Impassioned members of a one-hundred-year-old golf course have proposed a plan to transform the land into a ‘world-class’ sport and recreation hub after the state government threatened to turn the course into a public park.
The Moore Park Golf Collective on Saturday released plans for the modification of around 15 hectares of the iconic 18-hole course in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.
The famous course has been in the spotlight since October 2023 when NSW Premier Chris Minns revealed plans to slash nine holes and convert almost half of the 45-hectare site into publicly-owned parkland for local residents.
The Moore Park Golf Collective is an alliance of golf industry bodies – the PGA of , Golf , Golf NSW and Moore Park Golf Club and has swung in an eleventh-hour plan to save the course.
Their proposal ‘allows for the retention of the much-loved and always busy 18-hole golf course by maximising un-used and under-utilised open space for active and passive recreation and active transport’.
The plan would reduce the course from par-70 to par-86 and shorten the hi-tech driving range as well as the existing footprint of the course. One existing hole would be removed and seven others would be shortened.
The recovered space would be converted into a dog park, adventure playground, nature play space, barbecue and picnic facilities, and a fitness trail.
There would also be a football oval, a skate park, a futsal court, a BMX track, an athletics precinct, 3km of walking, running and cycling paths, a mini golf course and new environmental spaces for the Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub regeneration.
Leader of Save Moore Park Golf Course Jared Kendler said: ‘We have been working to ensure the alternative proposal aligns with the premier’s vision to establish Moore Park South as a vibrant recreational destination for all.’
‘By enhancing existing infrastructure and revitalising un-used and under-utilised areas, the initiative aims to create a park that caters to diverse recreational interests in a financially sustainable way that solves the many challenges in the broader precinct.
‘This exciting master plan delivers a minimum of 15 hectares of quality and connected recreational space for play, exploration, relaxing, walking and sports activities for people of all ages and as such is a win/win/win for the Government, the people of Sydney and the visitor economy.’
Golf ‘s Damien de Bohun said the proposal prioritises the preservation and enhancement of Moore Park Golf Course, positioning Moore Park South as a park for everyone and the home of public golf in NSW.
‘Not only does the proposal incorporate innovative features such as protected recreational areas and well-connected walking, running and cycling tracks, it also offers a 500-space carpark to accommodate the growing influx of visitors and overflow parking for major events in the area,’ Mr de Bohun said.
Hollywood A-lister and golfing enthusiast Mark Wahlberg in March of this year pledged his support for Moore Park Golf Club.
‘I know I am not a citizen of but I am pleading to you to save Moore Park Golf Club,’ Mr Wahlberg said in a video posted to social media.
‘It’s been here for over 100 years, it’s been giving people hundreds and hundreds of years of pleasure and joy.
‘Just people being able to come out and get a nice healthy walk, spend quality time together with family and friends.
‘Please I’ve seen lots and lots of parks and I haven’t seen too many lovely public golf courses like this that have access for everybody.’
NSW Planning and Public Spaces Minister Paul Scully said 20 hectares of the course would be modified while retaining 9 holes and the clubhouse and driving range.
‘It is an important step to addressing the needs of residents living in the city’s most densely populated suburbs while providing a pathway for golf to continue in Moore Park,’ Mr Scully said.
Both Mr Minns and City of Sydney Mayor Clover Moore back the plans to transform up to half the course into public parkland for residents in neighbouring suburbs including Green Square, Redfern, Zetland and Waterloo in mid-2026.
‘In the face of increasing need for public open space, we asked the government: Is an 18-hole golf course still the best use of inner city public land?’ Ms Moore told NewsWire on Friday.
‘That question is fundamentally one of equity and putting our public land to its best use in the community interest.
‘The government accepted our proposal and has now committed funding to convert the course from 18 holes to nine, retaining the larger area of land for golf, the clubhouse, depots, parking and popular driving range and returning up to 20 hectares of land to Moore Park for public recreation.
‘It has been the policy of successive state governments to increase housing in the Green Square urban renewal area and by 2040, up to 80,000 more people will be living in the Green Square and Waterloo area within 2km of here.’
The new public park is to cater to 49,000 residents by 2041 with $2.6million already put aside in NSW’s state budget to transform the site.