Play Australia's Most Extraordinary Golf Course

US Masters Champion Adam Scott may have tamed the Augusta, Georgia course, but the inaugural Christmas Island Golf Open would present him with an even bigger challenge.

Wedged between the jagged cliffs of an ancient volcano and the crashing waves of the Indian Ocean, the tropical island's palm-lined golf course is truly one of Australia's most spectacular.

However, it's not its dramatic setting which makes Christmas Island such a challenging course, rather it's the unusual hazards presented by the island's wildlife.

To accommodate the island's ubiquitous red crabs which march en-masse across the course and sometimes even burrow into the fairways, the local golf club has been forced to introduce some unique rules.

"If a crab moves your ball you must place it back to where it landed and if your ball falls into a crab hole, you have a free drop," explains Alan Thornton, Club President of the Christmas Island Golf Club, who adds, "it may also be necessary to move crabs when putting."

As if dodging crab burrows and enticing a pincer-wielding crab off your lie isn't enough to worry about, players on the challenging course also need to keep a watchful eye from above.

"Some birds including the Christmas Island frigate bird will land on your golf stick if you hold it high," explains Thornton. Little wonder the club's logo has a bird carrying a golf stick.

"The whole community is getting involved, with private companies (construction company Acker has secured naming rights), the government and many other residents preparing the course and club house for the big event," says Thornton who has a unique association with the club - "the first meeting of the Club's Committee was on the 12th of February 1955, the day I was born."

The tournament, which includes a-hole-in-one contest, three-person Ambrose and Open Stroke Event will be held on the weekend of 18th and 19th of May.

Linda Cash of the Christmas Island Tourism Association is expecting entrants in the inaugural open from all over the globe. "Imagine the bragging rights players will return to their home clubs with - having dodged hoards of crabs and dive bombing seabirds to complete a round at arguably Australia's most remote course," says Ms Cash.

• For more information or to arrange interviews, please contact Tim the Yowie Man at the Christmas Island Tourism Association 0407 769980 or media@christmas.net.au
• Participate in the first ever Christmas Island Golf Open. Package deals with prices starting from $1700 per person twin share including return airfares form Perth, 5 nights accommodation, extra luggage allowance for clubs, Green fees, Dinner after events, on island transport and memorabilia packages. Places are limited. For details contact www.islandexplorer.com.au or phone: 08 93229561

Did You Know? There's a story that during World War II, Prisoners of War held on Christmas Island when told to clear the land for firewood, purposefully did so in such a pattern that resulted in the makings of the golf course.