GREY nomads out for a long drive don't always have to stick to the wheel. For those who like golf, the Nullarbor Plain offers another kind of drive altogether.
Nullarbor Links is an 18-hole par 72 golf course spanning 1365 kilometres with one hole in each participating town or roadhouse between Ceduna and Kalgoorlie.
It's the longest course in the world, which has seen it attract more than 20,000 people since it opened in 2009, some repeatedly.
A big lure is the annual Chasing the Sun tournament, which starts on April 6 at Ceduna.
"We think that over 13 years, about a thousand people have taken part. Most come from Queensland, NSW and Victoria," said Alf Caputo, who runs the event.
"This year we've got five Vietnamese golfers busting a boiler to play it. They're flying in from Ho Chi Minh City.
"We've got one particular bloke who's back for the fifth time. He's a senior policeman of the WA Police Force."
Alf said it's an indication of "how huge this bloody thing is".
Of course, you don't have to play in the tournament, which comes as a package deal, the course is open to all year-round.
About 20,000 visitors - many of them grey nomads - visited last year by Alf's reckoning.
Other visitors have included a golfer who walked from Perth to Sydney and played the whole course with a putter.
Early on, a couple of Canadians came to Australia to walk the course for charity and raised over $5 million,
Holes include the par-three Skylab at Balladonia to par-four Nullarbor Nymph (Alf says no sightings reported!) and challenging par-five Dingo's Den at the Nullarbor Motel.
Getting a hole in is pretty straightforward.
Scorecards can be bought at the Kalgoorlie, Norseman, Ceduna visitors centres at a cost of $156 for two or $78 for one. Alf said couples typically play off the same card.
After finishing all 72 holes and upon showing their card at a visitors centre, players receive a certificate.
The fees go towards maintenance, which Alf says is eye-wateringly expensive.
The course has synthetic greens and tees, and natural terrain fairways, all of which require upkeep throughout the year.
"We have a maintenance team out at Eucla and four times a year, they have to drag the slasher around because although everyone thinks it's a sand desert, it's not like that," Alf said.
"It gets quite a lot of rain during the winter because it's right by the sea. So these weeds grow like there's no tomorrow."
Golfers have their role to play as well,
To protect the environment and not hack up the dirt, they are asked to use a tee even on fairways. Some use empty plastic soft-drink bottles with good effect, Alf said.
He said that with all the rain and heat, the sand on top of the synthetic greens compacts like a rock.
"And when your ball hits it, it just spews everywhere. So we shake the sand loose so that when the ball hits, it behaves like a normal green. We're to have to do that four times a year as well."
Other costs are man-made. "We also lose flags like there's no tomorrow." Alf said. "You'd be amazed what people pinch."
Alf thinks he knows why the course has such appeal
"The open spaces of the outback are a relief when you get away from Sydney and Melbourne and the bloody freeways and car parks and all that crap.
"You get out there, you just think, wow. At night you can even see the stars."
For more details, visit: www.nullarborlinks.com
