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| The course
is laid out on flat terrain and features naturally undulating fairways and deep
bunkers that are coming into play. There are around 160 bunkers on the course,
most of very irregular shape. Those exotic shapes have become integrated into
the “heath” that lends its name to the club. Also, the three par 3s are another
feature as they are unique although they are not that long. The greens are hard & fast, so unless you hit approach shots with backspin, they won’t stay on
the greens. Dan Soutar designed most holes while Alister Mackenzie designed the
bunkers and redesigned the Par 3 15th. |
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| A slight dogleg to the left. The
landing area on the tee shot looks deceptively narrow but in fact it is not that
tight and you should aim at the right side of the left fairway bunkers. Position
from the tee is important on this hole. The best route is to hit onto the right
side of the fairway bunkers. A long hitter must be careful not to fly across the
fairway and run into the mounds and long rough at the back, so he should use a
long iron or a fairway wood off the tee. The green slopes from the back to the
front and has deceptive undulations. |
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| A slight dogleg to the right.
It is a great very short par 4 with a “looks easy but plays hard” character. A
long hitter can reach the green in 1 but the closer to the green, the tighter
the hole is, so he needs to drive a long and precise shot. The green is elevated
and very undulating. |
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| A magnificent par 3. The green slopes
from left to right with bunkers on both sides. |
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| A straight hole with an uphill
tee shot. Two clusters of bunkers along the right side come into play off the
tee. Another cluster of bunkers protecting the front right and the right of the
green are in play, too. The green is large, double-tiered and elevated. The bumps
and hollows around the green put pressure on the second shot. This hole was selected
as one of the best 500 holes in the world by 2000’ s poll of US Golf Magazine. |
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A slight dogleg to the left.
The tee shot is blind and the fairway is wide up to the fairway bunkers and rough
on the corner of the right dogleg. There a cluster of 6 bunkers protecting the
left side of the green, which offers superb bunkering unique to this golf course.
It also features a double green shared with the 16th hole. |
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A charming short par 3. The green
is very narrow in front with two large bunkers squeezing it. The green widens
toward the back. It is an easy hole but if you miss the green your shot will finish
in one of three large bunkers or heavy rough, where it is difficult save par.
The hole is visually appealing. |
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A dogleg to the right. A carry
of 230 yards is needed to clear a bunker on the right, and 250 yards to clear
a bunker on the center of the fairway. A cluster of bunkers guarding the left
of the green are in play. The green is also guarded by a hollow on the left and
an OB behind. |
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A dogleg to the left. A carry of 240 – 260 yards is needed
to clear two bunkers placed in the center of the fairway. The shortest line is
the left side of the fairway but you must contend with hazards and an OB on the
left. The approach shot is over bunkers. |
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A straight,
relatively long par 5. The tee and second shots are gently uphill. Bunkers left & right 50 yards short of the green squeeze the fairway, leaving little opening
for a long hitter attempting to get close to the green on the second shot. |
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A slightly uphill, tough par
3. Several deep bunkers on both sides of a narrow green are placed so that the
green is only some 15 yards wide. If you hit too far, the ball will run down into
a deep hollow behind the green. The green slopes sharply from back to front. |
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It is a 40-minute drive from Melbourne Airport
and a 30-minute drive from Central Melbourne. Visitors need to be accompanied
by a member but opportunities exist for interstate and overseas golfers if they
bring letters of recommendation from their own golf clubs. The distance markers
are in meters and measured up to the edge of the greens. The course was
ranked 3rd in Australia by Golf Digest 2006.
The other Dan Souter designed
courses are Concord GC (ranked 38th) and Wentworth Falls GC.
The other Alster
Mackenzie designed courses in Australia are Royal
Melbourne GC (Composite Course, ranked 1st), New
South Wales GC (ranked 2nd) and Royal Adelaide GC (ranked 5th).
US Golf Magazine ranked the course 20th as of the top 100 courses in
the world for 2005. Those others selected in Asia and Oceania were Royal
Melbourne GC (10th), Cape Kidnappers GC (New Zealand, 27th), New
South Wales GC (Australia 34th), Hirono
GC (Japan, 35th), 49th Barnbougle
Dunes GL (Australia), 54th Royal Adelaide GC, Kauri
Cliffs GC (New Zealand, 58th), Kawana
HGC – Fuji Course (Japan, 80th), Tokyo
GC (Japan, 94th), The
Club at Nine Bridges (Korea, 95th) and Naruo
GC (Japan, 100th)
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2nd Par 4 384 yards (2)