Waimairi Beach Golf Club is a professional, friendly golf club in the eastern Christchurch suburb of Parklands, welcoming players of any ability. Members and visitors take advantage of extremely competitive rates, a great course and modern facilities, all built around a newly renovated links-style 18-hole layout set on approximately 44 hectares. With a par of 72, the course is relatively short by modern standards, but the construction has been carefully considered: holes of varying lengths are dotted with ominous obstacles, wetland areas, threatening hazards and bunkers that challenge golfers of every level. The club proudly considers itself home to the best links course in Christchurch.
Off the tee, practice is well covered by a driving range and two practice putting greens. Club professional Andy Sams offers individual and group coaching sessions from the Pro Shop, which also carries a wide range of golf gear for sale and hire. The brand new clubhouse is home to the Clubhouse Café, which is open to the general public — you need not be a golfer to enjoy barista-made coffee and a bite to eat while watching the action on the green through large windows.
The club runs a busy programme including a Thursday Competition, Order of Merit and Shootout leaderboards and the Beach Bash event, alongside a juniors programme, Learn to Play options and corporate golf. Beyond golf, the facility is a genuine boon to the Christchurch community, providing a superb venue for functions or meetings.
Waimairi Beach Golf Club sits at 460 Bower Avenue in Parklands, in the eastern suburbs of Christchurch, and has built a strong reputation as a professional, friendly club that welcomes players of any ability. Members and visitors alike take advantage of extremely competitive rates, a great course and modern facilities — and the invitation on the club's own homepage is a simple one: grab your golf clubs, head on down, and enjoy a challenging yet enjoyable round on one of the newest courses in town.
Whether you're a seasoned regular or someone who has never swung an iron, there's a place for you here. And if golf isn't your thing at all, the clubhouse still has something for you — more on that below.
The course is the headline act. Newly renovated, it offers a links-style 18-hole layout set on approximately 44 hectares. By modern standards it is relatively short, but with a par of 72 the construction has been carefully considered: holes of varying lengths are laced with ominous obstacles to avoid, and the routing plays around wetland areas and threatening hazards and bunkers. The club considers itself home to "the best links course" in Christchurch, and the test is real for players of every level — yet enjoyable enough to keep you coming back.
Want to do your homework before you play? The club's Course Tour page includes drone footage of every one of the 18 holes, an unusual and genuinely useful way to learn the layout from above before your first tee shot.
Pre-round preparation is well catered for. There's a driving range for loosening up, and two practice putting greens for sharpening your touch. Golfers newer to the game have a clear pathway in through the club's Learn to Play options.
Club professional Andy Sams is the person to see for improvement, offering individual and group coaching sessions out of the Pro Shop. The shop also carries a wide range of golf gear for sale and hire — handy if you're travelling light, need to replace a club, or want to try the game before investing in your own set.
You need not be a golfer to take advantage of the club's hospitality. The Clubhouse Café is open to the general public, serving barista-made coffee and a bite to eat, with large windows looking out over the competitive activities on the green. It makes the club work just as well as a neighbourhood café stop as a golf venue, and an easy meeting point whether or not anyone in your group is playing.
For members, the competitive calendar ticks along nicely. A Thursday Competition runs through the week, results are published on the club and Proshop results pages, and season-long Order of Merit and Shootout leaderboards keep things interesting. The Beach Bash is a signature fixture on the club programme. Junior golfers get their own dedicated programme, and the club maintains ties with sister clubs. Corporate golf is on offer too, making the club a straightforward choice for business golf days.
Beyond the golf, the facility is a genuine asset to the Christchurch community, providing a superb venue for functions or meetings, with catering enquiries handled through the Clubhouse Café team.
Tee bookings can be made online through the club's Book a Game page, or by contacting the Pro Shop directly on (03) 383 0307 extension 1, or by email at [email protected]. The Clubhouse Café is reachable on extension 2 and at [email protected], while the club office — staffed Monday to Friday only — is on extension 4 and at [email protected].
Before you head out, check the course status updates on the club's site, which flag whether carts, bags and trundlers are on the course that day. Visitors will find green fees and membership fees published on the website, along with a membership enquiry form and details of member benefits. And if you're simply curious, the club's own advice is hard to beat: take a stroll down and look around. You need not even swing an iron or sink a putt — though, as they say, you may be tempted.