Man first walked on the moon in 1969; for golfers it took another 16 years. That was when Robert Trent Jones Jnr converted a disused limestone quarry in what was then Perth’s outer north into one of the most extraordinary golf environments in Australia. The Quarry and Dune nines at Joondalup (the adjoining Lake nine was added a few years later) showed golfers an entirely new landscape; in places appearing not unlike that of our planet’s lunar body.

There are holes at Joondalup that can simply never be replicated. The eye-catching par-3 third hole on the Quarry nine [above] plays across a gaping quarry that also needs to be negotiated on approach shots to the fifth green. In between, at the par-5 fourth, an enormous bunker reinforced by a towering rock wall hugs the inside of the uphill dogleg right. On the Dune nine, remnants of the site’s former use line several holes, while throughout the 27 holes are menacing, multi-terraced greens possessing an infinite capacity to bewilder. It’s a look that superficially can feel thoroughly un-Australian until a mob of kangaroos hops past. Joondalup is an experience not to be missed.

The Details

Joondalup Resort

Ranking in 2018
21st (Quarry/Dune)

Prior rankings
17th (2016), 17th (2014), 18th (2012), 19th (2010), 22nd (2008), 20th (2006), 21st (2004), 28th (2002), 23rd (2000), 25th (1998), 28th (1996), 26th (1994), 22nd (1991), 16th (1989)

Where
Country Club Boulevard, Connolly WA 6919

Phone
(08) 9400 8888

Web
www.joondalupresort.com.au