miss long and left, this might be your view of the pin. The green has multiple tiers so be sure to get your chip on the right level if you want a legitimate chance at par.

The 12th hole is a dogleg right par 5 that is reachable if you hug the right side with your tee shot. Those who find the fairway and are going at the green are faced with the following shot.

The green is set behind another 60 yards behind the bunkers to the right. There's an additional set of bunkers guarding the green, which is shallow but relatively wide and flat. If you bail out left, you could receive a lucky bounce and kick on to the green. For those who lay up, be sure to go as far left as possible in order to have the best angle to the green.

Hole 13 is another hole that surprised me. It may be Nicklaus's version of an Alps hole, with a the ideal tee shot line being blind and to the right. If you go left, your approach will be blind thanks to a giant mound between yourself and the green. The right side of the fairway might give you a view of the green, however, too far right and you're in the rough or tall grass. The green is relatively big for a short par 4, but the right side is well protected with bunkers.

Another surprise on the Kinloch Club golf course is the finish holes. In decidedly un-Nicklausian style, the final four holes go 3-5-3-5. The 15th isn't a true Redan, but has many of the elements. The green doesn't slope from front to back, but like a Redan, is most receptive to a draw and has a "hazard" in the form of a big falloff and tall grass if you go too far left. Flail your tee shot right and there's a bunker to catch your shot.

The 16th is a longer par 5 at 530 yards on the cards, but is reachable if you're willing to carry rough and bunkers with your approach. If you lay up, you'll need to be especially careful as there are three bunkers in the center of the ideal layup position.

The bunker on the far right is the furthest of those three bunkers. Even if you land safely in the fairway, you will need to be exacting on your distance for your third.

Elevated and fronted by a bunker that's looks much larger in real life than it does in the yardage book, the green is only 22 yards deep but is shaped like a punchbowl to be more receptive to approaches.


The 17th is a pretty, yet potentially dangerous par 3. With the greensite rising from the land, mimicking the island rising from Lake Taupo behind, the only advice is to hit the green. All sides fall off, with the bunker short and left being the most dangerous.

The home hole is a good hole, but felt a bit incongruous. The long par 5 played into the wind for me, which made the 530 yard hole even longer. A lake left of the fairway threatens your second and third shots, and a small bunker guards the front middle of the green.

When I finished my round, the club pro asked me how I liked the course. I told him it was the best Nicklaus course I've ever played, and he said that at the grand opening of the golf course, Jack Nicklaus said that it was possibly the best course he's ever designed.

It's unfortunate that Kinloch is not as well known as Kauri Cliffs or Cape Kidnappers, the golf course deserves more attention than what it has received so far. If you're a golfer and you're headed to New Zealand, be sure and put Kinloch on your itinerary. It's a golf course that could easily be ranked in the top 100 in the world.