New $8m complex a fairway to heaven
A HUGE new driving range is set to open on the Bellarine Peninsula in the coming weeks, in what is being described as a “game changer” for Victorian golf.
Curlewis Golf Club is busy putting the finishing touches on The Range @ Curlewis, an $8 million project that will feature several groundbreaking drawcards including 18 indoor and outdoor driving bays, simulators and a two-tier mini golf course.
One of its most striking features will be a 30m-high driving range fence that is 225m long.
There are also appetisers for nongolfers, with conference facilities and three dining areas, including one making use of a 35m deck.
“There is nothing else quite like it in the state,” co-owner Lyndsay Sharp said. “It’s certainly the most ambitious project (my partner) David and I have ever undertaken.
“If anyone had suggested a few years ago we should contemplate building a driving range and mini golf complex, we would have said they had rocks in their head.”
The Range is 1km from the existing clubhouse and links up with the Bellarine Rail Trail. It’s hoped it will be ready by the Australia Day weekend.
“The clubhouse is abuzz with energy and anticipation,” Mrs Sharp said. “Once the 30m-high nets went up, heads really started to turn and people realised this was not your ordinary driving range facility under construction.”
The clubhouse will remain the golf club’s central hub.