Cambridge Golf Club

Overview: Cambridge Golf Club occupies gently varied ground beside the Waikato River and is regarded by the club as the oldest golf organisation in the Waikato. The course has a traditional inland character, with mature trees, open fairways and the river-shaped land providing the main movement. It is a useful stop for golfers exploring Cambridge, Hamilton and the Waikato, especially those interested in established New Zealand clubs rather than resort-only golf.

History: Cambridge golf began with nine holes on the Arnold property around 1900, and the club was formally constituted in 1902. Members moved toward the present Rifle Range site during the 1920s, working on rough ground and improving the fairways by hand. By March 1931 all 18 holes were in play. The Gordon Stone clubhouse dates from 1955, adding another dated layer to a club whose roots reach back to the earliest decades of organised golf in New Zealand.

Did You Know? The early nine-hole course used the word bogey for par, and its total was 46 because some holes were so long that early golfers thought they deserved a par of six or seven. That unusual scorecard detail captures how different early golf in the Waikato was from today’s standardised layouts.