Steer clear of the rough
Victoria has top golfing, but there’s one small — possibly deadly — problem for Kiwis, says Cameron McMillan
First tee shot and I find the rough. It’s probably no surprise after my opening drive of the day saw me take a wrong turn out of Melbourne Airport — turning an 80-minute journey southwest to Bellarine Peninsula into two hours. The car’s GPS would have made a horrible caddie.
Two days playing on spectacular courses in Victoria’s famous golf regions of Bellarine and Mornington Peninsulas, followed by two more days of watching some of the world’s best showing how it should be done at the World Cup of Golf at Royal Melbourne — the top rated course in the country — lay ahead of me. But as I went to find my ball’s precarious lie on the first hole at Barwon Heads Golf Course all I could think about was snakes, a hazard you don’t encounter on New Zealand courses. I quickly hit my second and told myself to stay in the middle of the course.
The opening six holes at Barwon Heads are a visual treat, with a mix of lush green fairways and golden grassy dunes that border the course and hide Bass Strait. The famous surf spot Bell’s Beach is just a few kilometres down the road, so bring your board as well as your clubs. Since I was playing by myself it wasn’t long before I caught up to a three-man group ahead of me, part of 12 keen golfers who flew down from Sydney.
They were playing for the Mulligan Cup — a year-long tournament where they play a round a month, and they’d saved Barwon Heads for the finale. With a cash prize and a blazer on offer it was intense as I happened across the three players still in with a title chance. Adam Scott seemed more relaxed a few days later at Royal Melbourne and he was playing for a lot more.
The area is well-suited for a lads weekend or a golfing-mad couple — just a short drive from Melbourne there are golf courses galore which can be played all year round. With so many courses close by it’s easy to get two rounds in a day but a longer day awaited me.
I was up early to catch the short ferry ride from Queenscliff to Sorrento on Mornington Peninsula — home of the Cups region where there are 19 courses within 30km of each other.
It’s at Moonah Links that I’m reminded of snakes again. It’s not hard to miss as there’s a warning on every golf cart with pictures of the ones to avoid. Stay on the fairway. Moonah is grand. That’s the only word to describe it. A huge clubhouse greets you with two 18-hole courses on offer — the Open, designed by famed golfer Peter Thomson, and the Legends. Peppers Moonah Links resort next door holds 92 deluxe suites. A cart is advised which, despite the ever-reminding snake message, is needed on the large Open course. As I leave From Moonah I head two minutes up the road to The Dunes.
The immaculate course is a true links, and something you won’t find on this side of the Tasman. Set on 120ha of gently rolling sand dunes, the 27 holes are all strikingly designed.
The final stop is a round at the Portsea Golf Club, which has just undergone a multimilliondollar renovation and looks well . . . a million dollars. Bordering the Point Nepean National Park there are a lot more trees but they don’t block the panoramic views across Port Phillip Bay. The bell-ringing to advise players behind you that you’ve played your second shot on undulating holes is a nice touch. It must have helped to ward off those snakes as well.
The writer travelled as a guest of Tourism Victoria.