By David Luis Kew Golf Club charges a full entrance fee of A$12,850 for 2026/27, then asks you to wait. The club says it has a waitlist in place for every playing membership category, and new members come in only when the timesheet can take them.
That is a steep entry for a course 15 minutes from the Melbourne CBD, so the fair question is what you get. Kew Golf Club, at 120 Belford Road in Kew East, sits on the Yarra River flats. The club’s heritage page dates its formation to 1894. This is our full Kew Golf Club review, with the real fees, the layout and the visitor rules.
GCR Score: 4.3 / 5
Verdict: Recommended for inner-east golfers who can afford the entrance fee and the wait; visitors can apply for limited tee times with a letter from their home club.
Best For: Inner-east Melbourne golfers, younger members who value the discounted entrance fee, interstate visitors with a letter of introduction
Think Twice If: You want a public tee time, a short waitlist or a low-cost membership
Last Reviewed: 11 October 2026.
At a Glance
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Location | 120 Belford Road, Kew East VIC 3102 |
| Course Type | Private parkland along the Yarra River and Glass Creek |
| Holes | 18 holes, par 72 |
| Course Length | 6,185m from the blue tees and 5,339m from the red tees (the club tour page); other club pages say 6,179m |
| Scratch / Slope | Not published on the pages I read; ask the pro shop |
| Green Fees | No public green fee published |
| Visitor Access | Private; limited tee times for interstate and international visitors and reciprocal members |
| Membership | Waitlist for all playing categories; entrance fee A$12,850 in 2026/27 |
| Dress Code | Tour-standard golf attire; men tuck shirts in; no metal spikes |
| Founded | 1894 |
| Phone | +61 3 9859 6848 (club); +61 3 9859 2039 (pro shop) |
| Official Website | Kew Golf Club |
All prices are Australian dollars, read from the club’s membership page, rechecked on 11 October 2026,, and include GST.
The Entrance Fee, Year by Year
The club calls it an entrance fee, not a joining fee, and it is tiered by age. The 2026/27 schedule is unusually detailed:
| Category | Entrance Fee 2026/27 | Annual Subscription 2026/27 |
|---|---|---|
| Full (40 and over) | A$12,850 | A$4,283 (7 Day) |
| Young Adult 35 to 39 | A$9,638 | A$3,212 |
| Young Adult 30 to 34 | A$8,353 | A$2,784 |
| Young Adult 25 to 29 | A$7,068 | A$2,356 |
| Young Adult 18 to 24 | A$5,783 | A$1,927 |
| Junior (10 to 17) | A$3,855 | A$857 |
| Social | A$1,285 | A$642 (clubhouse A$321) |
The club offers a three-instalment payment plan for the entrance fee, with an additional loading, and a monthly direct debit option for subscriptions. All new members join as provisional members at 50% of their chosen category before moving up to a full playing category.
A full 40-plus member who joins in 2026/27 pays A$12,850 plus A$4,283, or A$17,133 in year one by my own sum. In our Victorian reviews, that is well above the A$8,885 first-year outlay I calculated for Keysborough Golf Club. For the national picture, see our guide to Club Membership Cost in Australia.
The Waitlist and the Young Members Push
The membership page says the waitlist is monitored and members are inducted “when timesheet playing pressure allows”. The club is currently accepting applications for Full, Corporate, Young Adult and Junior categories, and applicants need the support of a Proposer and Seconder who are current financial members. Contact the membership team on (03) 9859 6848 for the likely next intake. I could not find a published wait time, and I would not trust anyone who quotes you one without checking.
Kew has leaned hard into younger members. In an earlier article Golf Australia reported that 58 young members joined in a single year and over 100 in two. It credited tiered pricing and a Young Members Committee, started in 2018, that runs events every two or three months. If you are under 40, the discounts above are real money.
History and the River Flats
The club’s heritage page says Kew was formed in 1894 by solicitor James Anderson and architect Fred Fitts, to give golf to the residents of Kew and Hawthorn. The first course, about a kilometre south of the present site, was designed by Richard Taylor, whom the club describes as Australia’s first golf professional.
After losing land to housing in 1916, the club bought 92 acres at Belford and Kilby Roads in 1922. Jock Robertson and Jock Young laid out the new course on the Yarra flats, “despite occasional inundations”. That flood risk is still part of the story.
In the early 1970s a freeway took part of the course, and Kevin Hartley redesigned the layout to bring in the Yarra and Glass Creek, according to Top100GolfCourses. Graeme Grant later rebuilt eight holes (the 1st, 3rd, 8th, 12th and 14th to 17th) and upgraded drainage.
Course Design and Standout Holes
Kew is a par 72 of about 6,185m from the blue tees, and the club says it meanders along the Yarra with more than a hundred species of native birds. Golf Australia’s review says Grant’s work addressed winter waterlogging through an underground drainage network and fairway contouring, while adding fairway bunkers, greenside swales and angled greens.
The par-3 4th is the picture hole: a billabong separates the tee from the fairway. A new bridge there was officially opened, and the club credits its Foundation Committee for the project. The 14th is a 172m par 3 with a wide opening to an angled green.
The 15th is a 361m dogleg right with renovated bunkers, and the 12th is a par 5 where mature native trees stay in play. Santa Ana couch grass covers the fairways and bentgrass the greens.
Our key takeaway: Kew’s redesign turned a once-forgettable second-shot course into a proper test, and the river is the star.
Visitors, Tee Times and Reciprocals
Kew is private, and limited tee times go to interstate and international visitors on some days. You must present a letter of introduction and handicap confirmation from your home club.
| Item | What the Club Says |
|---|---|
| Who can apply | Interstate and overseas golfers, and members of reciprocal clubs |
| Documents | Letter of introduction and handicap confirmation from home club |
| How to book | Email golfevents@kewgolf.com.au or phone the Golf Shop on +61 3 9859 2039 |
| Corporate golf | Available on select days of the week |
| Green fee | Not published |
Kew has reciprocal links with Yarra-side clubs, including Eastern Golf Club at Yering, Green Acres, Heidelberg, Latrobe and Rosanna, each with its own days. See our Eastern Golf Club review for one of them.
Dress Code
The club accepts golf attire as worn on the major professional tours, and men’s shirts should be tucked in. Tailored golf shorts are fine. Metal spikes are not permitted, and soles must not damage the course. In the clubhouse, neat, clean, casual clothing is acceptable. Our private golf club dress code guide covers the usual rules.
Facilities and Events
- Golf shop and academy: a PGA-staffed shop offering regripping, reshafting, loft and lie checks, and coaching.
- Events: the club hosted its Junior Open in January 2026 with more than 80 juniors, and runs a Foundation Golf Day each February.
- Functions: the club hosts weddings, private functions and corporate golf days.
- Pennant: senior pennant and a women’s programme are listed on the club site; I could not confirm the grades fielded.
Best Time to Visit
March to May and September to November are best. The drainage work has helped winter play, but a course on a flood plain is still worth a phone call after heavy rain. Summer afternoons are hot, so book an early start.
How to Get There
The club is about 15 minutes from the CBD, in Kew East on Belford Road. You will want a car, and if you fly in, allow for peak-hour traffic.
Nearby Alternatives
Another Melbourne private club with published subscription pricing is covered in our Box Hill review. For Sandbelt architecture on the other side of the city, read the Commonwealth restoration review. The Victoria golf club archive lists every Victorian club we have scored.
People Also Ask
How much does it cost to join Kew Golf Club?
The full entrance fee for 2026/27 is A$12,850, with discounts for members under 40 down to A$5,783 for ages 18 to 24. A full 7 Day subscription for members aged 40 and over is A$4,283 a year. Instalment plans are available.
Is there a waitlist at Kew Golf Club?
Yes. The club says it has a waitlist in place for all playing membership categories. New members are inducted when timesheet playing pressure allows. Contact the club’s administration team to find out the likely next intake, because no wait time is published on the membership page.
Can visitors play Kew Golf Club?
Limited tee times are available for international and interstate visitors on some days. You need a letter of introduction and handicap confirmation from your home club. Email golfevents@kewgolf.com.au or phone the Golf Shop on +61 3 9859 2039. Kew publishes no visitor green fee.
How long is Kew Golf Club?
The club’s course tour page lists a par 72 layout of 6,185m from the blue tees and 5,339m from the red tees. Other club pages quote 6,179m for the championship layout, so ask the pro shop for the current scorecard.
Who designed Kew Golf Club?
The first course, laid out in the 1890s, was designed by Richard Taylor. Kevin Hartley redesigned the layout in the 1970s after freeway construction, and Graeme Grant later rebuilt eight holes (the 1st, 3rd, 8th, 12th, 14th, 15th, 16th and 17th) and improved drainage.
Verdict and Score
Kew Golf Club earns 4.3 out of 5. It has a clear, tiered fee structure, a river setting few inner-city courses can match and a redesign that fixed real problems. It loses points for the high entrance fee, the waitlist and the lack of public green fees or a published scratch rating.
If you live in the inner east and can wait, this is a club to put your name down for. If you are visiting from interstate, send the letter and ask for a weekday. How GCR scores each club explains the 4.3.
See how it stacks up against Australia’s best in our Best Golf Clubs in Australia roundup.
Author Note
This review is built from Kew’s published 2026/27 entrance-fee and subscription schedule, its visitor page and two independent course guides. The year-one total of A$17,133 is our own sum. The club publishes no visitor green fee and no wait time.
Last reviewed: 11 October 2026.
