Golf Australia Magazine – July 2019
Published on 5th July 2019 in Guest OnlyBy Brendan James, Editor Golf Australia Magazine:
…Barwon Heads Golf Club, was the highest-ranked Bellarine Peninsula course in Golf Australia’s Top-100 Public Access Courses list published in January this year.
Architects Neil Crafter and Paul Mogford have overseen subtle changes to the design as part of an ongoing development plan for the course. This has included bunker renovation and scrub clearing to further enhance the playability and visual appeal of the layout. These improving aspects, as well as the course’s immaculate conditioning under course superintendent Adam Lamb and his team, will no doubt keep Barwon Heads entrenched in the top percentile of this national ranking for some time to come.
Barwon Heads is the kind of course you enjoy more and more with every round you play as you begin to understand its nuances and realise how good the strategy of the design really is.
The layout, which measures a meagre 5,856 metres from the championship tees, continues to hold its own against the technological advances in golf equipment and remains as challenging today as it was when Victor East laid out his creation.
“Barwon Heads is the kind of course you enjoy more and more with every round you play …”
Most would describe Barwon Heads as a links course but the majority of the holes are more reminiscent of those found in the Melbourne Sandbelt. In truth it really is only the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th holes that really fit the links course billing. These holes, across a narrow road from the historical clubhouse, are brilliant, while the holes from the 7th (alongside the clubhouse) to the 18th are flanked by sometimes dense clumps of ti-tree and the occasional Cypress Pine.
The most memorable hole on the inward nine is also the shortest to be found at Barwon Heads. The 130-metre 13th is widely regarded as one the finest par-3s in Australia due to the simplicity of its design. The tee is perched high atop a sand dune and here you are totally exposed to the elements. On a still day the green can easily be reached with a short-iron but when the prevailing wind starts to roar, a fairway wood is needed to reach the putting surface below. Making par here should be easy – there are no bunkers, watery hazards and the ti-tree is some distance left of the green. But the combination of wind, elevation and poor club selection sees more bogies than birdies scored here.
Read the full article ‘Bella Amore!’ on the the Golf Australia magazine website