100% Locally Owned, Independent and Free

100% Locally Owned, Independent and Free

The thrilling lifestyle community where you can play the world's best golf courses

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It’s a long way from Buderim to Pebble Beach in California, but home owners at a Buderim over-50s community are determined to get there, one swing at a time.

Avid golfers Sue and Gary Hadenham have been making use of a new state-of-the-art, 4K golf simulator, at lifestyle community B By Halcyon.

They have access to 74 of the world’s most famous courses.

“A lot of the time we go up there and practise for a game the next day,” Sue said.

“We just started, haven’t done Pebble Beach yet, but we’re going to start on the easier ones and work our way through.”

The golf simulator is a feature of B By Halcyon’s recently opened leisure facility, The Bunker, where homeowners can relax at the bar, enjoy a round of snooker and chill out in the ultimate games room.

Unable to travel internationally, the golf simulator is a passport for a virtual world tour.

It’s also a lot easier on the wallet – hitting the greens at the famed Pebble Beach, a regular host of the US Open, would set you back a cool US$600.

The Bunker at B by Halcyon. Picture: Renae Droop/RDW Photography

Sue said it would take some time to get used to playing in the simulator, but she was keen to log as many hours as it took.

“You can do the drives and fairway shots very much the same, even your chipping, but it does take a little while because you’re in a room and your shot might go a little high,” she said.

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“The putting part takes some time as well. Once we get into it, I’m sure we’ll have a few competitions with other people or get a group going. Start on the easy courses and work our way up.”

Sue and Gary have been living at B By Halcyon for just over a year now.

“We had no intention of doing anything like this,” Sue said.

“We had a home on a big block with lots of gardens and swimming pools and we got fed up with looking after it all.”

B by Halcyon home owners Gary and Sue Hadenham. Picture: Renae Droop/RDW Photography

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Sue said any hesitations evaporated the moment she and Gary saw B By Halcyon for the first time, finding instant appeal in the community’s layout and generous street-scaping.

“We drove in, and I said, ‘this is me’, just like that,” she said.

“It’s all farming land, it’s surrounded by trees. It’s just really nice and we’re really glad we’ve done it.

“We’ve got little gardens but they’re big enough and the homes are beautiful. The streets are wider than some other over-50s communities, so you’re not feeling like you’re on top of each other.”

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