Day 89 was a morning of admin tasks before we tripped across the easy going town of Adelaide to Glenelg for our 1pm tee time.
We bowled up to the pro shop, told our story and were introduced to two of the clubs pennant players, Luke and Matt who would be joining us for the round along with the trainee pro, Adrian. Yes, another 5 ball! Matt was a little quiet due to having an issue on the roads getting to the golf course this morning, but nevertheless the lads were a friendly bunch and the day was primed for some good golf.
Glenelg is, from what I understand, the only course that has reciprocal rights with both Miramar and Clearwater (Jamie and my home courses respectively) and in this respect it is very unique. It is a quality track to have reciprocal rights with as well and any members back home who are visiting this area should come out for a hit. It is manicured - probably the best conditioned fairways we have played for many days even weeks, the greens rolled true and with some speed (finally), and the holes make you really think.
The five of us enjoyed some good banter on the way around hearing about Glenelg and it's strong social culture and life in Adelaide. Luke is a local policeman, and a pretty handy 4 handicapper. He laid out the rules on the first - any 4 putts, any putts that roll off the green and any mishits that don't make it to the ladies tees result in a jug. I was a bit apprehensive about putting off the green after my efforts the last few days! A jug was also on the line if 3 guys in the group made birdie on a single hole, by the schmuck(s) who didn't make birdie of course.
After starting on the 10th, our third hole today was a reel birdie opportunity and it was only the sympathetic putting of Adrian missing a 10 footer that spared Jamie and I the first round. This 12th hole is a short dogleg left par five, but has a newly redesigned green with a great swale on the left and bunker short right and a green that funnels to the back right. A very difficult green to hit with a long iron or fairway wood as it slopes away from you.
The back nine at Glenelg requires placement and strategy with a few dogleg par fours and 3 short holes. A unique feature was plenty of trouble behind the green which is something I have to take note of as I am prone to airmailing the green. The 16th is a case in point with water long and right, but just to make life more difficult there is a sharp drop off the left side of the green which leaves a delicate pitch up the bank to the hole. Of course, being Wedge Shy I putted from in this swale and was only good enough to make 4 (Jamie made 4 with one in the water which is a top effort).
The 17th was an immensely strong par 4 that snaked around to the left. Matt crashed his drive right and actually flew a hazard over that way to be on the other fairway. I topped my 2 iron, into my golf bag - for a two shot penalty. Triple bogey. The camera came out on the 18th and the boys had some indifferent reactions to the pressure! The 18th tee shot is one of the toughest driving holes going around (something it shares in common with the 18th at Clearwater) with water right and trees, bunkers and waste to the left. The clubhouse stands tall to the right and, we were told, the lads sit up there watching guys play the last having a few wagers on whether their fellow members will hit the fairway or green, or sink a putt.
I battled a block slice today which is one of the more uglier shots to battle. As Michael Campbell would say it was as if aliens had got into my body and were making me do crazy things. I was so wide I struggled to hit it on even the next fairway! And it was relentless, even a 60m pitch was "cutting" 10m. Somewhere around the 5th hole (our 14th) it came right and I stormed home hitting 5/6 greens to tie up the GIR match. A cheeky birdie also gave me a fairway bonus to tie that match up as well. Crucial. 2/1 for the day and the monthly competition is still alive (just) going into the last day of March.
But the story of the last few holes is one of the lads generosity to the First Tee NZ. Adrian and Luke put some Aussie dollars on the line and Jamie and my golf came right at the perfect time - when set the challenge of both making par on the 6th (a 430m par four into the wind) we both felt the pressure from Pip King and the team at the First Tee to deliver. I have documented our efforts in the video below!
But before I move on, the lads we played with today were superb. They clearly enjoyed their golf, were pretty handy golfers and set the bar at a high level which always helps. Judging by our round today, Glenelg must be a pretty fun place to play your golf. The stander set by these three lads reflected in our scores as well when we chopped it around and still both ended with 81's. Again the generosity of the chaps was awesome and before we could leave they gave us a few golf balls mainly as they were so unimpressed with the manky prov1X I was using.
After the round we went into the clubhouse and met up with Gavin - a local chap who had, on Sunday, taken out the famous SAMC which is a stroke round off the tips played between a group of 30 or so regulars (actually the tiger tees / tips are known as the blocks at Glenelg). The entry fee goes towards fine wine and good food so it is a festive day from all accounts, but Gav was still beaming after his overall victory and taking his fair share of the spoils - this comp is so prestigious it even has a master'esque jacket for the winner which, the story goes, Gav slept in (after a few beers) on Sundsy night.
After golf it was back to the city and our hosts Blair and Kate who have very kindly put us up. Great company, great food (an Aussie BBQ - cooked by kiwi's) and great SA wine - doesn't get any better than this!
"I've been through the desert on a horse with no name, it felt good to be out of...the rain...". America's catchy words spun through my head as we drove 400km - in a car with I've named Yoshi, as a nod to his Japanese heritage - from Millicent, through No Man's Land to Adelaide. Rural South Australia is pretty dam rural. It's only once you reach regions like this that you realise just how vast 'Straya is. Which is very vast.
On these long straight roads the temptation is to cut loose, autobahn styles. Mike succumbed and was duly pinged by the South Australian Police Force; an unwelcome pouring of $220 down the drain. Oh well. The funny thing - if there is anything funny in all of this - was Mike's attempt to chat him up, with puregolf2010 business cards and all! (I don't think his efforts were in vain, because apparently the fine was knocked down from $360 to $220...either way I'll let Mike fill you in if he feels the need).
In just over 4 hours we reached the big country town of Adelaide. There are no high rises (other than the Westpac Tower, but they don't count 'cos they're everywhere). Apparently the town planner was the same chap who drew up the plans for Christchurch - certainly the story stacks up because the middle of town is a perfect grid. Easy to navigate. What beautiful buildings too, particularly along North Terrace (the CBD is framed by Terraces North, South, East and West).
The Grange sits out 15km or so from the city towards the coast, and has 2 courses - East and West. Yesterday we had the pleasure of playing the West, which is the more mature of the two. Although we had a 3 o'clock tee time - which we rushed through town to make - the pro was pretty relaxed, so we just teed off when ready. A fella by the name of Tony joined us. He'd contacted us some months back, having heard about what we were up to. Tony's goal is to play every golf course in South Australia (think he's about half way).
Hell of a nice guy, and not a bad golfer either - he cleaned Mike and I up in the split sixes, taking full advantage of his 16 handicap. To be fair we didn't offer much opposition, with 90 and 84 respectively. The Grange off the back markers is a stern test, particularly in strong winds! No excuses though.
The fairways were wider than most, although on the whole were well bunkered. The prevailing sou'wester made it tough to hit many of 'em, but when you do they're a pleasure to play off. This be sandbelt golf, just like Melbourne a week or so ago. Drawing another parallel to Melbourne, they've ripped a fair bit of ti tree out of the place in recent years too. There are quite a few pine trees around, invariably framing the tee shot, so it would've been interesting to see pine-ti tree combinations, something I haven't seen before.
You get some nice views from the course. On several holes (like the 8th, pictured below) your eyes are drawn to Footy Park, the AFL stadium. Apparently it's shared by the Adelaide Crows and Port Power. I'm told the Crows fans are the chardonnay drinkers, and the Port fans meths drinkers, but the Port fans I've come across have been entirely upstanding lovely folk - so who knows.
I'll stick to what I know. Back to the golf. Our 3 ball became a 4 a few holes in, when a local firie' (that's a fireman to those not in the know) by the name of Paul joined us. Salt of the earth bloke, good company. Between the 4 of us we had a good few laughs, largely at our own expense. Grange 1 : puregolf2010 NIL. The score however will be levelled on Thursday when we attack the East Course!
There were a few lovely holes that I should mention. The 15th is a short-ish par 4, which plays from an elevated tee to a generous fairway then to a narrow green set against the houses. A big fairway bunker caught Goldy's tee shot, and one of the greenside bunkers caught his pitch too. The prevailing wind blew hard off the right, pulling my approach left of the greenside trap, leaving a nigh on impossible chip along the shoulder into which the trap's cut. Subtle but quality.
The next hole - the 17th - was my favourite. A relatively open tee shot between the pines - again, with the wind off the right - leaves you poised to strike a daunting approach. The green is hidden from view over a gentle rise; the view is framed by a funnel of tussock and pine. Like marriage you've just got to commit. I closed my eyes and swung a 6 iron, and thankfully it ended up just off the green. On another day it might've ended up somewhere Nasty. A glorious hole.
By the time we walked up onto the 18th green the shadows had grown pretty long. And we were pretty shattered. The games we play that are preceded by a 400km drive tend to be the weary ones, and yesterday was no exception. Sam & Paul's chat kept us going, as did the prospect of wrestling the split 6s lead from Sam (fat chance). On the puregolf2010 haggle front, I snatched 2.5 points to Goldy's 0.5, giving me a strong (but not insurmountable) lead going into the last couple of days of March. It's hotting up.
We're staying with friends of friends back in NZ - a lovely couple who go by Blair & Kate. Home for them is an awesome little heritage cottage Right In Town, down a quaint little side street. Blair cooked up a delectable risotto which we duly devoured, along with some fine South Australian red. He's in the oil & gas industry (which Goldy worked in last year) and a Kiwi to boot; Kate's mad keen on sport, and was a handy hockey player. So we've got plenty of common interest to keep us blethering for days.
Today we're off to Glenelg which apparently is another great track. Adelaide has been good to us so far.
JP
Day 87 was a game of two halves. The first was spent at Port Fairy in Victoria, the second over the border in South Australia, at Millicent. Both were rural experiences; both equally rewarding.
Millicent??s a wee town 3 hours or so from Port Fairy and 4/5 hours short of Adelaide. Mick and I were scratching our heads this morning to figure out how it had come to figure in our plans. We??re still not sure. Probably a combination of expediency (it??s well and truly on the way from Melbourne to Adelaide) and of the fact that it??s a quality golf course (maybe top 100 in Australia on some lists?). Anyway.
Due to the imperative of getting ourselves to Sydney by 5 April to spend as much time with the girls ?? who are flying across from NZ to join us for a week ?? we??ve cut a few days out of the South Australia itinerary. Such are the pressures of life. To be fair we??re on thin ice so it was the least we could do!
However puregolf2010 has a funny way of taking us places we didn??t necessarily know we were going. Although Millicent no longer had a day allocated for golf, in the end we zipped round 18 in a cart on the back of the drive through from Port Fairy! 36 holes on the back of 18 on Saturday and 28 on Friday ?? we??re certainly living and breathing the game. And why not?
Mardi and Graham ??Archie? Sunderland had kindly contacted us and offered to put us up for a night, on our way through. Given they??re keen golfers ?? and we came into contact with them through the local golf club ?? the least we could do was go out for a hit with ??em. Archie??s son, Kim, joined us, along with his mate Chappy and Archie himself. In 3 carts we sped ??round Millicent GC ?? which sits atop a hill in the bush some 14 km from the town ?? playing Ambrose as we went. Kim & Mick took on Chappy & I; Archie was the wildcard, and swtiched teams each hole.
The golf was very mixed but we had an absolute ball. Chappy (pictured above on the left) hit some colossal tee shots the likes of which I??ve never seen before ?? the ball seemed to go down before it went up, and never reached higher than 10 feet above the deck. The combination of his darts and my good fortune on the greens was a deadly one, and our score of 5 under ended up being too good for The Pretenders, who carded 2 or 3 over. The match was played in good spirits though; by the 18th green Mike and I had made 3 new friends (roughly one for every 3 balls that Mike lost). Had it not been for sage advice from the locals, Mike would??ve seen more bush hunting for his tee shots than your average tramper sees hiking for a week in the mountains.
Mardi God Bless Her prepared ?? with the help of Kim??s and Chappy??s wives ?? a meal fit for an army. About 10 of us sat ??round the kitchen talking smack and feeding ourselves Roman styles. What a great way to finish a Long Day! The Sunderlands showed us some famous South Australian hospitality, and we hope to repay it when they venture across the ditch (maybe next year?). We tried talking them into visiting, but NZ is a tough sell as you all know ?? all those beautiful mountains, beaches and golf courses. Terrible place.
Anyway we??re now en route to Adelaide. Mike just got a speeding ticket. The roads are long and straight, and hopefully our tee shots this afternoon turn out the same.
Peace, JP
Port Fairy was so named because one day a rogue fairy broke from the pack and, so the legend goes, established his own vineyard which soon became renowned for its astronomically good fortified wine ?? port. (Not because the town sits on the coast and was at once stage used by cargo ships to berth, as right thinking people might think). The Port Fairy in his spare time would walk the links land with his companion, a small dug named Hamish. Breathing in the sea air The Port Fairy would find inspiration for his seasonal releases, and more significantly, for a design hankering that would in years to come bare fruit far tastier than one might detect in a vintage Port Fairy Tawny Port (say, the 1906). The fruit I speak of is the Port Fairy Golf Club. And what a pleasure it is.
Now that was all a lot of rubbish. It being my prerogative to spin trivial yarns I decided a bit of creative writing would help me get through the 5 hour drive from Millicent to Adelaide. Apologies for my indulgence.
PF is one of the few ??true?? links tracks we??ve come across in our 87 days on the road this year. Whether it was designed by a fairy or a mortal man, it matters not. Michael Clayton??s the current architect, and he??ll do well not to do too much to this ??hidden gem? (as it??s oft described). After a while a hidden gem surely ceases to be hidden, and in our experience PF must??ve passed that mark. Everyone we??ve talked to ?? and I mean everyone ?? has asked whether we??re playing Port Fairy, upon learning our plan was to drive from Melbourne to Adelaide. They all did so with a lilt of excitement in their voices too. So when we left Warrnambool yesterday morning at some anti-social hour the culmination of weeks of anticipation was coming steadily to a head.
PF didn??t disappoint. We arrived about 7.25 am, and would??ve been the first in the car park but for a Melbournian chap of Indian descent who was down for a weekender with his family. Red skies glowed to the East, signalling a Shepherd??s Warning that rain was on it??s way. Made for a good snap or two in the meantime.
Trevor (the Golf Ops Manager) and John (Club President) very kindly took time out of their Sunday morning to join us for a hack. Another Bledisloe encounter was teed up. Agricultural blows were struck from the 1st tee. And we were on our way.
Mick and me being the masochistic humans that we are were hoping for a bit of wind. Playing links golf without wind seems a bit like drinking wine out of a plastic cup ?? it??s just not the real McCoy. The wind eventually came, mercilessly, on the final stretch as our tired limbs were fading. For the first dozen holes or so though conditions were perfect (save for a bit of moisture) for half decent scoring. As we all know, however, golf??s never as simple as that. You can have the best sleep in history the night before; the heartiest breakfast upon waking; have cleaned your clubs to a brilliant shine; stock your bag with brand new balls and tees; meditate in the clubhouse before play; get a therapeutic massage from a Goddess on the 1st tee; and the rest. But golf is a mercurial, even cruel beast; preparation is only that and even fine weather is of limited assistance. At the end of the day you??ve got to close your eyes and swing the club 40 times or so a round (if you??re lucky) and hope for the best.
John hit a Phil Mickelson-like power fade off the tee (albeit right handed), betraying his calibre as a good golfer. He plays off 8, but was once off 1 ?? and held the course record here for a bit. Trevor??s fade was a bit stronger. Both were Quality Company, and shared with us on the way ??round how the course had changed over the years (the club ripped out a fair bit of ti tree 18 months or so ago, to open it up and showcase the dunes in their full magnificent glory). I particularly liked a tale Trev told me about the 16th hole, which is a cracker by the way.
Years ago a bit of scheming was done among Committee members on the subject of earthworks on the 16th. They umm??d and aaaahhhh??d about whether to seek the local Council??s permission to do the work in mind, and eventually convened an evening meeting to decide the matter. Still they couldn??t come to agreement, so the Chairman grabbed the bull by the horns. ??Tomorrow afternoon,? he declared, ??we??ll all convene on-site on the 16th to decide the matter once and for all.? When they arrived the Chairman ?? whose company owned a digger or two ?? had completed the works, under lights the night before, and asked them all what they thought ?? should we ask the Council now? What a champion. He??s still a member of the club ?? a life member no less. He did a cracking job with the 16 hole as I said too.
The course is understated. No gigantic quarry-like bunkers (like you might find across Bass Straight at Barnbougle); no 12 feet deep pots; no elephants in the greens ?? just a beautifully laid out, natural links course. A couple of the holes (6 and 10) are cut like shelves into the dunes, and have only a solitary greenside bunker between them. But stray down to the right and you??ll find deep marram grass; stray far enough up to the left and you??ll find the same. With the wind blowing from any direction good luck not straying. You get the picture.
The stretch from 12 to 16 is among the most beautiful stretches I??ve ever come across. 12 tee is more or less the southernmost point on the course, perched atop a dune overlooking a wild looking sea. From there you play a par 5 along the ridge; then a 278 metre par 4 that most Young Guns would go after; then one of the most spectacular holes anywhere, the stroke index 1 400 metre dogleg right par 4 (on which I managed to sneak a cheeky birdie); then a 200 metre par 3 that, when the tees were relocated recently, won best new hole in Australia; then the dogleg left uphill par 4 16th. Just beautiful. Then you??re confronted with a long par 4 and long par 5 that both play into the prevailing sou??west wind (as they did yesterday morning). What a back nine.
12 tee
13 tee shot
14 - stroke 1
15 - recently voted the best new hole in Australia
Given the rain came down heavier and heavier as we approached the sheds, we were glad to find shelter and a cup of coffee in front of us. And a magnificent meat pie to boot. Our 4 became 5 when another John ?? a lucid gentleman about to retire and get his teeth into some serious golf travel ?? joined us. The world was put to rest, as it often is, for an hour or so before Mick and I hit the road, bound for Millicent. Next time I return I hope their plans to install a snaking burn along the 18th have become a reality ?? the idea, touted by designer Michael Clayton, is a good one. I say ??next time? because it??s a place I??ll most certainly make the effort to revisit ?? hopefully next time in more windy conditions!
The Bledisloe, by the way, went to the Kiwis, 3&2.
JP
This morning I awoke for the last time ?? this trip anyway ?? in the Melbourne region, and for the last time on Jirv??s wooden floor (something I??ll be less sad to farewell). To be fair Jirv did pull out the stops with an inflatable mattress, but by about midnight my weight was enough to deflate it to something resembling a punctured paddling pool. No matter. They say sleeping plane on a wooden floor is good for your back anyway, don??t they? Hasn??t done me any harm.
Day 86 took us again to 13th Beach, this time to play the younger Creek Course, which happens to be the fruit of Mr. Faldo??s maiden project in ??Straya. The course is entirely different in character to big brother The Beach Course (which we played yesterday), and probably caters more to mid/high handicap??ers that don??t like getting beaten up (by a golf course that is ?? no one likes getting beaten up). VC Brett ??Morry? Morrison told us yesterday that they??d ran out of dough when laying the course, so we should try to imagine how it would look with another $2 million pumped into it. A dam sight better, I??d have to say; but then you could probably say that about a lot of places.
We had a fourball for the adventure, which is always ideal. Simon, the Area Pacific Product Manger for Taylor Made ?? who happens to hail from sunny Nelson in Aotearoa (that??s Niu Zillin to you ??Strayans) ?? came down from the city; Jirv??s mate from med school, Sam, also made the trip from Geelong. Jirv, as he did a couple of weeks ago at The National, was on cameraman & team spirit cultivation duties. So we had a 5 strong crew of Kiwis, representing a gathering that no doubt would??ve been illegal in Australia in years gone by.
Thankfully in the ball toss mine landed closest to Simon??s, yielding a formidable fourball pairing if ever there was one. Formidable in the sense that Simon is a good golfer and I??m adept in the art of Putting Off The Opposition. Simon??s off scratch. Last week he shot 3 under at Yarra Yarra. So the boy can play (and in his younger days he did, properly I mean). Goldy drew Sam, an 18 handicapper who had a propensity to make the odd bogey or even par ?? which makes things difficult when you??re giving the rascal 18 shots.
S&J (which sounds like the name of some sort of RTD beverage) got off to a flyer, to a lead of 7 up after 9 (courtesy of a good few birdies and indifferent golf from the opposition). Jirv made sure that we were kept entertained too, offering a blend of sharp witted commentary and God Awful Comedy between strokes. You??re always a bit nervous when introducing Jirv to new people for the first time ?? particularly if they??re a bit shy. Fortunately Si??s an easy going gentleman and partial to a bit of banter, so he was well at ease with Jirv??s chat. We all got on famously in fact.
The Creek Course is pretty mild. We found you can more or less swing with wild abandon off the tee (although there are a few spots you just can??t hit it) and the water hazards didn??t cause too many headaches (they all seemed to be 50 metres short of where they should be). Nor did the bunkers feature too prominently in our adventures, but I guess on another day they might have. A few of the holes got the pulse ramping up a few beats, but on the whole this was because you get excited about attacking a short par 4 or par 5 ?? rather than getting scared for your life as can happen on The Beach Course.
13 and 14 are short par 4s that have big pines plonked in the middle of the fairway guarding the green. 13??s a bit longer ?? a good drive threading the needle leaves a sand wedge or thereabouts to a raised green. 14, at about 280 metres, invites you to take driver over the pines and hopefully onto the putting surface. We all egged each other on and had a crack, which was the Right thing to do. Mike knocked it in the front greenside trap; Si the Big Girl That He Is feathered it up there about 10 short; and I??m pleased to report that I got closest of all, within a couple of feet of the green (Sam??s strong fade I??m afraid counted him out of the race). Good clean fun.
In my humble opinion The Creek Course doesn??t quite hit the mark ?? at least when you look at it next to The Beach Course. It??s a course that looks like ran out of money. That said there are a good few holes that can??t be described as anything but ??fun?. I already mentioned 13 and 14; 4 (a strong par 4 with an amphitheatre green) and 9 (a well bunkered short par 4) also stick in the mind. 18??s a strong finishing hole too, and is stroke 1 on the card ?? a cruel was to finish a tired round! Simon went round in par, and but for a triple on 16 and a tired bogey on 18 I would??ve done the same; Mike and Sam didn??t burn it up but looked to be enjoying themselves all the same.
The tragedy in all of this is that the club??s done away with one of the best relief spots this side of the 10th tee at Barwon Heads ?? which is a cracker of a spot to take a leak in private. (Soon we??ll be compiling a list ?? with photographic evidence ?? of the best on course spots to relieve oneself). Apparently the 5th tee on The Creek was once a gem. BUT. The Chairman??s house overlooks the tee and apparently he was getting very perturbed by all the folk unzipping and discharging urine into, well, his backyard. SO. He first took to firing an air horn warning shot; second, after the air horn failed to alter behaviour permanently, he used his position of influence to have the trees cut down around the tee. No one except the most bold of punters would dare relieve themselves there now. And what a shame that is (particularly because there aren??t many other spots on the course where a man whom has drunk too much water in an effort to keep his brain sharp while playing golf can unzip). Many of my fondest moments of relief have been on golf courses; there??s something therapeutic, even natural, about sharing one??s waste water with one??s golf course. But I digress.
13th Beach is a fantastic golf facility. The Beach Course is epic; The Creek Course is fun; and the place is filled with good humans. In a few years?? time ?? when the developer sells his last few shares, and the membership reaches a threshold of 1500 ?? the doors will be closed to the public and 13th Beach (or at least The Beach Course?) will become private. Therefore. If you want my advice, get in quick and play it while you can. Ben & co will welcome you with open arms (they were tremendous hosts to us) and you??ll have a Quality Golfing Experience. Order a steak sandwich when you finish too ?? sumptuous. (Si, being the incredible generous chap that he is, shouted me one).
Oh the match finished 7&5, despite a couple of birdies from Goldberger. JP took out the stats match 3-zip, leapfrogging MG by 0.5 of a point with a few days to go. What a climax it promises to be. Tomorrow at Port Fairy the wind might separate the men from the boys, or the wheat from the chaff ?? however you care to frame it (I prefer calling Goldy chaff, so I??ll go with that).
Thanks to 13th Beach for hosting us over the past couple of days ?? we??ve had a ball. Thanks to Si for joining us, for lunch and for the stash of balls & gloves! Thanks to Sam for the post match pint, and thanks to Jirv for giving me a back ache.
Off we go into the wop wops...puregolf2010 is South Australia bound.
JP
Usually 18 holes is enough to whet our daily golf appetite but today we played 28. Why? Well. On this fine Friday ?? which turned out to be not-so-fine ?? a combined event was run by Barwon Heads and 13th Beach, called the ??Composite Challenge?. It??s an event that??s been held for 4 or 5 years by the Old World-New World neighbours. Entrants (restricted ordinarily to members of the two clubs) play 10 holes on Barwon Heads and 10 holes on 13th Beach??s Beach Course, and have to grapple with the subtle variations in greens?? speed / bunker sand etc in the process (and the wind). Hosting privileges alternate from year to year; today it was 13th Beach??s turn, and boy did they put on a good day. The event also holds a greater significance, or so I was told by several folks, in the sense that it has helped bring the two clubs ?? which though a stone??s throw apart are entirely different beasts ?? closer together. Which is nice. Oh before you start wondering ?? those wonderers among you ?? the other 8 holes were the 8 holes on The Beach Course not used as part of the Challenge; it seemed a shame to miss out on any of Tony Cashmore??s fine handywork. And it is fine handywork, let me tell you.
Although Barwon Heads had been built up more by the golf cognoscenti in recent weeks, 13th Beach has a good name, and having had a sneak peak at their website I knew we were in for a bit of a treat. It was a good sign too that the Golf Operations Manager (a tremendous chap by the name of Ben, who??s our age) rates all the same courses in these parts as us (we compared notes by email). Great minds think alike. I??ll get to the layout soon, but first a word or two about the club and the day.
Awesome??s probably a good start. From the minute we arrived Goldy and I were treated like life members, with every possible courtesy extended to us. You wouldn??t read about it. Ben was good enough to take 20 minutes out of what must??ve been a busy day for him to show us around, have a coffee with us and chew the fat about all things Golf. A good coffee and chinwag it was too. He then had to get back to something called ??work? while me mate and I zipped round holes 1-4 and 13-16 in a cart, playing a spot of matchplay as we went. 3&2 to JP, a good omen. The 16th ?? a postage stamp style hole ?? deserves a praiseworthy mention. At only 110 metres or so it??s not long by any standards, but it??s defences lie in a battery of pot bunkers (not quite sure that ??battery? is the correct collective noun, or that ??collective noun? is even the correct term either, but I??ll go with both of ??em) that lie north, south, east and west of the miniature putting surface. Apparently they??ve tamed the beasts in recent years and the pots were even gnarlier in their infancy. God help the locals that came across them in Those Days.
8 holes felt like a nice wee warm up for the main event, but any rhythm that had been found was lost somewhere during the 3 hour gap between innings. In this time however we found the discipline to be productive ?? despite the temptations surrounding us (and I don??t mean good looking young women) ?? and parked up for a stats session. Which is a dry way to spend 3 hours of one??s life, but such are the evils of choosing the (current) life we have. Poor us, he says. Anyway Ben very kindly cleared his desk and allowed Mick & myself the use of the office for said couple of hours. A few staff & patrons shuffled in and out wearing puzzled looks on their faces, as a couple of ragamuffin unkempt Kiwi transients were holed up in Quite Clearly The Wrong Place. But they were very polite and no one spoke an ill word. Good on ??em.
To the golf. Glorious. By some happy coincidence (or more likely, design) we were paired with Brett ??Morry? Morrison ?? the Vice Captain at 13th Beach ?? and another quality human by the name of Ted. Both were good golfers (7 and 3 handicaps respectively, if memory serves correctly) and Absolute Gentlemen. Ben had warned us earlier in the day to watch out for Ted, who fancies a bit of a UDL or two on the course (some kind of RTD beverage that has an Ouzo base!). But the UDLs (or whatever they??re called) were a no show. I could??ve done with one myself at several points in the day, when I found myself doing that familiar thing ?? taking an unplayable drop.
The wind was swirling but not howling, and the rain clouds were flirting without being too promiscuous (that??s the first and probably the last time I??ll ever describe clouds as promiscuous). We got wet. But weather is weather and once you get used to it life very much marches on. The main thing was that play was constant and no traffic jams bothered us. And no one was bitten by a snake, because there aren??t any, if you ask me. Mind you an indignant group of guests from Mudgee who were playing in the group behind us had a go at one point ?? at Us, VC and gun golfer Ted included, no less ?? for holding them up. Which we weren??t. Miserable sods. That isolated occasion of friction apart the Challenge couldn??t have been played in better spirit, although it could have been played better.
By the time we??d reached the sheds it was only the dedicated few (most of whom live onsite) with their wine glasses still filled in the bar. Our group was the last in the field. 28 holes and NOT ONE BIRDIE BETWEEN US. We both managed to play some good golf, complemented as per usual with some horrific agricultural chopping resembling golf. I was less terrible than my friend, on this occasion, and had an 89 for the 20 hole Challenge for my sins. The other lad had 96, so he was pleased not to clock up a maiden century. Our companions did better, both notching up about 41 points each (Morry??s effort was good enough for joint 6th place; not quite sure how Ted ended up, Goldy was marking his card).
I tell you all of this only to warm you up for the result of what was surely the Main Event today ?? and I??m not talking about the Composite Challenge. No, I??m talking about the fourball best ball (stableford) match played between Ted and I (the Goodies) and Morry and Mick (the Baddies). Drumroll please. 5&4 to the Goodies! Or thereabouts. At risk of sounding triumphant we lost interesting in counting because Ted was playing so well that any other result would??ve been impossible. I pitched in on the odd occasion.
The golf course. 13th Beach, that is (Goldy having painted a picture of Barwon Heads for yoos fullas yesterday). It??s good. Mr Cashmore God Bless Him also did The Dunes over the Bay on the Mornington Peninsula, and The Beach Course has its similarities. Waste bunkers; bit of ti tree; natural looking vistas. You get the picture. It would??ve been nice to play the course back when it first opened, to experience it in its vicious newly born glory. Even today it has Teeth.
Take the 11th hole, a tight par 5 the tee shot on which was likened by Morry to marriage ?? you??ve just got to commit. Trouble sits left and right (my only lost ball of the day came courtesy of a blocked 3 wood off the tee), there??s bunkers all over the show and the raised green has elephants in it (although Morry sunk a raker for birdie). Hair raising stuff. Then there are the par 3s. Not much to aim at. One observation I had, which I shared with our pals, was that on TB you need to hit the ball to the right part of the green, or face a Good Luck Son putt. Over the fence at Barwon Heads the greens are less undulating, and on the whole you can hit it where you like ?? although I hear when the greens there are at their usual reading on the stimp this is not the case.
I reckon The Beach Course is pretty tough. We played it in relatively benign conditions, and heard stories on the way ??round about how X hole can play when the gale rears its ugly head, or how you can??t reach Par 3 Y with a 3 wood if the wind??s coming from the south. What I liked about it ?? and this is a design feature I find myself looking for each day ?? is this: on holes where you??re meant to drive to the right side of the fairway, the greenside bunker??s cut on the front left (and vice versa), making an offline tee shot that much tougher. The 17th was one such hole, and there were others. Landing zones for lay ups on par 5s were also appropriately narrow, rather than the jumbo jet runway style paddocks that feature on some courses.
The Beach Course being a links is probably rarely the same beast on two consecutive days. I??d love to have another crack at it tomorrow, but that??d be against The Rools. Instead we have the hardship of playing the other track at 13th Beach, The Creek Course ?? which was designed by some punter called Nick Faldo. It??s a dog??s life.
Sitting here in Jirv??s flat ?? with an old mate in a new place ?? I find myself again reflecting on another gem of a day. The hospitality at 13th Beach was awesome; the locals (Ben, Morry, Ted & a couple of chaps we had a beer with afterwards, in particular) welcomed us to their club like old friends; and the golf was pure. We??re lucky lads.
This evening we'll be meeting up with a few of Jirv's med-school mates at a BBQ, hopefully to get the inside scoop on whether Jirv's banter is as well received in these parts as it is in Aotearoa. I expect it is.
JP
Barwon Heads is an old style links course situated about 20 minutes from Geelong where we are currently staying with our mate jirv (we have previously caught up with Jirv a few weeks back whilst on the Mornington Peninsula).
Barwon Heads is a pure links course. No trees, a few scrubs and a hell of a lot of sand. The course is is laid out in a C shape around the ocean which means that the wind continually comes at you front a slightly different direction. Today the wind did not blow for most of the round, and thus the main defense of the course was missing in action. The conditions were primed for scoring. And boy did we disappoint (again!).
Admittedly it was a significant adjustment moving from the sandbelt greens to the darker green, furrier and slightly slower poa greens at Barwon Heads. Both Jamie and I struggled with the speed of them all day and couldn't buy a putt. Adapting to the speed of the greens is definitely one of the more difficult aspects of playing a different course every day and it can at times be rather frustrating.
I love links courses, but to me, today Barwon Heads lacked some teeth in the benign conditions. We played off the black tees, but it seemed like all the fairway bunkers were in the wrong spots and were more in play for 5 iron than they were for driver, even on the holes which would ordinarily play down-wind. Don't get me wrong, the bunkering that existed was superb with gnarly faces and definite no-go zones on the short side of the greens. But there probably weren't enough pots to make you think off the tee. The greens and surrounds were excellent. There were swales that would bounce your ball onto the green, for example the 207m par three second hole where with some local knowledge now, I would know to hit the ball to the left and bounce it off the hill (and Jamie did with aplomb today to make a par).
I can't go on without mentioning the 4th hole. The elevated fourth tee block has a most spectacular view across the ocean, the beach and towards the entrance to Port Phillip Bay. The hole itself is a beauty. An exposed par three which measures 160m off the blacks and could require anything from a 9 iron to a driver depending on the wind. The green has two distinct tiers, and all around the green are steep drop offs. Both Jamie and I missed the green and it takes an excellent short game to make three. Neither of us were up to the task today, but we both made 4 after each requiring two pitches to get onto the green.
The course has some beautiful features typical of a traditional scottish links course. There are blind tee shots, exposed and elevated greens, and there is a simplicity to the course which makes it sit there and seem benign today but yet will snarl tomorrow and be a real beast.
The real teeth to the course today were felt on the back nine when the wind got up and holes 14 and 15 were particularly tough. 14 is a great par 5. It has excellent bunkering off the tee on both sides with ti-tree as well for the particularly stray shot. An iron is the play. And then a long lay-up is required to a fairway that appears narrower than it is. There is a hazard to the right and OOB to the left. To finish it off, the green slopes off to all sides, has a bunker on the right and is horribly exposed to any wind that may be blowing. Into the breeze today the 14th was a real test and I would suggest any mid handicapper would be thrilled to walk away with a 6! The next hole is mean off the tips at 420m straight into the wind. The tee shot requires a carry of about 160m over wasteland and bunkers on the left of the fairway at about 180m out from the green would generally make you hit three wood off the tee (but not today into the wind). Then the second is played between pots on both sides with, again, ti-tree for the really stray shot.
Barwon Heads is a par 70 and features 5 short holes and only 3 par fives. The short holes are a highlight and include holes with a vast range in length from 130m to 207m with varying distances in-between. The same diversity is a feature of the par 4's with no two holes being of similar length and a range in 10m increments from 300m to 420. This design variety is definitely a highlight of the course. Also, the mere nature of links golf requires a variety of different shots to be hit into the green as you make your way around the course- - again a feature of a quality track.
The course could be improved by narrowing the fairways a bit, and making the whole thing play a bit firmer with less water applied, in particular around the greens and fairways. Part of the beauty of links golf is the art form of bouncing the ball around underneath the wind, but it was almost as if Barwon Heads was a bit spongy today.
But I am spiitting hairs here, and in totality Barwon Heads is a quality track that today we should have carved up. The scores ended 75/85 with F/P to M and the greens halved with a mere 6 a piece. I had a solid yet entirely unspectacular round with 13 pars and 5 bogeys.
I could dedicate an entire blog to the clubhouse at Barwon Heads which sits a top a crest overlooking the course. This place oozes with old world charm and the palatial interior could keep you occupied for hours on end. The club is steeped in history after being founded in 1907 and the clubhouse also appears to be from this era. The changing facilities have been modernized and were not only pristine but also well stocked with Jamie's new favorite product - bryl cream. We met a few local gentlemen in the bar and began chatting with them about our journey and their clubrooms. One chap was the club captain, Robin, who was rightfully very proud of the club and we discussed the upcoming slope rating process that Barwon Heads will be going through in August. But back to the clubhouse, this was one of the most impressive of the year. Wooden paneling, an exquisite bar and history falling off the walls of past presidents, club captains and club champions. The views out the window and from the balcony across the 18th hole aren't to shabby either. Until recently, we were told by the local gents, the dress code for the bar was a jacket and tie, and whilst sitting there sharing stories with these blokes in the opulent surrounds we could have been in a by-gone era. When, we were told, things were simpler, water was scarcer, the fairways were narrower and the golf course tougher.
I am very sad to say that we have now left the sandbelt. Our final foray on the world famous golfing terrain in southeast Melbourne, on day 83 of puregolf, was a stunner at the Commonwealth golf club.
Commonwealth recently hosted the ANZ Australian Masters and so we were fortunate to play it in supreme condition. We were supposed to be joined by Sam Hartrick of the PGA but unfortunately Sam was off busy doing something far more important than golf - purchasing a house. Sam has been very kind to us the last couple of weeks by calling in a couple of favours to get us a game at some of these Sandbelt beauties. It was a real shame that Jamie and I did not get the opportunity to thank Sam in person today.
We scrambled to make it to the first tee today. Not because we were late, but because we were holed up in the car doing some administration. We are talking with a couple of golf companies about bringing them along for the ride which is puregolf2010 so the meetings, phone calls and emails are taking a wee bit of time. Then, once the laptops had been put away and replaced by golf clubs, we managed to stop for a bite of lunch in the clubhouse. The clubhouse resonates with an old world charm and was brimming with the ladies who had finished their morning rounds (Wednesday morning is ladies day at Commonwealth). Jamie and I wandered in to quickly get a bite of lunch before our round but our timing went awry when we starting talking to the friendly locals about our adventure and the work that The First Tee does (the First Tee does not have a branch in Australia and the locals, unsurprisingly, thought it was an excellent concept). So as I sat there trying to eat my lunch whilst talking to a table full of members, all whilst trying to maintain some semblance of decorum, I saw from the corner of my eye the group in front of us tee off on the first and walk down the fairway. At this point decorum went out the window and I may have talked with my mouth full as I quickly tried to explain our journey! I managed to scuttle down to the first tee, but alas, waiting there was the cameraman from the Herald Sun to take some shots of Jamie and I? Welcome to the circus of puregolf. Fortunately, we were then told that the tee was empty behind us, so we relaxed, had a few snaps taken (note: Jamie was in his element? a pig in mud in front of the camera), had a quick chat with another local who asked if it was "fair dinkum" that we had played 83 days in a row, took a deep breath, and then teed up to begin the Commonwealth golf experience.
The first (see below) at Commonwealth is one of the short par 4's that I have often blogged about in recent weeks. So I had to have a crack at it, and today I managed to get the first shot of the day away straight. An easy two putt from the edge of the green later and I was one under through one.
We were joined again today by Stewart, with whom we have stayed with the last night. Stu has given us some great advice for our project and that, combined with the magical dinner of flathead tails (see day 59 at Narooma for Jamie's eloquent description of the fine delicacies that are flathead tails), had left us in a good space today!
Back to the golf, Stu made a sublime birdie on the second hole - this boy can chip probably thanks to the couch grass he put in his back yard so he could practice - and at that stage Jamie was being left behind despite being square with the card. Unfortunately this hot scoring did not continue!
Commonwealth was not tricked up but a subtle and true test of golf. It had an understated charm that is reminiscent of the sandbelt courses. Take for example the 4th hole (see below) which is a seemingly easy 330m par four which kinks to the right. If you take driver, or even 2 iron off the tee, the ti tree on the left of the fairway comes into play`and you need to hit a strong fade to keep the ball on the fairway. So the smart play is a mid iron. But then you are faced with a decent shot into the green which tilts away to the right with a huge cavernous bunker on the left. All simple stuff, but makes a par 4, on a seemingly short and innocuous hole, become a good score.
I think the biggest defense for Commonwealth are it's greens. The borrow is difficult to read and many of the greens are tilted so that the ball will gather to one corner. Thus, if you leave the ball above the hole it can be sneakily difficult to putt it close. I think the difficulty of the greens shone through during the ladies masters when the scoring was not too much better than par, despite the pristine conditions. I remember watching the final round and seeing many many putts go by the hole. For us, today saw both Jamie and I struggling to two putt on a number of occasions, including both of us missing a few shorts ones.
Another highlight for me was the dogleg right 11th hole (see below) which I made double on (but still loved the hole). With the birds singing like crazy on the tee (the trees are very established at Commonwealth, as seemingly are the birds in them - we saw a number of fairly colorful and loud specimens) we had quite a wait for the group ahead so Stu and JP took time for a few yoga exercises. Once we were away, the drive needed to be placed either to the left of the bunkers on the corner with a 3 iron (or three wood) or alternatively bombed over the bunkers leaving probably a wedge into the green. We all played the smart option which left about 160m into a green guarded by bunkers on both sides. But what I failed to see was the heavily sloping green from back to front and when my (very poor) chip from the back of the green rolled past the hole it just kept going right into the bunker.
The par five 13th was another good hole which demonstrated that par fives don't need to be 500m long to be effective. This hole (whilst a bit short at 440m) really narrowed in at the driving area with ti-tree on the right and long rough on the left. I hit one fairly straight, but missed the fairway which I measured out at 11.5 paces. That is tight! It was, however, one of the few holes I managed to get up and down on and snuck in my 3rd bird of the day.
Coming down the stretch one more shot sticks in the mind and that is the tee shot on the 16th. This hole has water stretching down the left - quite an unusual feature on the sandbelt. A good tee shot can be hit with a draw to roll around the water and leave a short iron in. JP managed to draw one a little much on this hole into the water, which summed up his day today as just a bit off. And just a bit off on a course like Commonwealth can be deadly. It is quite similar to the course we played a lot of our golf on in CHCH (Russley) in that placement is key and you have the position the ball well and keep it in play to get a decent score.
On the next hole (a great wee drivable par 4) Jamie exercised some First Tee values by calling a penalty on himself when the ball moved slightly. Sportsmanship personified. Golf has to be the only sport when you call penalties on yourself, but that is the beauty of it. This kind of thing exemplifies the underlying ethos of the game.
The story which Commonwealth takes you on as you meander around the grounds ends with a climax as you walk up the 18th fairway with the grand old clubhouse on your right (see below). I can just imagine crowds of people gathered around there to watch the approach shots into the 18th green during a big tournament. This hole has atmosphere.
The day finished with a quiet beer on the clubhouse deck with Stu and then another dinner with our friends from private club X, John and Hana. It was our third time catching up with them whilst in Australia and it was great to see them again and hear about their trip to the famous Barnbougle Dunes - a course we repeatedly have been told to visit. Perhaps later in the year!
Thanks to Commonwealth for having us at their pristine course, to Sam for helping us whilst we have been in Melbourne, and for Stu and Tanya for welcoming us into their house with such kindness - we have said farewell to the sandbelt in style.
P.S Scores - M:78, J:82 (par 73) and F/G/P (and split sixes) to M
At long last Mike and I got a look at the segment Sports Inc TV filmed of us for the HSBC Golf Show back in NZ. Some of you may have already seen it on Sky Sports but, because of international broadcasting rights, etc, we didn't get a peak until Phil Leishman The Great Man Himself And My Fantastic and Victorious Playing Partner On The Day uploaded it to YouTube (I don't imagine he did it himself, he's too old for that sort of technological prowess) and flicked me the link.
So here it is. Brings back a few good memories of a quality day at Titirangi. Seems like a long time ago now!
Being woken up by your body clock - rather than your alarm clock - is a rare treat. On the back of half a dozen early starts today we were due to tee off at 2, which is a far more civilized hour to commence play than a quarter past seven. Afternoon tee times afford us the opportunity to recharge the batteries. Ahhhhhhhhhh.
This morning we woke in the house of Stewat and Tanya, in Berwick (which must take its namesake from one of the Berwicks in Bonnie Scotland? Will research this). It was a nice place to awake. Stu & his wife had a yoga business, with which they're still actively involved. They're spiritual, relaxed humans. Their philosophy permeates unsurprisingly into their home, which has a calming quality. Sitting over my freshly made wholemeal pancakes I could've been in a $65,000 a day health spa in the Swiss Alps. It just felt cleansing (notwithstanding the fact that Stu is a wine distributor!).
Stu took us on a tiki tour of the surrounding area - The Dandenongs - which he'd grown up in. Reminded me of the Adelaide Hills. The region's pretty quaint; very Australian with a very English flavour - hard to describe. You'll find Agatha Christie style tea rooms and old steam trains among century old gums and towns with names like Sassafrass and Ferny Creek. We visited Puffing Billy (the local steam train, packed full of tourists from every corner of the globe) and a famous tea room that served traditional Devonshire Tea. In the Australian highlands. An interesting experience. We also had a look in, while in the area, at Olinda Golf Club - which must be the worst kept course I've seen in my 25 years. To be fair the club was kicked off the premises a couple of years ago when they stopped buying beer from the bar and resorted instead to bringing their own slab. Now the place is something of a ghost town - a bit sad really - so we didn't see it at it's best. Anyway we had a pleasant, relaxing morning, rolling round the hills and hearing stories about Stu's teenage misdemeanours.
Southern GC's carpark was packed to the rafters. We thought we'd be in for a long round - even if there was only one golfer per car. Thankfully James the affable lad in the pro shop ushered us to the 10th tee, to get under way. The back 9's part of the original course (that used to go over the road whose names escapes me); it's the more mature, stronger, more brutish of the two. Because the gums reach outer space you've gotta hit it straight off the tee - there's certainly no prospect of going over the things with anything but a sand wedge, and even then it's touch and go.
The front 9, on the other hand, is younger. And gnarlier. Don't let the wide open spaces lull you into a false sense of security - the combination of well engineered undulations, hard & fast conditions, and clever bunkering is more than enough to ruin a good scorecard. Not that I ever had one of those today. In fact we were all pretty ordinary. We fed off each other's mediocrity. Just as well we've got a sense of humour, Stu included.
Southern had gone somewhat under our radar, given the renown of some of other courses we've played this week. But when we stepped off 18 green today, in the evening sun, we all agreed it's a force to be reckoned with. Apparently a few Aussie greats have plied their trade here (Bob Shearer anyone?). Today a few agricultural workers plied their trade here, but we had a great time in the process. Next time I'll learn my lesson and hit a few more 2 irons - you've really got to be on the fairway, particularly on the back 9.
Warning to anyone visiting Southern: if a left hander with an apparent chip on his shoulder approaches you, turn and walk away. Quickly. The poor chap we came across can't have been the full complement, because we got a solid earfull on several occasions for holding play up when (1) we were waiting over every shot for the 4 ball in front; (2) we invited said Lonestar to join us or play through; and (3) we addressed him in our most polite Kiwi accent. Thought he was going to wrap his 9 iron around my head. Poor chap, as I said.
The other people we came across at Southern were without exception charming, and as I said the golf course was First Rate. The two 9s are chalk & cheese; chalk demanding certain shots (long, straight drives), cheese demanding others (carefully threaded long irons and dainty pitches). As I said all of the above proved to be beyond our capability on this Day 82, but life goes on. Tomorrow we're down the road at Commonwealth, where they've just held the Ladies Australian Open. Action.
JP
Well that was better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick. Today we played one of the most revered golf courses on the planet - Royal Melbourne (West). Depending on who you're talking to, it's the best in Australia and among the top 20 tracks in the world. Putting the politics of rankings aside it's one hell of a golf course; one you'd never tire of playing. Dr Alister MacKenzie - once you're finished your drink - take a bow (apparently he was partial to a tipple).
It's hard to describe a place like RM. First you've got to separate your own experience from the preconceptions, expectations and prejudices; then you've got to find the appropriate words. What I was most taken with were two things: first, the luminescence of the grasses (the fairways being a rich forest green, the greens being a glowing olive colour); second, the design of these magnificent 18 golf holes. Stunning stuff.
We were due to tee off at 7.30am, which is early by any standards but becoming the norm for us. We were meant to be playing the East Course too, but due to a happy series of events which I'll soon share, we ended up playing the more famous West course. What a treat. It was dark when Mike & I pulled up and met Bill - Michael's dad's mate whom we played with yesterday at The Heath - in the carpark. Bill was like that relaxed kid that lived right next door to school, in the sense that he'd stayed as a house guest the night prior at Victoria GC (see Day 77), a couple of hundred metres round the corner. We'd risen a good hour and a half earlier. And were a bit dusty.
Once we navigated the locked gates and fingerprint ID entrance, we came across the Head Steward (whose title was printed proudly on his RM standard issue bomber jacket - very suave). The chap wasn't too enamoured with Goldy's jeans and t-shirt look (unsurprising), so we asked him where the locker rooms were. To his credit he did well to hide his suspicion and courteously pointed us in the right direction. Sunscreen and mozzie repellant were diligently applied - as per our daily routine, safety first - before we made our way into the pro shop to meet John, a charming chap who was doing well to manage the increasing flow of traffic through his shop. John sorted us out with cards, maps, and got us to sign the visitors' book - a ritual that makes you feel like you're part of something old and cool. Or like you're staying at a friend's holiday house. Already the atmosphere of the place was giving me the warm fuzzies.
Being so early in the morning we took John up on his kind offer of a bucket of balls, and loosened up our stiff-as-a-tax-lawyer bodies before the Main Event. I thought my wrists were going to break after my first practice swing. Fortunately they didn't.
When we eventually reached the 1st tee (East) after an hour of messing 'round, a party from Mudgee (NSW) had beaten us to it like Amundsen pipped Scott to the South Pole. How disappointing. These fullas were a 14; we were a 3. At the time I thought they might be gracious enough to let us sneak away, as of course we wouldn't be holding them up. No such luck. They had to be at Kingston Heath by lunchtime, to play their second round of the day, so wanted to get off without delay. Fair enough, I suppose. At this point a very nice gentleman by the name of Peter - down from Royal Canberra for a conference - cheerfully told us that our 3 ball was now a 4, and we were only too happy for him to join us. Only problem was it was shaping us a slow round, something that could tarnish a much anticipated experience.
So we did what we are prone to doing and pushed our luck - by asking John the pro very politely in our best'est schoolboy tone whether, in light of the circumstances, we might be able to play the West instead. The course has just recently been brought back into play, after a number of fairways have been relaid, so John kindly obliged subject to the caveat that we wouldn't see it in its full glory and therefore any opinions formed should be done so with this in mind. Fine by us; we'd appreciate the design of the holes all the same.
With a spring in our step we marched back to the 1st tee (East) and let Bill & Peter in on the change of plans. They were thrilled. As you would be. And so we stepped onto what must be one of the most famous 1st tees in world golf (pictured above). As John said you can land 2 jumbo jets on the 1st fairways; it's almost wider than it is long. It won't surprise you to hear though that I missed it (by a couple of inches, but a fairway missed all the same - March being stats month and all). I think it could have been twice as wide and I'd still have missed it, the occasion of the shot getting the better of me.
Above is a picture of the 2nd green, which I think illustrates nicely the character of the place. RM while iconic doesn't have the gargantuan features that other famous courses have. Its features are confronting yet subtle; although I'd love to play the course again to get a second take and maybe pick up on a few more idiosyncrasies. And just to play it again. Because it's no less than other wordly.
Take the 3rd green (pictured below). The hole is a short par 4, which doglegs left from a slightly raised fairway. I hit 2 iron to the right hand side of it, and had a 9 iron in to a back middle pin. My ball pitched pin high - coming from a decent height - but still rolled off the back. When I got there to put my bag down I looked back past the pin, and noticed the green slopes front to back. Had I known from the fairway I would've taken one club less and chased it up there, but you don't notice first time round. Never mind - I chipped it in for the first birdie of the day! And the subtlety of MacKenzie's design wasn't lost on us.
The 5th hole is a famous par 3, and I can see why. You play a 7 iron or so across a gully to a raised green surrounded by what must be half a dozen deep bunkers. Behind the green is ti tree; short of it a Valley-of-Sin-like swail gobbles up anything hit less than flush. God forbid you hit it to the back of the green and have a 30 footer down to the front pin, as I did - a putt that would have been even more daunting had the greens been tournament speed. 2 putt was a relief.
The 6th hole (pictured below) is one of my favourite par 4s we've played this year. That and the 3rd at St. Andrews Beach (down on the Peninsula) stand out in my head, along with a couple at Kingston Heath and the 5th at Kinloch back in NZ. Oh and the 18th at Private Course X in Sydney. Then there's 16 at Kauri Cliffs. Whatever. Anyway, the 6th. Fairway snakes left to right, and you can bite off as much as you can chew over the dogleg, hoping like hell you don't end up short in the heather. There are bunkers between said heather and the fairway for good measure. Fortunately I got all of my driver and flew it 270 or so - with a slight block - onto the carpet, leaving a full wedge in to a raised green. It's just a beautiful golf hole.
The next was an uphill par 3, again over the heather. Both mine and Peter's shots landed and halted a few centimetres over the front bunker, leaving tricky stances over our birdie putts (see picture below). Happy to 2 putt, again. Bill the sidewinder that he is guided a gentle fading 6 iron in to 5 feet and rolled in the putt for birdie. Casual as you like. After bolting out to a seemingly impenetrable lead Michael and I now found ourselves well and truly in a match. Young Guns versus Old Boys.
Meandering through these golf holes one can't help but feel part of something special. Who knows whether the aura that grips you fades as you play the course more and more - I'll ask a member when we meet him for dinner tomorrow night. I doubt it's something that gets lost on you. The colours, the variety, the surrounds; really it is inspiring stuff. Four par 5s; four par 3s; strong par 4s; short par 4s; elevated tees; elevated greens; pot bunkers; waste bunkers; dogleg lefts; dogleg rights; back right to front left sloping greens; front to back sloping greens; upturned saucer greens - RM West has it all. It's the goods.
The 12th (pictured below) was one of the most majestic par 5s I've ever played. It has some similarities to the 3rd, in that it's a dogleg left played to a raised fairway. Bunkers off the tee sit there asking to be carried - very much a case of bite off what you can chew. Unfortunately I had one of 3 consecutive shockers and didn't get to play the 12th as it should be played. But I managed to stand back and appreciate (and photograph) one of golf's greatest sights. Looking from the fairway over the heather to the green tucked away in a cranny, your heart jumps a beat. Mine jumped a few when I hooked a 3 iron into the ti tree. Standing on the 10th green in regulation I was even with the card; standing on the 13th tee I was 5 over par, after a 3 putt, a loss of concentration on the strong par 4 11th and a debacle of a performance on the 12th. Fortunately i managed to play the remaining 6 holes in level par, for a 77. Mike played some good golf but let a few get away, and ended up with 82.
Most importantly the match with the Old Guard was halved - after Peter chipped in for birdie on 18 to trump my par! Jammy rascal. To be fair Peter had been quietly and patiently rolling the ball past the edge of a few cups on the day (he's a very competent 9 marker), so it was about time that one dropped for 'im. Probably a fair result in the end.
It's beyond my capabilities to do RM justice by written word. You'll just have to take what you can from our amateur photography, and perhaps even refer to the RM website for the official spiel. If you ever get the chance to visit, jump at it. Hallowed ground like this humbles and thrills you at the same time, no matter how your golf is. The members here are lucky folks indeed.
It'd be remiss of me not to mention the club sandwich that Bill kindly shouted us in the opulent sheds afterwards. Such is my tendency to get preoccupied with trivial matters. I'm not sure whether Dr Alister MacKenzie the man himself designed these sandwiches too, but they're a work of art. A part of me died when the sandwich was finished, because by then there were no more bites to look forward to. As usual I digress.
Poor Peter had to hurry off to a meeting, as most businesslike people do. Ditto with Bill, who had a presentation to deliver to Fosters (about the latest trends in New York cocktail bars - he has a glamourous job). Mike and i just went out onto the practice green for a few more putts, taking in the atmosphere and trying desperately to prolong what will no doubt be a long cherished experience. Then we did our usual shower / bryl cream routine and moved on. (Yes, we're becoming old men, hanging out in these traditional golf / gentleman's clubs).
Back to Kingston Heath went. Of course. With a reason, i might add. Walking the fairways there were a few American chaps, and Mike Hauser our pal from Tourism Victoria. The tourists were John, Chris & Tom, from New Jersey / New York. John (Sabino) has an interesting story to tell, and that's what drew us to go see him. His goal is to play the top 100 courses in the world (rated as at 2003). His quest began 14 years ago, and today he was ticking off number 90! Which means before today he's played 89 of the top 100 courses in the world...and paid for it! Chris & Tom are on the same mission, but aren't quite as far down the track as John. John's blog, by the way, is here.
The three of 'em were relaxed as you like, American gentlemen. Spending an hour or so walking some of the holes with them that we'd hacked it round yesterday, we got the sense straight away that golf for these high fliers is just as fun on 22 March 2010 as it was when they were kids. No grimaces; no swear words - just smiles, banter and mutterings about Tom's hankering for "Boags" (as in the Tassie beer, which apparently he's been wolfing down in the past few days).
Anyway. We swapped a few war stories with the lads, exchanged business cards and wished them well. John & co have kindly offered to help us out Stateside, and invited us to stay with them at their homes (or at least John did; Chris' invitation came courtesy of John, who instructed Chris he should be extending the same courtesy as John himself had!). Looking forward to meeting up with them on their home turf, and will have to give them a few tips about Kauri Cliffs - one of John's last 10 to play - before he heads there next year.
Our amazing day - Day 81 that is - continued along the same path when we met our hosts for the next 2 nights, Stu and Tania. Stu had contacted us out of the blue recently, after seeing our segment on Fox Sports, and invited us to stay with him in Berwick (outer eastern Melbourne suburb). Needless to say we took him up on his kind offer and here we are, sitting in his lovely 3 storey house, sipping a few glasses of the fine wine he distributes with his brother-in-law - Massoni. Beautiful chardonnay, for you wine lovers out there. Sangiovese and shiraz were pretty approachable too! Combine that with good conversation, his freshly made spaghetti and a comfy double bed - and we've had a sparkling evening.
JP
P.S - for those new followers, check out some of our videos (also linked through prior blogs) on youtube under puregolf2010
Kingston Heath has recently been crowned (by the reputable judges of the Australian Golf Digest) as the number one golf course in Australia.
So it was with delight that day 80 of puregolf2010 featured a round of pure golfing at 'the Heath'. Kingston Heath was the last place that Tiger played tournament golf when he won the Australian Masters by 106 shots back in November. And it is ranked as the number 29 best golf course in the WORLD by golf digest. Which makes it "officially" the best golf course we have played this year. It is fair to say that today Kingston Heath did not disappoint.
We played as members guests courtesy of Bill Torrey, a mate of Dad's from Sydney who is a member of NSW. Bill is a champion, a smart guy who shares our passions of golf, hockey and fine wine and cocktails. We get on very well despite coming from different generations. Bill has played the Heath many times before with Dad and co, during their week of golfing wonderlust in Melbourne that I have previously blogged about. This meant that Bill gave us some quasi local knowledge which we got huge mileage out of.
The golf course that is Kingston Heath is exactly what I had initially expected a sandbelt course to be like. It combines the best features of the courses of the previous week all bundled into one supreme golf course. Kingston Heath is (almost) done with perfection. Firstly, the conditioning is first rate - it is in excellent nick. The fairways are pure, the rough is intense (knee high in many areas), and the greens roll true. Secondly, the course requires precision shots all the way around. Bad shots result in bogeys. Very bad shots result in doubles. You need to spin the ball when approaching the greens or you can end up in deep trouble - most probably punctuated by sand of some description. Take, for example, the par threes (of which there are only three). If you hit a good shot onto the green it is likely that 3 is on the cards. If you hit an average shot, you will roll into a bunker next to the green, or a swale surrounding the green and with a stroke a genius 3 is on the cards (e.g., rolling in a 20 footer on the 2nd hole today). Before confusion sets in for those who have played the Heath our second hole today is also known as the 19th or temporary hole for the members or the 11th during the Masters. We played what is known as the inside/out layout that was used for the Aussie Masters last year. But to make life even more confusing the nines are played the other way around for the Masters? Anyway I digress.
Firstly, before I sing the praises of KH, I will share my one and only gripe. And that is that there are only three par fives, and they all run the same direction. On days like today, where the customary wind blows into your face on all three of these par fives (and the only short par 4), there is very little opportunity to reach any of these holes in 2 and accordingly it is only worth hitting an iron off the tee and playing them as genuine three shotters. I love risk reward golf, where a good drive could result in a simple birdie, whilst a bad one results in double.
But a golf course is not all about hitting it onto greens in regulation minus one, and Kingston Heath had many quality golf holes that put an exclamation mark on this statement. For example the 10th hole (7th for the members) was a par five but had a short sharp slope at the front of the green which made any approach, whether it be from 180m or 80m infinitely difficult to the front pin placement. The slope caught out all three of us, and we rolled back to a swale where the texas wedge needed to be employed (even for Jamie who generally hates putting from off the green).
There were some cracker par fours. For example the stretch from 16-18 (which we played as our 7th - 9th holes). 16 is a blind tee shot out of a shute of ti-tree and to a strong dogleg right. At 400m and into the rather stiff breeze this was a true test. Jamie and I both bailed out into the bunkers short right which appealed a whole lot more than the OOB / scrub to the left of the green. Blind tee shots were a feature of the course, with another on the short, 330m par four 12th (9 for the members and see below). The 17th was another 420m test which has a green that slopes away from the fairway which means you have to land your second short and roll it up - a shot that is probably easier for the 15 handicapper than the 2 handicapper!
I love short par fours. Despite playing the 15th (3rd for the members) like a girl's blouse it was still a real treat. At 270m long this hole begs for you to take driver and have a crack. When you get to the green it even slopes from back to front which means that a driver would even hold the green. But then again, the green is about 20 feet wide, surrounded by an array of bunkers which are duly surrounded by an even wider array of ti-tree. Perhaps driver is not the smartest play. So I tried to hit the 3 iron lay up shot which of course hooked into the ti-tree. Bugger I said and hit a provisional. But then I found it and hit a blind wedge to about 6 feet (and missed the putt). Anyway the story of the 15th is about how a small hole can really mess your round up. Jamie missed the green with a wedge (never the kind of thing that makes you smile) but from his downhill lie in the in the bunker to a tight pin on the concrete KH greens he was in somewhat of a pickle. His first bunker shot rolled through the green leaving another semi-impossible pitch to the back pin position. From the middle of the fairway on this short beast, he was quickly writing 6 on the scorecard. Great hole.
Lastly, the short holes. They're good. Very good. 15 (our 6th today) is a stunner with about 12 bunkers which if you were going to take a photo to describe KH this would be it (see below. To mix it up there was a 175m hole that we played as our 17th (the 5th for the members) which had a firm green where you invariably end up with a delicate downhill putt. Tough going for someone who has had their confidence on the fast greens knocked around a fair bit by this stage (take note Ed for when you play here one day). The other par three was the temporary hole which had rough around the green that came right up to my knees - who knew the sandbelt was capable of growing the stuff!
So the round ended late in the day with the bumps and blemishes showing up in the low light filtering onto the final green. A round to be remembered and a golf course that was a real pleasure to play. The final tally for the day ended with 79/87 and I took out the greens and putts to take blog writing honours. After a steady start, Bill had a couple of wipes and ended up second in the split sixes. But his strategic style of golf was impressive and got me thinking that this game is not all about belting it as far as possible...
Before the day was up, we went back to an old mate from St Andrew's (our high school) days by the name of Brendon Lucas (aka Ris - named after Chris Harris the legendary cricketer who was particularly well known for his fielding prowess). Back in the old days, Ris was the captain of our first XI cricket team and was a pretty hard taskmaster, well that's what I thought as the youngest member of the team... Ris and his better half Emma were spectacular hosts and we retired to their place to enjoy a home cooked meal (Ris has become something of a chef!) and a few stories over a couple of glasses of red. A perfect end to another great day of puregolf2010. Thanks to Ris and Emma for having us stay and Bill for hosting us as his guest at Kingston Heath - a supreme day.
God that was a good day! On this Day 79 we had probably the warmest welcome of the year, at probably the quirkiest named golf course we'll play all year - The Growling Frog. Mike and I are sitting here almost in disbelief at just how hospitable these good people were, to a couple of Kiwis no less!
The facility is a relatively new one, built by the local Council in 2004 40/50 km north of Melbourne, near the bushfire ravaged town of Kinglake and even nearer to the town where they evacuated all those poor folk to on Black Saturday (Whittlesea). They commissioned some famous fella by the name of Marsh to come and design it (a lot of the bunkers have a central tongue, creating the appearance of an 'M' shape - a nod to Mr. Marsh, of course). He did a good job, but I'll let Michael talk about the golf. We played a 2 man Ambrose format today you see, as part of the Saturday comp, so in keeping with the teamwork format of the day Mike'll talk golf and I'll pen a few words about our good hosts and the day in general.
The Growling Frog is one of a few golf courses that have made contact with us, inviting us to come and play - rather than responding to one of our letters. Before that email some months ago, we'd never heard of the place. I've been liaising with Simon, a young English chap who emigrated several years ago with his Aussie then girlfriend whom he'd met in London, about the day - and it's one we'd been particularly looking forward to.
The Frog's a public course - being built by the Council and all - but Simon and 250 mates run their own Club up here, just like any other. The only difference is they have to pay green fees each time they play (a modest $37, which is a steal). A great bunch of people, enthusiastic about their golf. Spending time with them in the clubhouse afterwards my memory took me back to Day 14 at Mahia, the rural 9 hole links we played on the North Island East Coast of NZ - where a handful of salt of the earth folk formed the fibre of the club, and kept it alive through their determination and shared passion for the great game that is golf.
They really looked after us. I mean really. Simon, who as I said had been the first point of contact, met us on arrival and kindly shouted us an espresso to pick us up after our 45 minute drive. Lovely. We were then presented with a couple of Growling Frog polo shirts (green, of course - would've come in handy on St. Paddy's back on Wednesday), which we chucked on straight away. Jude, a hilarious woman if ever there was one, heckled us on the 1st tee and told us that they looked putrid! I thought they were pretty good, actually. At half time, while the local reporter the club had organised to come down fired a few questions our way, Simon grabbed us a couple of ham sandwiches, to keep us going on the back side. After the round this incredible hospitality continued. Michael and I were invited to order as we pleased from the menu - I had a steak burger, chips and salad which, as Jerry the President warned me, you'd need a pole vault to jump over - and do the same from the bar. It really was unbelievable.
When Jerry had heard we were coming, this was the way it was going to be, he told me. A real country welcome. They'd organised for two different local papers to come along; donated the comp fees for the day to our charity, The First Tee NZ, along with our winnings for the day (apparently we won the comp!); and generally been the most hospitable bunch of people we've come across, certainly in 'Straya at least.
Ray, the 4th member of our four ball, was a tremendous human being. Great value on the way 'round, and he even remained a gentleman when I started sledging him on the 16th green! By then of course I felt comfortable enough in his company to offer a satirical word or two. To make up for my insolence I'll draw your attention to his 300 metre blind tee shot on the 4th hole, which came up a couple of paces short of the green - a glorious blow. Unfortunately it didn't result in birdie. (The poor chaps couldn't putt for jam on the day; on another day they might've shot a good few under the card).
Simon, Ray, Jerry, Jude, our mate Mike Hauser (from Tourism Victoria, who's a member here too) and all the other humans we met at The Growling Frog were Top Drawer Folk. I can't emphasise enough just how welcoming they were, and I'd encourage anyone in the area to head to the Frog on a Saturday afternoon for a spot of golf and a few laughs. Today fell right in the middle of our Melbourne sandbelt leg, which on the whole has been a fairly, erm, traditional affair. Most days we've turned up to play these phenomenal courses, but flown more or less under the radar. Today was an altogether different experience. A great day; one we'll remember for a long time.
Incidentally the Growling Frog is a local creature that you'll only hear in the very early morning, and probably never see.
Now over to Michael, for a few words about the golf:
Today we stepped back from our daily competition to play in The Growling Frog 'comp day', a two man ambrose. In this format we choose the best shot from the two of us, find that ball, and then try again... Put simply, we have two chances to hit one straight and then two chances to sink the putt!
The first impression of The Frog is the serenity of the place. The block of land on which the course sits is a wide expanse, and the story goes that the Council had considered putting 36 holes on it. From the clubhouse you look out over the said wide expanse across traditional Aussie flat as a flat pancake farmland speckled with gum trees and a few 'roos bouncing around. We spotted quite a few roos on the first hole, which incidentally was where we made our first birdie. The first was a downhill drivable par four (if you have warmed up..) to a tricky green guarded by bunkers.
After a few quips before the round from Mike Hauser (who was playing in the group behind us) about making a birdie record today, we didn't disappoint and had made four straight standing on the 5th tee. And then Jamie didn't let team puregolf down when he stroked an 8 iron to 10 feet. But then we both missed the putt and the cracks started to form. We both duly both missed another 10 footer on the 6th after Jamie hit a 9 iron in and so our dream of 59 was all but over. In the ambrose format, putting is king. So Jamie is an ideal partner, as opposed to, say, Ed, who would be a woeful partner.
The 8th hole was another highlight and the site of where we kickstarted our round again, with our 5th birdie. 8 is a par five which funnels between two gum trees to a green that angles away to the left from the fairway. Whilst it entices you to have a crack with a long iron, or three wood, the green is surrounded by some severe undulations and two craftily positioned bunkers which require absolute precision to navigate. We both missed the green with our second shot, but our short game was up to the task on this occasion. A tap in birdie on 9 following one of JP's pitches saw us turn with a 30, 6 under par.
Unfortunately the pitching went awry on the back nine and we failed to convert about 4 easy chances. The only birdies came from the two par 5's, despite both of them being close to 500m long and difficult to reach in two. The highlight of the back nine was the par 3 12th hole which was the only hole on the course without a bunker. The green is slightly elevated but only a high iron landing on the green will hold the green. My 8 iron landed just short and trickled back about 10 metres to leave a very difficult pitch. Fortunately Jamie's tee shot missed on the long side so we had an easier chip to the green.
If I am being picky, the course probably could do some work on the par 4's. There were about 4 or 5 par fours that measured between 330-350m and despite a couple having great greens and surround, they were not all as distinctive as they might have been. After playing sandbelt courses, you really start to appreciate the short par four that makes you think, and also the 350m dogleg par four which has all kinds of crap around the landing area for the drive. But there were some strong par fours as well, such as the dogleg right 5th, and the great finishing hole up to the clubhouse.
So in all we finished with a 64, which I have heard on the grapevine was enough to take out the day and the winnings will be put straight through to the First Tee. But I reiterate Jamie's thoughts that today was second to none as far as hospitality goes, and a day we wont forget in a hurry!
After golf we headed to the city to stay with an old mate of mine from school, Brendon Lucas and his girlfriend Emma. We also nipped out for dinner, at their suggestion, to a local thai place with a chap by the name of Simon who works for Taylormade/Adidas to talk shop and about having them jump on board. Touch wood it goes well.
The wonderful thing about golf is that it's a game you can enjoy just as much regardless of where you play - as long as you're playing with good people and don't get hit by lightning. I've had magic days hacking it 'round a goat track on a summer evening, and equally woeful days playing with idiots 'round a perfectly manicured multi-major-champion-designed championship course. It's a social game. With this front of mind Mike and I were thrilled to hear last night that Huntingdale had organised a couple of playing partners to join us in the morning. This was particularly key because we were teeing off at 7.40am - another redeye slot - and if we were just by ourselves it might've taken us 'til about the 16th to fully wake up.
Guido and Matt were the unlucky chaps who drew the short straw when Stewart the General Manager was picking his victims. Guido's a member, and Matt's a school mate of circa 35 years (?) who was in town for business and free for a hit. When I read the start sheet in the pro shop and saw the name "Guido" next to ours, a little light bulb went off in my head. Surely it wasn't the hilarious Greco-Australian comedian Guido Hatzis that would be waiting out there on the tee? (The one who pretends to ring the Queen, to tell her that she can sleep on his nana's couch during her visit, as long as she does a shift or two in the fish and chip shop they own and she doesn't steal any pickled onions in the process). Of course it wasn't that Guido, and in the event the real Guido (pronounced "Gee-doa", I understand, rather than "Gwee-doa") was just as entertaining. He was also born in South Africa to Dutch parents who emigrated like many others to this big island many moons ago - not Greek. But I digress.
These fellas were my kind of golfers. No messing around - just walk up to it and hit the thing. And plenty of light hearted banter on the way around. Ideal company, really. They were interested to hear whether we'd "picked up" at a golf course on our adventure yet. HA! Two things: (1) we have girlfriends whom we're very lucky to have and plan on keeping; (2) golf courses aren't the ideal place to meet young, single, attractive women; the ladies we tend to meet at the clubs, lovely though they invariably are, wouldn't be in our...target market...were we single humans (which, as I said before, but should reiterate emphatically - largely to reassure our tolerant girlfriends - we are not). So a profound "certainly not" was offered as the party line.
Huntingdale as a golf course is pretty sharp. Traditionally the Australian Masters was held there every year, although for some reason unknown to me it moved recently (and was held last year at Kingston Heath, which was a resounding success on all fronts apparently). Some bloke told me they moved it because Tiger didn't like the course and wouldn't play there. It would be unwise of me to speculate, but it's plausible. Let the conspiracy theories run rampant. Anyway suffice to say it's a good track, and the calibre of champions whose photos (in their Gold winner's jackets) are up on the clubhouse lounge walls shows just that. We saw Bernhard Langer, Colin Montgomerie, Aaron Baddeley, Stuart Appleby, Craig Parry, Robert Allenby, Mark O'Meara and...a fella by the name of Greg Norman (you might not have heard of him).
Mike and I had played here in 2004 when we came across for the boxing day cricket test at the MCG. Since we had reciprocal rights through our membership at Russley in Christchurch we thought we may as well bring our sticks and have a hack for a day or two while we were here. Think Ed and I even played on new year's eve, while Goldy and our mate Blair went shopping. Dedicated. The point though is that having played the course before we knew what to expect. Favourite holes were - and still are - the 14th and 16th (above and below).
It's pretty tight, on the whole. Rather than being long, the imperative is to stay on the fairway - if you can do that you'll have a few short irons in and hopefully pick up a birdie or two. Sounds good in theory. Our golf was indifferent at best (I had 81, M an 83) - pretty rubbish, actually. Huntingdale robbed us of a few putts, the greens being a fair bit slower than Victoria's the day before...so a few putts were left in the jaws. How frustrating.
Poor Matt faded a bit on the back 9 as the mercury started rising, but Guido managed 38 points. I fancy his handicap will be coming down. We joined them in the clubhouse for a thirst quenching lemon squash afterwards, and put the world to rest for a good hour or so. They're switched on chaps - G's in pharmaceuticals; M in banking, with St. George - and were happy to share their thoughts on a good range of topics. Like bloody Lara Bingle and the media circus that has erupted over here in recent weeks. Jeez they're brutal these Aussie journos. No decorum; could do with going to finishing school or, better still, to The First Tee. I don't know the full Bingle Story, but surely she can't deserve what the tabloids are dishing out to her?
With time to kill before we were due to meet Roger & Lorraine - our hosts for tonight - we had another session at the Apple Store in Chadstone Mall. Free (fast) internet, and air conditioning. Crucial. However it was hard to concentrate, because we both food coma'd after devouring a family size chocolate cake that was on sale at Coles for AU$4 (NZ$16). We were hungry and had set ourselves a $6.50 combined budget (that's how much cash we had on us). The first displays we came across walking into Coles were bread rolls - which happened to be $2.50 for 4 of those tasty cheese & bacon numbers - and chocolate cakes - which had been reduced from $10 to $4 to clear. Done. Not healthy, but would fill a hole. So we found ourselves sitting on a bench seat in the middle of the mall, trying to wolf down this cake. All I could think of was an experiment we'd done in 7th form economics when learning about the law of diminishing returns. Our mate James Turner had volunteered - not knowing what he was in for - and had to eat the best part of a 500 gram Cadburys chocolate bar, washed down with a good few cups of lemonade. James had to rate for the class the satisfaction he derived from each square of chocolate and sip of lemonade; of course the ratings out of 10 dropped as his consumption increased, illustrating the law of diminishing returns. He was miserable by the time he'd finished. And that's how we felt sitting in the bloody mall, next to our chocolate cake. About 10 minutes, it took us (that's after eating 2 rolls each, by the way). Pigs.
This evening we've had a lovely meal with Roger & Lorraine - friends of my folks from way back, whom we caught up with a couple of weeks ago down on the Peninsula for lunch. Our first curry in months. Used to eat the stuff just about every week. Anyway a home cooked meal was a lovely way to end a great day, a long day.
Will sleep well tonight. Off to the Growling Frog Golf Club in the morning - surely the best name of a golf club anyone has ever heard?
JP
After a warm welcome by the golf staff and a valiant effort, in vain, to find some locals to join up to make a four-ball we began round 77 of pg2010 at Victoria on the 10th tee. The Victoria Golf Club does not have a time sheet, so the pro has to juggle the various groups to make sure everyone gets away. Worked well today! Good laid back system.
Dad and his mates have been coming to stay at Victoria GC for around 30 years. On this annual golf trip playing all around the sandbelt they base themselves at the VGC clubhouse as house guests. So I have heard many stories over the years about the dramas that have unfolded at Victoria both on and off the course. Dad helped us to get a game here when he told the management about pg2010 back in February. They quickly got in touch with us, and the GM - Peter Stackpole - has been very generous to Jamie and I which we are very grateful for.
The course is a cracker. It is quite long - 6275m off the blue tees - and very balanced with four par 5's, four par 3's and a couple of short par 4's. We started on the 10th and thus faced four strong par 4's to begin our round.
The first feature of the course is the quality of the bunkering. Standard I hear you say. But read on. Firstly the bunkers are very well positioned. Jamie can attest to this after hitting it in no fewer than 12 bunkers today - unsurprisingly he ended the day as the crab. You don't need to have 2168 bunkers on a golf course to make them effective. Secondly, they are very fair and every single time the ball finds its way to the sand it funnels to the bottom of the bunkers - no balls are ever plugged on the face or in a big foot print that hasn't been raked. So at least you have a chance at getting it out and in - which Jamie did quite a few times today. And thirdly there is a good design feature where trees actually overhang the bunkers so if you hit a really bad shot you have two obstacles to deal with. Take for example the 11th hole (pic below) where I hit it in the bunkers on the left. Had I just rolled off the fairway and into the sand I would have been able to play out and potentially hit a 9 iron onto the green. But no, I had hooked it deep into the left side of the bunkers so was blocked out by a couple of gums and made a certain bogey.
Victoria is in an urban part of the south-east melbourne suburbs but whilst playing you forget that you are surrounded by housing. VGC is not short of land and you don't feel like the holes are on top of each other.
The 14th (below) was the first par three we played today and it was all class. An uphill 140m shot to a green that looks like it is barely 20 feet deep with bunkers short and long. Distance control is key. This is something I don't particularly have at the moment when my 9 iron goes anywhere from 120m to 160m? (incidentally my PW is playing up and I can barely hit it 100m??).
Then the 15th is a much talked about short hole. A 280m par four with about 12 bunkers lining the left, and then right of the fairway and, of course, all around the green. I went against my philosophy (of attacking all the short par 4's on the sandbelt with a driver) and took a 5 iron off the tee - straight into the trees. I struggle with lay-ups. Bizarre. Someone told me once that amateurs aren't good enough to lay up and I think that is in my head every time I am faced with a decision on par fives. Anyway there must be some truth to the lay-up philosophy that most sane golfers subscribe to and I scrapped a four on the 15th whilst Jamie visited two of his 12 bunkers to end with a 5..
A strange feature of the course, that I normally dislike is back to back par 5's. The long holes at Vic are 8&9 and 17&18. But each of these sets of fives has one short (450m) and one long (550m) hole. I am sure that good golfers play the shorter ones as par 4's and expect birdies, but the two longer holes are all round challenging holes with ti-tree, bunkering and even a dam lurching on the 17th to make 5 a damn good score. I have heard that often 17 plays into the wind and requires three very solid shots to get there or there-abouts!
So we turned after 9 holes with pretty good rounds going. I was square, and JP was +3. And we had both left quite a few short putts out there. Things were looking promising. On the 1st tee (our 10th hole) we were joined by two gentlemen - Ray and Bryan who were both members of VGC. They told us where to go on the front nine which was a great aid, but unfortunately by this stage in our round we couldn't follow their directions!
I'd say the first hole at Vic (pictured below) is quite polarising. It is a 235m par 4, which is very short to be a par 4, and has recently been remodeled to include much more extensive bunkering around the green. I can't say I would have remodeled the hole as a 235m par four, but I guess with the land around the first there weren't too many options.. The pro's play this as a par three so VGC becomes a par 71 for tournament golf. The first as a par three would have been impossible today with the pin nestled merely 6 feet over the cavernous front bunker - not even tiger could hit a high 230m shot close to that..
Vic is infamous for having play suspended mid tournament in the 2002 Aussie Open for the greens being too fast and unplayable! Pro golfers were 5 and 6 putting? The greens have subtle slopes in them but are not severe - so they must have been pretty quick that day! Today the greens were sublime and at a speed where we felt comfortable to attack (certain) putts. However some greens, like the 6th, were particularly gnarly when putting from above the hole and on that green even 3 foot putts needed close attention.
As the round wore on the wheels started to come loose and a few holes were played in ways that VGC has potentially never seen before (Note: don't go down 11 whilst trying to play number 8). I failed to keep it together and bogeyed both 8&9 to end up with a 76 (Jim had an 82, and hit more fairways - I took out greens and putts). I am pleased with the score, but it could have been much better. But then what round of golf could't be much better?!?
Ray and Bryan started rolling in putts from all directions over the last few holes and their experience, in particular on the par threes was evident. Ray knew the exact line to bump the ball up to some of the more obscure pin placements. Which reminds me of the par 3 4th hole which was just scary - the pin was perched about 5 foot from the right edge of the green and if you miss right there is a swale/bunker/scrub/death. JP managed to make a pretty damn good 4 from down there. Not often you say that about a bogey!
All in all today was a pure golfing day. And whilst I could wax lyrical for hours about the intricacies of the course but instead I'l chuck up a few pictures and maybe a video as well. Time is short you see as we are off to St Kilda tonight to meet up with an old mate from the law firm who is now practicing over here.
Chisholm Park
12 holes bart cape kidnappers christchurch christmas doak ed bayley hawke's bay heretaunga jane poole napier golf club new zealand puregolf2010 rangiora rarangi gc royal royal wellington the first tee the interislander waiohiki
