Experience golf at the edge of the earth
play Cape Kidnappers
Set atop rolling hills and rugged cliffs that give way to vast sea views and an ever-present horizon, Cape Kidnappers is home to the 18-hole golf course crafted by Tom Doak, and luxury resort Rosewood Cape Kidnappers.
Cape Kidnappers occupies a breathtaking peninsula at the southern end of Hawke's Bay, extending 10 kilometers into the South Pacific. The golf course and adjacent resort, Rosewood Cape Kidnappers, occupy a 6,000-acre working sheep and cattle station protected by over 10 kilometers of predator proof fencing. This barrier creates Cape Sanctuary, the largest privately owned and funded wildlife restoration project of it's kind in New Zealand. By protecting New Zealand's native flora and fauna from predators, our golfers are treated to unforgettable play surrounded by rare and endangered bird life that call the tree clad ravines home.
Spring coring will commence at Cape Kidnappers Monday 25th August 2025.
Spring coring will commence at Cape Kidnappers Monday 25th August 2025. Golf will be available to be played throughout the aeration process. Subject to weather conditions we anticipate a three week recovery period.
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1 Jun 25 - 31 Aug 25
1 Sep 25 - 31 Oct 25
1 Nov 25 - 31 Mar 26
All prices are inclusive of 15% Goods and Services tax. Guests of the Lodge receive a 10% discount off the applicable 18 Hole Green Fee
Our goal in designing golf courses is to create interesting holes you wouldn't find anywhere else. That wasn't hard to do at Cape Kidnappers, because the site is not like anywhere else in golf. If it were any bigger or any more dramatic, it would probably be cordoned off as a national park. It's an overwhelming experience to stand up on the cliffs, 140 meters above sea level, and look out across the waves far below in Hawke's Bay.
Cape Kidnappers is not true links terrain, with the wrinkles of sand dunes; instead the land tilts toward the sea as a series of ridges jutting out toward the edge of the cliffs. Yet, the play is seaside golf at its finest. The surface is firm and fast, the conditions can be windy, and the player who can control his trajectory will be master of the course. You'll hit shots over the tops of the tea trees, and play along the edges of deep ravines. If you stray on your approaches, you'll actually hope to get caught up in bunkers hanging off the green's edge, some of them deeper than you've ever seen before. Three times, you'll have to make the perilous leap from the end of one ridge to the end of the next. And at the sixth and fifteenth holes it's possible to pull your approach off the very end of the earth, though it will take nearly ten seconds of hang time for your ball to reach the ocean below.
For myself and my associates, it was a great adventure to track up the hill every day and build a golf course in such a remarkable setting. We hope you enjoy your time here as much as we have. New Zealand is a long way from home, but Cape Kidnappers is never far from our hearts."
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Tournament days designed exclusively for your group of 24 players or more. A perfect way to celebrate colleagues, clients or friendship at Cape Kidnappers.
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Rosewood Cape Kidnappers shares our incredible 6,000-acre peninsula, with unforgettable vistas of the vast Pacific Ocean. Amidst the region's rich cultural heritage and its burgeoning culinary scene discover rustic luxury.
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