The Royal Sydney Golf Club

Kent Rd,

Rose Bay, New South Wales 2029

  • Office

    +61 (0)2 8362 7000
  • Pro shop

    +61 (0)2 9371 4333
  • Fax

    +61 (0)2 8362 7070
  • Golf pro

    Al Hickson (Golf Manager)

About the course

  • The Course:

    18 holes. Tree-lined & open parkland. Gently undulating terrain - a few slopes to climb.

  • Surroundings:

    Residential setting.

  • Designer:

    Original design at this location by Carnegie Clark (1921). Bunkering improvements by Dr Alister MacKenzie (1926). Recent revisions by Thomson Wolveridge & Associates (1980-86) and Ross Watson (2001-03).

Back
tees
Club
tees
Front
tees
Metres
6344
6054
5266
Par
72
72
72
SSS or slope
74
73
74

At the same location:

Above distances are for the Championship course. Also at RSGC is the 9-hole par-33 Centenary course (1,853 metres).

Location

Latitude:

-33.873925

Longitude:

151.265655

How to get there:

In Rose Bay, 8 km E of Sydney Harbour Bridge.

From Hyde Park (or the Cahill Expressway) in the centre of Sydney, take William St heading east, direction Vaucluse/Edgecliff. Follow William St (which becomes New South Head Rd) direction Vaucluse. After approx 5 km on New South Head Rd turn right into Kent Rd (just after Rose Bay beach). After 200 m golf entrance is on your left.

The Royal Sydney Golf Club

4-PLUS: Must play course - excellent standard; worthy of 4½ stars.

Est. 1893

The Royal Sydney Golf Club: Exuding all the pomp and character that's reflected in its Royal status, RSGC's Championship course presents a demanding test of golf in very pleasant surroundings. The clubhouse is a fabulously large, almost fortress-like building; the course itself a delight to play and always immaculately presented.

Although housing may have engulfed the hills behind Rose Bay, Royal Sydney has stood the test of time. Through a process of gentle evolution rather than radical redesign, the layout has remained a challenging test for top-level professionals and amateurs alike. The course can still be characterised by one early description of it: "there are no gimmicks, no tricks, chasms or watery caverns on the layout. It's a traditional, old-fashioned, heavily bunkered, tough test of golf, especially in any wind".

On this out-and-back layout, the front-nine follows the boundary fence, with some unintrusive traffic noise occasionally in the background. These early holes contain more undulation than you may at first think, and quickly introduce two of the layout's main defences - a plethora of impressive bunkering and large subtly sloping putting surfaces.

No less interesting than the "outer" front-nine, the "inner" back-nine is slightly less undulating, with small copses of "paperbark" trees providing good definition to the holes. Several times on the back-nine the layout will stretch your driving and approach play, requiring both length and accuracy from tee and fairway. In golfing terms, Royal Sydney is as blue-blooded as they come. A wonderfully crafted and immaculately presented golf course; well worth playing if you possibly can.

List of courses: Around Sydney

Visitors

Who can play and when?

Private club, with very restricted outside visitor play. Overseas visitors should contact the club regarding playing possibilities.

Handicap required.

Green fees

Contact club for green fee details. International/interstate visitor fee comparable with other private high-end Sydney courses. Credit cards accepted.

Other information

Walking permitted at all times.

Practice facilities

Good

Did you know?

Royal Sydney is one of eight golf clubs in Australia honoured by exercise of the Sovereign's royal prerogative. Queen Victoria conferred the Royal title on the club in 1897. The eight Australian 'Royals' are (in order of gaining Royal status): Melbourne, Sydney, Queensland, Adelaide, Hobart, Fremantle, Canberra and Perth.

Royal Sydney regularly hosts top national and regional tournaments, including the Australian Open and Australian PGA championships. For more details see Top Golf Tournaments at Royal Sydney Golf Club.

Accommodation is available in the large clubhouse for members of reciprocal clubs or guests who are sponsored by a member.

Published ranking

Australia's 52nd best course (Australian Golf Digest, 2022/23).

Where2Stay

  • Hotel InterContinental Sydney Double Bay5-star

    33 Cross St, Double Bay, Sydney, NSW 2028.

    +61 (0)2 8388 8388

    Visit website

    Located in the picturesque bayside village of Sydney's Double Bay, this InterContinental hotel offers luxurious and private accommodation. The village atmosphere around the hotel is home to boutique shopping, restaurants and cafes, with the beach just a minute's walk from the hotel. Sydney CBD is just 4km away.

    • Golf at this hotel:

      No

    • Golf within 10 km:

      Royal Sydney; The Australian; The Lakes; Bonnie Doon.

    • Golf within 30 km:

      New South Wales; St Michael's; The Coast; Concord.

  • Pier One Sydney Harbour Hotel5-star

    11 Hickson Rd, Walsh Bay, Sydney, NSW.

    +61 (0)2 8298 9999

    Visit website

    A member of Marriott's Autograph Collection, Pier One Sydney Harbour offers luxury waterfront accommodation right alongside Sydney Harbour Bridge. You are just steps away from world-famous landmarks, including the Sydney Opera House and the historic Rocks district. Elegant hotel rooms and suites are accompanied by sweeping Sydney Harbour views. The hotel's Gantry Restaurant offers a chic waterfront atmosphere and panoramic Walsh Bay vistas.

    • Golf at this hotel:

      No

    • Golf within 10 km:

      Moore Park; Royal Sydney; The Australian; The Lakes; Bonnie Doon.

    • Golf within 30 km:

      New South Wales; St Michael's; The Coast; Concord; Pymble; Avondale; Long Reef.

Find a course

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Tournaments

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Tournament of Champions: the LPGA Tour’s 2025 season is launched at Lake Nona with the their Tournament of Champions (Jan 30-Feb 2). The 2024 edition gave Lydia Ko her 20th LPGA Tour title.

Who's Who

Attahya Thitikul: also known as “Jeeno”, the Thai golfer won the LPGA Tour’s 2024 CME Group Tour Championship … and an eye-watering $4 million, the richest first-prize in women’s golf.

Rory McIlroy: scooped the 2024 European (DP World) Tour season-long Order of Merit title, joining Seve Ballesteros as a six-time winner of this prestigious award.

Marco Simone Golf & Country Club

Marco Simone Golf & Country Club: With a clubhouse that might befit a Roman Emperor, and a golf course to match, you can be sure of a memorable outing at Rome's most talked about golf facility.

Jim Fazio's original layout was much changed to create a modern Ryder Cup course ... now one of the Eternal City's (and Italy's) most revered.

Prince's Golf Club, Kent (UK)

Here at Prince’s Golf Club you'll find 27 excellent holes of links golf. Just over the fence and sharing similar terrain is Royal St George’s; but Prince’s is far from overshadowed by its venerable neighbour. The three nine-hole loops at Prince's, laid out over gently undulating terrain, are sure to bring a smile of satisfaction to all lovers of links golf.

Stay&Play at Prince's: excellent onsite Lodge accommodation available

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