Killara Golf Club

The first hole is a great start to any course. It is a par 5 of 512 metres, with a gentle dog-leg turning away to the right. Long hitters aim for the hill on the right side and expect a run off the hill onto the flat fairway. However, beware slicing up the hill into the trees or out of bounds while a hook off the first tee usually ends up behind or under trees. Second shots from the fairway are usually straight forward, leaving a pitch onto a large green. The hole is rated as 13th in the order of difficulty, but be happy with a par.

Hole 2 is a par 3 of 175metres with a copse of pine trees guarding the left side of the fairway and a row of high ornamental trees along the right side. The hole requires a straight shot as there are bunkers guarding both sides of the green which has a vicious slope from back to front. You are better off being short of the flag than at the back of the green. A difficult hole for those who do not hit straight, it is rated as 11th hardest.

One of the best holes at Killara, this is a relatively short par 4 hole with a slight dog-leg to the left. Any ball off line from the tee will result in the second shot being blocked from reaching the green. A hooked drive may end up in the dam while a push to the right results in several very tall eucalyptus trees obstructing the line. The green is long and narrow with bunkers on both sides. Accurate shot making is the key to success. The hole is rated as the 6th hardest hole but at 325 metres is easily reached by most golfers.

Hole 4 sits along a ridge with trees on both sides of the fairway with a slight dog-leg turning to the right at about 200 metres. Any reasonable drive down the middle leaves about 150metres to the green but there are three bunkers guarding the hole so the second shot must be accurate. A hooked drive results in the ball running off the ridge down on to the adjoining 7th fairway, while a slice runs to the 6th fairway. If your drive is not accurate it usually means dropping at least one shot. At 372 metres it is the 9th hardest hole.

Most golfers regard this 371 metres as the best hole at Killara. It is uphill from tee to green with a lateral water hazard along the left side of the fairway. A small hill runs across the fairway beginning at about 230metres. Bunkers exist at the front right and front left with two other bunkers positioned on the left of the green. The best position for the drive is up the right side of the fairway so that the ball will roll back to the centre. A hook however will see your ball into the creek which forms the lateral water hazard along the left of the fairway and an immediate penalty of at least one dropped stroke. The green has two levels so when you reach it, putting may become a major problem. Even though it is the 2nd hardest hole, long hitters find the green easy to reach while moderate players are content with a bogey on this par 4.

Like all holes at Killara, position is the key to success. This hole demands that the shot be hit up the hill to the left side of the fairway. Any tee shot pushed to the right will be completely shut off from the green by a group of 10 trees which are positioned to catch most 2nd shots. There are three bunkers to the left of the green, one bunker directly in front of the green and a fifth bunker short of the green on the right. Although only 349 metres long it has been the cause of many disasters to an otherwise good round. It has a rating as the 14th hardest hole.

At 339 metres, this hole appears to be an easy par 4, but beware! The ground slopes steeply to the right from the adjoining 4th fairway. Any drive down the centre is likely to run to the rough on the right where a couple of Casuarina trees are positioned to prevent a clear shot at the green. If you aim too far to the left of the green with your second shot, you will end up in the bunker. The green slopes from the back left corner to the front right, leaving a difficult putt. It is best played by hitting up the left side of the fairway and then aiming at or just to the right of the large pine tree behind the green. It is rated as the 8th hardest hole.

This par 3 hole crosses the dam and is guarded by a bunker to the left with another at the left rear. There is a small swale on the right side of the green which attracts a number of shots, but for most low handicappers it is only made difficult by the 198 metre length. It is rated as the 5th most difficult hole.

Killara has two short par 5 holes and this is the first one. There are three bunkers on the left of the fairway beginning about 160 metres from the tee and running for 80 metres. At about 230 metres there is a fairway bunker at the top of the hill. The green is guarded by three bunkers in front and one to the right side of the green. Long hitters have more trouble on this hole because of the position of the bunkers, the row of trees on the right of the fairway and the out-of-bounds on the left. Hit up the middle and it is an easy par or even birdie at only 432 metres.

Also an easy par 5 of 435 metres, it has a fairway bunker at about 235 metres from the tee and four bunkers positioned from the front left to the right side of the green. Again it is easy to hit down the middle and get a birdie, but a wayward drive can be in trees to the right or in a deep wooded area on the left.

This is the easiest hole on the course at 128 metres. There are three bunkers designed to catch the poor shot or a hook from the tee but for most golfers it poses no problems. You can see all the dangers- just be on!

This hole seems to be simply a matter of hitting a reasonable drive down the hill but many good players have come to grief here. A slice or stray drive pushed to the right is likely to be out-of-bounds or behind a row of trees. A hooked tee shot invariably results in an impossible 2nd shot from the thick trees between the 12th and 13th fairways. If you do hit a good drive down the middle, there is a huge bunker to the right front which always seems to attract a low hit approach shot, while a small pot bunker in front of the green gathers any drawn shot. The best way to ensure a par 4 is to hit a drive about 220-240 metres down the right side of the freeway so that it turns towards the middle and then play a high iron on the green. Naturally this par 4 has a rating of 7 in the degree of difficulty.

At 472 metres this is the best par 5 hole at Killara. The brow of the hill is about 220 metres from the tee but at that point the fairway takes a sharp dog-leg to the right. Any drive trying to cut the corner ends up in a paperbark-tree forest so it best to sacrifice distance for position on the left side of the fairway. Once near the brow of the hill on the left it is a simple second shot to the bottom of the "dip" leaving a wedge to the middle of the green. However, there is a fairway bunker to the right side of the "dip" while dense trees on either side make it imperative that the second shot is straight. It is the 12th hardest hole but a very good par 5.

The 14th requires accurate driving. It is only 297 metres long but the fairway is narrowed by pine and casuarina trees on either side. Two bunkers catch long drives pushed to the right, while the green has bunkers on the right, middle and left of the green. A good straight drive followed by a short iron to the green should see a par or even a birdie. For that reason this hole has an index of 15th in order of difficulty.

This is a long par 4. The drive must run to the top of the hill before you have any chance of reaching the green. Long hitters, easily hit over the hill and then use a simple middle iron to gain the distance. However, for a sliced or hooked drive from the tee, trouble in the form of trees will result in at least one dropped shot. The green has three judiciously placed bunkers on both sides and lots of trees on the right side of the fairway as you approach the green. However, if you stay in the middle you will easily gain a par or at worst a bogey for short hitters. At 373 metres it is the 4th hardest hole.

The 16th at Killara is regarded as the hardest par 4 hole but only because it is long. At 405 metres it requires a long straight drive down the hill, then a full 3 or 4 wood to the green perched on the top of the up-slope. Most average golfers are content to hit 2 shots and then a pitching wedge to the centre of the green. Do not fall short as the ball will run back off the green, while if you hit too far, the putt from the back of the green will run very quickly down the slope. It is easy to three putt this green and many good golfers have taken four putts!!.

The 17th hole at 168metres is one of the best par 3's in Sydney. There are trees and an out-of bounds on the right with a small pot bunker guarding the right side of the green. Two very long bunkers run along the left side of the fairway to the very front of the green, so the tee shot has to be very accurate. Aim at the pot bunker on the right side and draw the tee shot onto the green.

The 18th is a great finishing par 4 of 361 metres. A good drive will leave an uphill shot to the green which has a pine tree guarding the right side and a pot bunker about 5 metres short of the green. If you cannot reach the green with a medium iron club then aim to run up from the left side of the fairway- the slope will carry a ball to the right as it runs on to the green. The green itself is very difficult with two tiers running sharply from back to front, so putting ever so gently down the slope to a pin placement at the front often sees a ball roll off the green.