Cape Wickham offers stunning views of Bass Strait.Gary Lisbon
GThe OLF has published its latest ranking of Top 100 courses in the world (2025-26)and while Pine Valley took first place again, there were three newcomers and two returners on the leaderboard. Here we will introduce them to you.
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Golf is capricious, subject to fluctuations. Golf course rankings can also be volatile. Cape Wickhamwhich opened in 2015, debuted at No. 72 in the rankings Top 100 worldwide and reached 60 two years later, only to disappear from the list in 2023-2024. Reviews of the course have pointed to problems with the site itself, on King Island, between Tasmania and the mainland. Australiawhere the breezes often turn into four-club gusts. Wind is an integral part of the game, opponents said. But the conditions of this noise? This, in their view, grew beyond character and into chaos.
This year, however, Cape Wickham returned to the list, buoyed by votes from reviewers who felt any extreme huffing and puffing was more than offset by the layout’s strengths. Start with the setting, which resembles a golf course on the edge of the map, with the layout opening onto seaside cliffs and views across Bass Strait. Add to that a collection of par 3s hugging the coast and a closing Cape hole that invites courage, and Cape Wickham comes with a rare blend of strategy and beauty.
It was also designed for its surroundings. In a nod to the elements, the fairways are generous and the greens open, built to accommodate low-altitude approaches. When the votes were tallied, Cape Wickham found itself at the top of the rankings and returned to the rankings on the winds of change.
The position How this spectacular Australian course cracked our World Top 100 rankings appeared first on Golf.
