Poverty Bay

The north-east region of the North Island is rather a empty desert when it comes to high-quality golf courses. However, Poverty Bay Golf Club is an oasis.

According to the historical record, Poverty Bay Golf Club was established in 1893. It is the fifth-oldest course within New Zealand and the second oldest on the North Island, after Hutt Golf Club which was established in 1892. In the beginning the golf course played at Poverty Bay could be played in the paddocks close to Waikanae Beach, but as the population of Gisborne was growing, more terrain was sought and a links golf course was established near Awapuni around 1913. In 1927, the club hired the assistance of the designer C. H. Redhead and in the next year, he the course was built according to his ideas.

The Awapuni Links is situated on an ancient network of dunes close to the ocean. It is not a modern-day beast - 6,593 yards or 6,029 meters from the back tees. The fairways are smooth or slightly undulating, and are parallel to the beach, tracing old dunes that were once valleys. Uncontrolled rough areas are bordered by narrow fairways with stands of trees and brush give the impression of a park to the course at times. Poverty Bay's putting surface is big, undulating, quick, and well laid out.

The course may play different from one day to another based on the winds that prevail that are either dry and warm or cold and humid. Whatever the conditions, Poverty Bay's closing stretch can ruin a card. Six tough two-shotters are together on the home stretch demanding patience and solid shot-making.

While it is a course for the provincial level, Poverty Bay is highly popular and has been host to numerous national tournaments such as The New Zealand Amateur Championship in 1991 and 1996. In the event of 1991 in 1991, it was the Australian golfer Stuart Appleby, posted an 66. This was the course record from back tees up until Peter Zwart fired a 64 in the 2013 Electrinet Pro-Am.