Updated on November 10, 2026
👉 All Our Golf Rankings: The Most Beautiful Golf Courses in the World, the most challenging courses…
What is the most unusual golf course in the world? There’s the one that stretches 1,365 km across the Australian desert, the one where a hole can only be reached by helicopter, one that straddles two countries and two time zones, one where people play between the two runways of an international airport, and even one where lions and elephants roam the fairways. Here are 15 Truly Extraordinary Golf Courses, all of which are active, and each of whose details has been verified with an official source or a major media outlet. This is a selection, not a ranking: the order does not indicate any ranking.
The 15 Most Unusual Golf Courses in the World at a Glance
15 courses shown.
| No. | Golf | Country | What makes it unusual |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nullarbor Links | Australia | The world's longest golf course: 18 holes spanning 1,365 km |
| 2 | Legend Golf & Safari Resort — “Extreme 19th” | South Africa | A hole accessible only by helicopter, starting at 430 m above the ground |
| 3 | Coober Pedy Opal Fields Golf Club | Australia | A golf course without a single blade of grass, in the middle of a mining desert, played at night |
| 4 | Green Zone Golf (Tornio – Haparanda) | Finland / Sweden | Straddling two countries and two time zones |
| 5 | Aroostook Valley Country Club | Canada / United States | Golf course and clubhouse in Canada; parking lot and pro shop in the United States |
| 6 | Tromsø Golfklubb (Tromsø Golfpark) | Norway | The world's northernmost 18-hole course (according to the club), played under the midnight sun |
| 7 | Furnace Creek Golf Course | United States | The world's lowest-lying golf course (−65 m) |
| 8 | Brickyard Crossing | United States | Four holes inside the Indy 500 oval |
| 9 | Kantarat Golf Course | Thailand | 18 holes between the two runways at an international airport |
| 10 | Skukuza Golf Club | South Africa | An unfenced golf course in the heart of Kruger National Park, open to lions and elephants |
| 11 | Lost City Golf Course (Sun City) | South Africa | Hole 13 above a crocodile pit |
| 12 | The Coeur d'Alene Resort Golf Course | United States | The world's only floating, movable green |
| 13 | Mission Hills Golf Club | China | The world's largest golf complex (Guinness World Records) |
| 14 | Bayonet & Black Horse | United States | A golf course on the site of a former U.S. military base, designed by generals |
| 15 | Elephant Hills (Victoria Falls) | Zimbabwe | Golf course hit by a missile during the war, wildlife on the fairways |
Editorial selection: The order does not indicate ranking. Click on a header to sort.
Where are these unique golf courses located?
Click on a number to view the golf course, then click on its name to read its profile. Base map © OpenStreetMap.
How We Chose These Golf Courses
Each selected golf course has a unique and verifiable feature: a record (the longest, the lowest, the largest), an extraordinary location, or a unique history. All are in operation in 2025–2026, according to their official websites or recent news reports; otherwise, they are excluded, and we explain why. Each fact is drawn from a cited source (official website, Guinness World Records, tourism office, major media outlet, Wikipedia with a reference); a fact without a source is not included. Photos are under a free license via Wikimedia Commons; if no free photo is available, a neutral image is used instead. Compiled on November 10, 2026.
The 15 golf courses in detail
1. Nullarbor Links 🇦🇺
What makes it unusual: The world's longest golf course: 18 holes spanning 1,365 km
An 18-hole, par-72 course stretching 1,365 km along the Eyre Highway, with one hole in each town or rest stop between Kalgoorlie and Ceduna. (Coolgardie Shire) The project was completed and launched in 2009. (Nullarbor Links, Official Website) Access: Open to the public (scorecard must be purchased).
2. Legend Golf & Safari Resort — “Extreme 19th” 🇿🇦
What makes it unusual: A hole accessible only by helicopter, starting at 430 m above the ground
The 'Extreme 19th“is accessible only by helicopter: you tee off from a 470-yard cliff on Hanglip Mountain, aiming at a green shaped like the African continent. (CNN, November 2, 2023) The 395-yard (395-yard) hole is billed as the longest par-3 in the world. (CNN, November 2, 2023) After temporarily closing due to the pandemic, the resort officially reopened in May 2026 with its three championship courses. (Shore Africa, June 9, 2026) Access: visitors (resort, by reservation).
3. Coober Pedy Opal Fields Golf Club 🇦🇺
What makes it unusual: A golf course without a single blade of grass, in the middle of a mining desert, played at night
Founded in 1976, the club has no grass: the fairways are made of sandstone, the greens are made of quarry dust mixed with used oil, and players often play at night with glow-in-the-dark balls because of the 40 °C daytime heat. (RAA SA Move, September 14, 2024) Golfers carry a small square of artificial turf with them to hit their shots. (RAA SA Move, September 14, 2024) It is the only club in the world to have reciprocal rights with the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews. (Wikipedia, based on J. M. Lane, *Moon Living Abroad in Australia*, 2008) Access: open to the public.
4. Green Zone Golf (Tornio – Haparanda) 🇫🇮🇸🇪
What makes it unusual: Straddling two countries and two time zones
The 18-hole course straddles the border: 7 holes on the Finnish side (Tornio) and 11 on the Swedish side (Haparanda), spanning two time zones. (Green Zone Golf, Official Website) On the 6th hole, a hole-in-one could theoretically make it into the cut an hour before the first tee time, due to the time difference. (Visit Sweden, press release dated May 28, 2025) Access: open to the public.
5. Aroostook Valley Country Club 🇨🇦🇺🇸
What makes it unusual: Golf course and clubhouse in Canada; parking lot and pro shop in the United States
The course and the clubhouse are on the Canadian side, while the pro shop and the parking lot are on the American side; three holes run along the border. (Wikipedia) Founded in 1929, the club allowed American golfers to play during Prohibition. (Wikipedia) Access: Open to the public (official border crossing required).
6. Tromsø Golfklubb (Tromsø Golfpark) 🇳🇴
What makes it unusual: The world's northernmost 18-hole course (according to the club), played under the midnight sun
The club is home to the world's northernmost 18-hole course, where golfers play under the midnight sun in the summer. (Visit Norway) The club was founded in 1996, and its 18-hole course, designed by Jan Sederholm, opened in 2002. (Visit Norway) Access: visitors.
7. Furnace Creek Golf Course 🇺🇸
What makes it unusual: The world's lowest-lying golf course (−65 m)
At 214 feet (65 m) below sea level, this 18-hole, par-70 course is the lowest-lying golf course in the world. (The Oasis at Death Valley, Official Website) No other course is located more than 200 feet below sea level. (The Golf News Net, April 25, 2025) Access: open to the public.
8. Brickyard Crossing 🇺🇸
What makes it unusual: Four holes inside the Indy 500 oval
The course features four holes inside the oval of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and fourteen outside the opposite rail; Pete Dye redesigned it in 1992–1993. (Indianapolis Motor Speedway, September 5, 2017) The golf course opened in 1929 under the name Speedway Golf Course, with nine holes inside the oval and nine outside it. (Indianapolis Motor Speedway, September 5, 2017) Access: open to the public.
9. Kantarat Golf Course 🇹🇭
What makes it unusual: 18 holes between the two runways at an international airport
The 18-hole course is located between the two runways at Don Mueang; built by the Royal Thai Air Force in 1952, the course is open to the public, but visitors must pass through an explosives detector, and caddies and golf carts are required. (The Star (Malaysia), July 25, 2025) The Air Force has agreed to give up the golf course to make way for the airport expansion. (Bangkok Post, February 11, 2024) The golf course was still open to the public in 2025; check its status before visiting. Access: open to the public (security checks).
10. Skukuza Golf Club 🇿🇦
What makes it unusual: An unfenced golf course in the heart of Kruger National Park, open to lions and elephants
The nine-hole course has no fences: elephants, lions, leopards, and hyenas roam freely there, and each player signs a waiver before playing. (CNN, December 15, 2023) Opened in 1972 on a former airstrip, the golf course has only been open to the general public since 1999. (CNN, December 15, 2023) Access: Open to the public (Kruger Park entrance).
11. Lost City Golf Course (Sun City) 🇿🇦
What makes it unusual: Hole 13 above a crocodile pit
The course, which opened in 1993, is famous for the crocodiles on its signature par-3 hole, the 13th. (Compleat Golfer) It was designed by Gary Player, just like the nearby Gary Player Country Club. (Sun International) Access: open to the public (resort).
12. The Coeur d'Alene Resort Golf Course 🇺🇸
What makes it unusual: The world's only floating, movable green
The green on the 14th hole—a 2,200-metric-ton island—changes position thanks to a system of underwater cables: the hole ranges from 90 to 220 yards. (The Coeur d'Alene Resort, Official Website) The first ball was hit there in 1991; the resort describes it as the world's first and only floating, movable green. (The Coeur d'Alene Resort, Official Website) Access: visitors (resort, by reservation).
13. Mission Hills Golf Club 🇨🇳
What makes it unusual: The world's largest golf complex (Guinness World Records)
Guinness World Records recognizes it as the world's largest golf complex, with twelve 18-hole courses in operation as of December 2006. (Guinness World Records) The World Cup course hosted the Ladies European Tour's Aramco China Championship in November 2025. (Mission Hills, Official Website) Access: visitors (resort).
14. Bayonet & Black Horse 🇺🇸
What makes it unusual: A golf course on the site of a former U.S. military base, designed by generals
The Bayonet Course was built in 1954 at Fort Ord by General Robert B. McClure, the base commander, and is named after the 7th Infantry Division. (Bayonet & Black Horse, Official Website) A left-hander plagued by a severe slice, the general designed the course to suit his game, which explains the series of tight doglegs on holes 11 through 15. (Bayonet & Black Horse, Official Website) Access: open to the public.
15. Elephant Hills (Victoria Falls) 🇿🇼
What makes it unusual: Golf course hit by a missile during the war, wildlife on the fairways
A few days after the 1977 tournament, the Elephant Hills Country Club was destroyed by fire after being struck by a missile during the Rhodesian Bush War. (Wikipedia, Victoria Falls Classic) Designed by Gary Player and opened in 1974, the course is home to impalas, kudus, warthogs, monkeys, and baboons. (Global Traveler, August 1, 2017) The resort operated by African Sun features the region's only 18-hole championship course. (African Sun) Access: visitors (resort).
Unusual golf courses we left out
- Yak Golf Course (Kupup, Sikkim, India): Guinness World Record for the highest-altitude golf course (3,970 m, measured on October 10, 2006), but no evidence of activity in 2025–2026: the course is managed by the Indian Army in a border area requiring a permit. A higher-altitude golf course in Nepal was also reported in 2022 (Kathmandu Post), but this has not been confirmed.
- Ushuaia Golf Club (Argentina): Guinness World Record for the southernmost golf course, but 2025–2026 activities cannot be verified: the website’s latest update was in 2022, and the tourism office’s page is marked “Temporarily closed.”.
- World Ice Golf Championship (Uummannaq, Greenland): A temporary race on the sea ice; there have been no known editions since 2006; one edition was canceled due to a lack of ice.
- Prison View Golf Course (Angola State Penitentiary, Louisiana): Conflicting status: listed as “closed” in Golf Digest; listed in other older directories; no evidence of activity in 2025–2026.
- Gulmarg Golf Club (Kashmir, India): The title of “highest green” is disputed (first or second, depending on the source), and no reliable source regarding the 2025–2026 season has been found.
- Satsuki Golf Club, Hole 7 (Japan): The record for the “longest hole in the world” has not been officially recognized: no Guinness World Record has been found, and a longer hole is cited in Gunsan (South Korea).
See also
The 20 Most Beautiful Golf Courses in the World
The 15 Most Challenging Golf Courses in the World
Top 100 Golf Courses in the WorldThe Countries with the Most Golf CoursesFrequently Asked Questions About Unique Golf Courses
What is the longest golf course in the world?
The Nullarbor Links, in Australia: an 18-hole, par-72 course stretching 1,365 km along the Eyre Highway between Kalgoorlie and Ceduna, with one hole in each town or rest stop.
What is the lowest-lying golf course in the world?
The Furnace Creek Golf Course, in Death Valley, California, 71 yards (214 feet) below sea level.
Is there a golf course between the runways at an airport?
Yes: The Kantarat Golf Course, located at Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok, features an 18-hole course that runs between the two runways. It is owned by the Thai Air Force and is open to the public, with a security checkpoint at the entrance.
Can you play golf surrounded by wild animals?
Yes: At the Skukuza Golf Club in Kruger National Park (South Africa), the course has no fences, and each player signs a waiver; at Elephant Hills, near Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe), impalas, warthogs, and baboons roam the fairways.