Golf is widely misconstrued as an exclusive sport, but at Murgon, in Queensland’s South Burnett region, they would laugh at the thought.

Murgon – population 2200, nearest ‘big’ town Kingaroy – has its arms are open to everyone, and the nine-hole, volunteer-run golf course is surging in popularity.

“In these small communities, we’ve got to learn to live with each other,” says Noel Dowdle, golf club life member and district secretary-treasurer, as he takes a break from raking bunkers. “It’s no good rejecting each other. You find a way forward.”

Murgon won the Golf Australia Queensland award for small clubs in 2018 and has only grown since then, now boasting just more than 100 members.

One point that distinguishes it is its work with golfers with disability. Dowdle says this has been the case for a while; his own nephew is on the autism spectrum and has been playing golf for some years.

It showcases the sport as a great option for people with disability looking to exercise and have fun with friends.

Three disability support workers have brought their clients down to the golf club regularly in recent times – one young man, Kye Louis, with Down Syndrome, and another, Shane Ryder, who has multiple sclerosis.

Shane was diagnosed as a teenager in 2009. Now at 28, he plays golf twice a week with a 26-handicap. “I always loved golf when I was younger, but when I got MS, it pretty much stopped,” he recalls. “Then I finished up work, and I thought ‘I’d love to get back into it’. “I can’t run and play sports like that. I play in a buggy. It gets me out of the house and it gives me exercise. And I can play at my own pace.”

His carer, Craig Schablon. thinks golf makes a huge difference to Shane’s life, via Murgon. “We came here and they were really accommodating,” said Schablon. “We get them up at 6am! With the MS, Shane can’t really deal with the heat. We tee off pretty early and they come out and sort us out.”

Murgon also works with the Silver Lining Foundation, a well-known indigenous group, as well as local youth justice authorities to get troubled first-nation boys on to the golf course. “They come out half a dozen times a year, plays some golf, have a barbecue on the deck and do some bonding, stuff like that.”

Murgon Golf Club views itself simply as part of the community. It runs charity days for two local schools at Moffatdale and Windera, and is helping to raise funds for a local support group that is building housing for disabled clients. Just as many tradies from the town take part in the monster annual NRL tipping competition as club members do. Friday night meals at the club are popular and the club hosts weddings, wakes and other functions.

“It’s a small regional club that is very self-aware of its importance and the role that it has to play in the community and how it can support the local area,” said Andrew Leventis, Golf Australia’s Clubs and Facilities Manager-North. “Murgon is a perfect example of the warm, welcoming country golf club that is such a great thing not only for golf but for the towns that they help to enhance.”

The weather is warming, but 117mm of rain a few weeks ago has spruced up the golf course which in any case, is fully irrigated thanks to an arrangement for waste water from the sewerage plant across the road.

Says Noel Dowdle: “The club’s flying at the moment, ever since Covid. It was a God-send to most clubs. We have a captive audience. We’re getting a few retirees out here. They sell up on the coast and come out for the quiet life, and they can play golf every day if they want to.”

Information about Murgon Golf Club