Luxury Golf & Travel To New Zealand
Luxury Golf & Travel To New Zealand
If you’re planning a golf trip to the Matakana region, or heading south from the world-class fairways of Te Arai Links toward Auckland, there’s one course along the coast you shouldn’t drive past, Omaha Beach Golf Club.
While Te Arai commands the global headlines, Omaha Beach has quietly undergone one of New Zealand’s most impressive course transformations in recent years. Here’s why it deserves a spot on your itinerary.
Perched on a sandy peninsula overlooking Whangateau Harbour, Omaha Beach Golf Club delivers a genuine links-style experience just an hour north of Auckland. For years it was a well-loved local favourite, but a focused master plan and a major 2023 revamp have elevated it into something genuinely special.
The club’s evolution is part of what makes it compelling. From modest nine-hole origins in the 1970s, the course has grown into a sophisticated 18-hole layout shaped by some respected names in New Zealand golf course design, including John Darby (Jack’s Point) and Chris Pitman (Titirangi). The most recent chapter belongs to Kristine Kerr, known for her work at Waitangi, who has spearheaded the push to bring Omaha Beach up to professional standards.
The centrepiece of the 2023 transformation is the 18th hole. Once considered the course’s weakest finishing hole, it has been reimagined into a dramatic, memorable closer that leaves a lasting impression. It’s the kind of hole you’ll be talking about over a post-round drink.
Beyond the redesign, the club is midway through a significant bent grass conversion on its greens. Holes 15, 17, and 18 are already complete, delivering smooth, high-fidelity putting surfaces that rival the region’s most exclusive private clubs. Golfers should also keep an eye on the strategic new bunker remodelling on the 14th, along with extensive reshaping on the 15th and 17th.
Equally important, though less visible, is the work done beneath the surface. Drainage issues that once plagued the back nine are now firmly in the past. Elevated fairways, reshaped bunkers, and a modern drainage system mean the course plays firm and fast year-round, maintaining that authentic links feel even after a coastal shower.
One of the most refreshing things about Omaha Beach is its atmosphere. Despite the premium upgrades to cart paths, landscaping, and short-game practice areas, it remains a genuinely friendly and welcoming club where you feel at home from the first tee.
Much of the transformation has been made possible through a unique partnership with the Friends of Omaha Beach Golf Club, a charitable trust that has raised nearly $750,000 for course improvements. That community investment shows, and you can feel the pride in every corner of the property.
Omaha Beach is ideally positioned for a full day out in the Matakana region. Start with a flat white and a browse at the Matakana Village Farmers’ Market, play 18 holes of coastal golf, then finish with a wine tasting at one of the nearby Matakana vineyards. It’s a hard day to beat.
Looking ahead, the club has plans to convert hole 3A into a par-5, which will bring the course to a par 71 and add further strategic variety to an already evolving layout.
If you’re visiting the area to play Te Arai Links, don’t let Omaha Beach Golf Club pass you by. It offers a sophisticated, scenic, and strategically rewarding round that proves you don’t need a private membership or a global ranking to have a world-class experience on the New Zealand coast.
Whether you’re a visiting golfer building the ultimate New Zealand golf road trip or a local looking for your next great round, Omaha Beach delivers. Don’t just take our word for it. Get out there and play it. And when you’re ready to plan your next round, we have you covered.
Contact us today and start planning your trip!
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Sources
Omaha Beach Golf