Goal – 16 Courses in 15 days
Day 1 Auckland to Taupo – Tokoroa Golf Club
Hubby and I are not a couple that really sleep in. We both have jobs that require an early start, Hubby is a Golf course Superintendent and I am forced by living in Auckland to beat traffic or spend an hour and a half sitting in it on route to my office, so we got up at our usual 5am and were on the road by 5.30am.
Even at that time of the morning it takes a good hour and a half to clear Auckland from where we live on the Hibiscus Coast to south of the Bombay Hills. We stopped at Mercer for a breakfast of champions, Macca’s, and then headed on south. When we drive to Taupo we love to stop in a small rural town called Tirau at The Baker for coffee and sandwiches. Their food is always sensational and good fuel for golf. Another hour on from Tirau, at 8.30am we pulled into the Tokoroa Golf Club which is 8km’s south of Tokoroa town.
Tokoroa Golf Club is a typical rural New Zealand Golf course, tree lined fairways and undulating terrain with a couple of steep spots.
It’s membership is just over 280 members and green fees were $30 per player. I think they had carts available to book but we were happy walking. We were made to feel very welcome and had some great chats with committee members and their Head Greenkeeper who has been there 30years.
Weather
A brisk 8 degrees celcius when we arrived with a light breeze. By the time we had finished our round the temperature had risen to 14 degrees and the sky was mostly clear.
The Course
This is a long 18hole, Par72 course with 3 tee positions to choose from. I played off the Yellow tees, slope 118 (vs 119 at home), 5128metres (5608yards). Scott played off the White Tees, slope 115 (vs 124 at home), 5638metres (6168)yards.
The course is long but interesting, there’s a stream that runs between holes five, six, eight & nine that requires you to keep your mind on the game and your ball on the fairway. One hole was named the rollercoaster and for good reason. It did occur to me I might need to upskill on hitting my ball off slopes. Most holes had bunkers but not in stupid places which meant you could approach the greens with confidence, only a bad shot could get you into trouble.
The course was really well maintained and tidy for a staff of one. We did find the greens to be very spongey and had just been tyned so putting was very challenging.
Best holes?
Number 1 is a dogleg par four, with a strong slop to the left bordered by dense pines on both sides. The Green is hidden on the other side of a bank with just the red flag peaking above. Set the tone for the round, hit the fairway or work hard.
Hubby liked # 12, a nice challenge, best play was to lay-up at the base of the steep approach to the green.
Then the 14th Par 3 was very pretty.
Post round clubhouse
We didn’t stay for a drink after the round as it was just after midday and we had to drive on to Taupo, but we did stand and chat to 3 members who turned out to be on the management committee. They were very friendly and we felt very welcome.
The Golf summary – 27/30
Food, beverage, accommodation and other activities
We stayed at Millenium Taupo, the room which was lakefront was spacious and comfortable. Sadly the reception we got was very poor but we won’t let that ruin the start of our holiday.
When we arrived we walked 800m along the lake front boardwalk to the 2 mile bay Sailing Club and had a couple of drinks in the sunshine looking at the lake. It’s really the only close to the Hotel eatery and bar.
The hotel has restaurants but the menu was average and as stated the service not friendly.
For dinner we booked to eat at Embra, which we can’t say enough good things about. The menu is set, 3 course or 5 course and you can choose to have the wines matched as well. We decided on the 5 course but got a bottle of the Milton Voignier which went beautifully with each course. We started with cocktails,
Scott had the Coriander Southside which was a sensation. Roku Gin, Lime, Coriander Syrup & Coriander Bitters. I had cocktail envy. Mine was fairly standard, Bubbles infused with Rhubard & Ginger. Very nice but not the Coriander Southside.
Then we commenced the 5 courses, the portions were small but perfect in every way. Taste, presentation and timing. The service was friendly and relaxed and you got a sense that this was a restaurant that knows what they are great at and delivers it confidently and without fuss.
The menu changes monthly so here’s the menu we were lucky enough to experience. I will be recommending Embra to everyone and hopefully will eat here again next time we are through Taupo.
