Waikaka Golf Club

Gore sits at the heart of Southland, the southernmost farming region of New Zealand's South Island, where the Mataura River runs through flat to gently rolling pastoral land and the sky tends toward the dramatic. It's sheep-and-beef country, unhurried and proud of it, and the golf here reflects that character — honest, unpretentious, and genuinely local. The Waikaka Golf Club takes its name from the Waikaka Stream and the small township to the north, placing it firmly in the rural fabric of this part of Southland.

As a country club serving a tight-knit farming community, Waikaka offers the kind of golf that's become increasingly rare: a layout shaped by the land rather than imposed upon it, where local knowledge matters and regulars know every bounce and prevailing wind. Southland's climate keeps the turf green but demands respect — cold snaps can arrive in any month, and the wind off the plains is rarely polite.

For visitors passing through Gore — a town that punches above its weight in community spirit — this is a chance to play golf the way it was meant to feel: low on pretension, high on welcome.