The best golf courses in Hong Kong

Hong Kong, you probably don't need us to tell you, is not a big place.

Around three quarters the size of London yet home to more than seven and a half million people, Hong Kong nonetheless stands proud as a sporting centre that punches well above its weight class. In addition to hosting the Sevens rugby, the city is also home to its own stop on the LIV Golf calendar, which takes place this weekend.

Despite its size and small amount of course, Hong Kong is all the same an underrated destination for luxury golfers. Golf in Hong Kong is an exclusive affair, with most of the golfing real estate taken up by some of the region's most exclusive private members clubs. Even so, casual visitors can also sample a couple of of the best public golf courses to be found anywhere in the Far East. 

As such, with the golf world's attention turning to Hong Kong once again, we thought we'd round up the courses that we think make Hong Kong a bucket list destination for any golfer.

The best golf courses in Hong Kong

Jockey Club Kau Sai Chau

Location: Kau Sai Chau, Sai Kung

Green fees (weekday): £110-£125

Residing on the island of Kai Sai Chau just across the water from the idyllic traditional fishing village of Sai Kung, Jockey Club Kau Sai Chau is Hong Kong's first and only entirely public golf course, and may just be one of the best value public courses to be found anywhere in the world.

Available to play year-round for under £150, the East course is Jockey Club's true gem, widely heralded as the best course in the region and one of the few public courses in the world with ocean views on every hole. 

The North and South courses, designed by Gary Player, are slightly cheaper and wind further inland while also taking in some of the island's spectacular coastal vistas.

Visit Jockey Club Kau Sai Chau

Plover Cove

Location: Tai Po

Green fees (weekday): TBA

Plover Cove is yet to open, with an inauguration date scheduled for 2027, but when it does it promises perhaps the most spectacular golfing experience in all of Hong Kong. The Par 71 championship course, laid out by Dana Fry and Jason Straka on a small cove in the coastal area of Tai Po, will take in both picturesque forested holes and sweeping seaside views, while the planned clubhouse promises to be the region's most modern and opulent golf hospitality offering.

Naturally, Plover Cove is planned to be a private course, so we're not sure yet whether or not it'll be open to visitors, but prospective visitors to the city can stay tuned to their website for updates as the project nears completion.

Visit Plover Cove

Clearwater Bay Golf & Country Club

Location: Clearwater Bay, New Territories

Green fees (weekday): £210-£230

Clearwater Bay is a relatively new addition to Hong Kong's golf landscape, having opened on the Clearwater Bay coast of the New Territories in the early '80s. 

However its single course widely regarded as one of the region's finest, its front nine its way along the picturesque and occassionally rugged coast and boasting a bevy of oceanside greens. The par four 3rd in particular is regularly cited as one of China's most stunning holes, with  a 180-yard tee shot carrying over the South China Sea.

The back nine is a more mountainous affair, heading inland over hilly and ravined terrain where wide open chasms create hazards on multiple tee shots. Put together, they form one of the most spectacular golf courses anywhere in the Far East.

Visit Clearwater Bay

Hong Kong Golf Club, Fanling

Location: Sheung Shui, New Territories

Green fees (weekday): £210

Hong Kong's oldest and most illustrious golf club, Hong Kong Golf Club has been around for 115 years and is steeped in colonial history, sitting in the same area of Happy Valley that also homes Hong Kong's world-famous horse racing track. 

The Fanling location now hosts three courses, of which the Old Course is the oldest, while the New and Eden courses, completed in 1931 and 1970 respectively, have expanded the club's footprint to three world-class tracks. The eight holes from the New Course and 10 from the Eden combine to form the 'Composite' course, which hosts the Hong Kong Open and the LIV event.

Despite its mystique, Hong Kong Golf Club remains open both to local and international visitors on weekdays, and all three courses offer scintillating, manicured parkland golf amid the picturesque forested mountains of Happy Valley.

One of the few golf clubs in the world to actually reside in two separate locations, Hong Kong GC also operates a fun secondary location on the South side of Hong Kong Island at Deepwater Bay, comprising a nine-hole course and coaching facilities.

Visit Hong Kong Golf Club

Discovery Bay

Location: Discovery Bay, Lantau Island

Green fees (weekday): £210

Probably the most exclusive club on this list, Discovery Bay is strictly accessible by members' guests only, lying as such in a secluded mountaintop location in a private pocket of residential land. Placed in close proximity to the South China Sea, Discovery Bay is one of the region's most esteemed areas, boasting its own residents club, marina club and leisure club, as well as a 27-hole golf course to boot.

Laid out by Robert Trent Jones Jr. Discovery bay is made up of three distinct nine-hole tracks, named the Diamond, Ruby and Jade courses. The first two combine to form the club's best routing, with dramatic elevation changes and undulating greens on the Diamond that make the most of Discovery Bay's mountaintop locale. On the Ruby, the elevation works to gift the player some of the most dramatic views to be found on a golf course anywhere in Asia, with vistas taking in Victoria Harbour, Sunset Peak and the South China Sea.

Visit Discovery Bay

Shek O Country Club

Location: Shek O

Green fees (weekday): POA

Another Hong Kong club steeped in exclusivity, very little information exists online about Shek O other than that it stands as one of the region's hardest courses to access, and one of its most unique. Notoriously short yet challenging, Shek O's course sits under 5,000 yards and registers as just a par 65, however its locale, stretching as it does along the cliffs overlooking the Tathong Channel, makes for an exhilarating test of golf all the same. 

This is, of course, assuming you get on. Despite its laid back atmosphere, Shek O is notoriously exclusive and strictly open to members and their guests only, as local blog Golf in Hong Kong writes: "Don’t expect to get on the membership list unless you’re a who’s who in Hong Kong or know someone who drives more than one Bentley."