Club History
The Lindisfarne Golf Club was formed in 1925 and was located on Hobart’s eastern shore, but the post-war building boom created an increased demand for suburban land and the State Government acquired the course in the late 1960s. An alternative site was soon obtained though and on 16 January 1971, State Governor Sir Edric Bastyan officially opened the new course on behalf of the newly established golf club, Tasmania.
The course at Tasmania Golf Club is set out on headland overlooking Barilla Bay with breathtaking views across the water and fairways are mostly tree-lined with strategic bunkers characterising many of them. The club has hosted numerous significant tournaments, including the Australian Amateur Championship, Australian Junior Amateur Championship, and the Tasmanian Open. The signature hole at Tasmania is the monster 580-yard, par five, 12th (originally the 3rd) where the fairway follows the natural curve of Barilla Bay. Many consider it to be one of the country’s most scenic holes – not unlike the 18th at Pebble Beach – requiring a stout drive, strong second and accurate approach to a well-protected putting surface.
This created the need for the Club to search for a new site and the present site was acquired in 1968. Noted course architect Al Howard designed the course and it was constructed with the aid of Course Superintendent, Ian Grimsey, who was later made a life member in recognition of his efforts.
Howard, who sadly passed away in 2014 at the grand old age of 100, was an accomplished player, who went on to design many Australian courses. “Everyone tells me the one to turn out the best has been Tasmania Golf Club at Barilla Bay in Hobart, and the critics have been kind enough to rate it world-class,” he once told Australian Golf Instructional Magazine. “But I feel I just capitalised on the natural grandeur of the setting. “I walked all over the area many times, and all of a sudden the contours started to unlock. This is typical - you know that somewhere in that area is a golf course and, if you can work out the slopes that you will be firing your shots into, then it starts to fall into place like a jigsaw puzzle.”
