Hey brother, the quietness of this thread is very on brand for Perth!
There’s a bunch of good value for money public courses within a 30 minute drive of the CBD that you can walk for less than AU$45 on the weekend (even cheaper during the week).
I would recommend you check out:
- Wembley (two 18 hole courses & apparently the busiest golf complex in the southern hemisphere)
- Collier Park (27 holes)
- Carramar (a ton of kangaroos on the course)
- Maylands Peninsula (pretty flat but some nice views of the Swan River)
- The Springs Club (super fun 9 hole course with insane greens)
- Whaleback (tight piece of property, but the only course with topgolf balltracking on the range)
- Point Walter (interesting 9 hole course which has one of the worst golf holes in the country)
Lake Claremont and Embleton are both fun little par 3 courses that deserve a mention.
There are great courses a bit further out of town that are a bit pricier but still under AUD$100 to play:
- Joondalup (Must play)
- The Links Kennedy Bay (Must play)
- The Cut (Must play)
- Kalgoorlie (7 hour drive/train from Perth to a medium sized mining town but worth the weekend trip)
- Meadow Springs (Highly recommend)
- Sun City (Highly recommend)
- The Vines (Semi Private) (Highly recommend)
- Secret Harbour (Highly recommend)
- Albany (5 hour drive from Perth but in my favourite town in the state & well worth a weekend trip)
- Kwinana (Semi Private) (Highly recommend)
- Hartfield (Semi Private) (Highly recommend)
- Gosnells (Semi Private)
- Melville Glades (Semi Private) @mcoates17 is member here I think?
- Sea View (Semi Private)
On the private golf front I’m a little out of my depth but it might be real tough to play at let alone join the more exclusive private clubs around town:
- Lake Karrinyup (Best course in state but unless you know someone who’s a member don’t even bother)
- Western Australian
- Cottesloe
- Mount Lawley
- Royal Perth
- Royal Fremantle
If you’re keen on private membership your best bet would be to reach out to some of the semi private courses above to express some interest in joining for 6 months as an international visitor. I wouldn’t be surprised if one of them would let you join for 6 months at a reduced rate.
Most public courses also have some type of “membership” for like $200ish a year where you can play in comps and maintain a handicap if that is something you’re interested in.
If you need anything, feel free to shoot me a DM. I’m always happy to provide info/advice and offer up my sherpa services on and off the course!