Taupo Golf Club (Centennial)

Overview: Centennial is the longer of Taupo Golf Club’s two 18-hole courses, set in inland parkland near Lake Taupō. The club describes it as a championship-length layout of 6,369 metres with strategically placed bunkers, a classic New Zealand parkland character and an intimidating finishing hole. Its length is only part of the challenge: the course combines broad volcanic-country surroundings with approach shots that require a clear decision about risk and position.

History: Taupo Golf Club traces its formal history to 1928, but Centennial is the newer of its two courses. Ernie Southerden and Taupo surveyor Laurie Cheal designed the eighteen holes, which officially opened on 7 September 1973. Greg Turner was later engaged to advise on upgrading the course, continuing a pattern of thoughtful improvement without losing the layout’s inland identity.

Did You Know? Centennial was named for the centennial-era development of the Taupo club’s golf property, but its most talked-about feature is the closing hole. The club calls it one of the most intimidating finishing holes in the country, a fitting final test on a course that builds its challenge through length, bunkering and the pressure of the last approach.