[tonyt]

#14 (428y). The tee shot on the dogleg left, which offers a shorter route home via taking on the bunker, or a line even further left for the bigger boys or when the tees aren’t back. A pity this hole plays a lot shorter than it once did, as it relied a lot on its length for the gentle swale in front of the green to repel longer shots coming in which failed to carry all the way to the front. The intention was to make the average player carry over it with their pitch third shot, and the better players negotiate it with their second to try and weave their ball onto the putting surface. Nowadays, a reasonable player in the fairway has at most a mid iron in. I still think this is one of the most beautiful and yet very simple green complexes to look at here, and sits gorgeously in its surrounds like it is has always been there


The approach


From short and well left, at the back of the tee at #9


Looking back





#15 (302y). Ahh, what to say about #15. The previous incarnation of this hole until the end of the last decade looked like this.


Now if the hole had to be gently caressed into a different mould due to boundary concerns, what would you do? This change at such a venerable club should be handled in the way a patient parent arrives home and takes the sleeping toddler in the back seat and slips them seamlessly into their own bed without waking them in the process. A change for sure, but nobody unobservant seems to notice a thing. Here, RM have decided to wake the child by blaring up the car stereo, flipping them out of their seat and making them run up the steps to the door, cleaned their teeth with a whining power toothbrush and slamming the door after tucking them in by jamming the sheets so tight they have a more compressed chest than a patient under cardiac arrest. So why do these parents wonder that with after a deal of time later, the child is still very restless and doesn’t even look like bedding in and going back to sleep? If the other sandy waste and un-bedded areas of the new works will take as long as this one is doing to look the part, then the members here have an unfinished and un-Royal Melbourne look about these holes at least until half way through next decade.

The tee shot announces very loudly that you have returned to the middle paddock, with its sandy waste look. For sure, a pleasant three hole golf course exists on this small paddock, but why does it have to split up two paddocks of Royal Melbourne, for surely it is not in Royal’s class at all. Pity is that it once was. The tee shot below is played to a wide fairway (more room left of pic). The green is attainable for better players, but being short of it is better than being around it within a few yards if you don’t get to pick exactly where around it you are. Out of left or right side of the wide fairway, the best angle in is from…urr….anywhere. Though the further away from the sandy waste trouble to the right, the more open the look and more room around the apron you have at your disposal


The approach from the right side near the sandy waste, a look Russell obviously envisaged would suddenly come into vogue 70 years after this great course was finished


From behind the green. Just like at #7 where I didn’t photograph the waste area to its left, I could have made this hole an even easier target for criticism and taken a photo down this fairway from the tee at #5. Next time anyone is on the tee at #5, look down #15. There is no way that what you see there should be anywhere near an Australian top 100 course

[Shane Gurnett]

Tony, below is the view from the green looking back down the fairway (similiar to the view from the 5th tee). This picture was taken about 9-10 months ago.



Are they maintaining the edge of the waste are to look more like a bunker these days? Or has the vegetation been cleared in advance of further changes to the design or planting in that area. I agree it doesn't look quite right. The green on the hole is also vastly different to what used to be there.

Shane

[Mark_F]

The impression I am getting is that the holes outside of the main paddock seem very flat, with only the green complexes having the variation, in that they are placed on little plateaux, and/or have gentle swales surrounding them?

PS: New fangled digital gimmickry or not, when you are pointing the camera with the sun shining into it, you will come out with an underexposed picture, and thus need to give a little more exposure than the meter indicates.  

[tonyt]

Are they maintaining the edge of the waste are to look more like a bunker these days? Or has the vegetation been cleared in advance of further changes to the design or planting in that area. I agree it doesn't look quite right. The green on the hole is also vastly different to what used to be there.

Much further cleared now. Definitelty doesn't tie in with the bunkering, so one can only hope that the vegetation plan they may have works. But they have had a few years on this bit now, and still no signs. To see how the waste doesn't fit alongside the bunkering, one only has to see #7 where they are joined together, and it looks very awkward to say the least. No way should they both be on the same golf course.

New fangled digital gimmickry or not, when you are pointing the camera with the sun shining into it, you will come out with an underexposed picture, and thus need to give a little more exposure than the meter indicates.

Mark, which icon thingy on my gizmo settings helps me do that? Mate, you WAY overestimate my photgraphic prowess if you think I can find that by myself

[tonyt]

The impression I am getting is that the holes outside of the main paddock seem very flat, with only the green complexes having the variation, in that they are placed on little plateaux, and/or have gentle swales surrounding them?

Flattish, yes. But there are bits and pieces there. Some minor (like internal contouring you'd see in a good green) and some run like almost unseen long trails throughout the property. It is never flat enough to be called truly "flat", and an archie working on a flat piece of land would have to move an enormous amount during cionstruction to achieve even half the result of this.

I think that is a huge and often unsaid point about a lot of sites. That virtually flat can be worlds and worlds away from absolutely flat. And provide lots of opportunities in the ground that absolutely flat sites don't have. On two of the past three occasions I played East, I played the outer paddock twice, such is how much i find it very enjoyable and never dull or "worked" to get its great results.

[Mark_F]

Mark, which icon thingy on my gizmo settings helps me do that? Mate, you WAY overestimate my photgraphic prowess if you think I can find that by myself

I dunno, but if you bring it during a round, I can have a look see.  It may be a dial with + and - symbols followed by a couple of numbers.

Do the outer paddocks of the East have more land movement in them than Metropolitan?

[Brian Walshe]

Tony,

I'm trying to remember how many changes there have been to 15E in the last few years.  I'm not sure if I've got all of it but there was a new green which was dreadful.  Excuse was the plans were read incorrectly from memory.  Then they changed that to pretty much what is there now which isn't as good as the original.  Looking at your photos and Shane's I'd say they are up to about the 3rd go at the right hand "sandy waste/rough".  As long as the tree on the left is there people are going to aim right.  Hopefully with the 5th tee moving the tree might go and open up the left side.

The aerial of 7 is amazing.  It looks like they attempted to use the fairway bunker complexes on 8W as inspiration but then just couldn't stop adding bunkers after that.

[tonyt]

Do the outer paddocks of the East have more land movement in them than Metropolitan?

I reckon similar (give or take), with RM folding them into play a bit better.

[Andrew Thomson]

Tony,

I note the symmetrical SQUARE tee is still there on 15 as well.  A minor point I know, but still a stupid change.

[tonyt]

#16 (167y). Playing this hole is a joy. It doesn’t beat you up, and a mediocre but fair shot can be enough sometimes to ensure par. But to attain a birdie opportunity or ensure yourself of par from a probable but not definite predicament, a little respect is required. And once missing the green, the four is often fairly easy but the three will often have to be very hard fought for. Then don’t start me about playing this in a firm dry summer. In those conditions, the tee shot needs to be a little more exacting. Picturesque, very functional and a great potential late turner of a round that doesn’t look like one in comparison to the other closing holes, which is the danger to the complacent.

From the right hand tee


From the left tee


From behind the green






#17 (556y) has played a great role throughout the years as penultimate hole of many Championships. Including numerous Australian Opens & PGA Championships, World Cups, and various others. Despite the good finish to the West now among the closing holes, it is a pity this hole has lost its place in the order



From the seamless. almost accidental start of the wonderful cross bunkering. This pic could be my wallpaper as often as any seaside magnificent photo


Looking back from behind

[tonyt]

Sorry about how long and drawn out this has been. Finally, here is #18. I hope if future Australian course photo tours are done, there may be more interest, questions and comment from our North American friends. Even those who may never travel here. And whilst I could never match his wonderful offerings, I hope this northern winter that some Australian course photo threads may garner at least part of the amount of interest as Mark’s fantastic UK series some time back.

East gets so maligned I think. It is not as good as West, but it is not a dramatic fall in quality, and this course is for me among the top half dozen or so courses in Australia, perhaps at worst as low as just inside the top 10. The amazing quality runs of holes (which differ in makeup slightly in different players’ eyes) for me are #1-4, #9-13 and #16-18. Though there is plenty of good also in some of the elements of the other holes, either now or that can be recaptured.

#18 (430y). The traditional closing hole to all significant Championships here on the composite course for many years now. A wide open fairway (the clubhouse normally can’t be seen during big events as this side is lined by stands) which is devilish in that the width hides the immense difficulty (or should I say near impossibility) in attacking a hole location on the same side of the green as the approach is coming from. The green is further around the corner to the left of the distant front right greenside bunkering


The second shot


Looking back


From hole high right over the edge of the putting green, from the clubhouse balcony, beer in hand

[Matt_Sullivan]

Tony, thanks for a great series of pictures. Like you I think the course is sometimes unfairly maligned. It is clearly top 5 or 6 I think, with only RMW and KH in front of it on the sandbelt, and it sits comfortably in the next rank with NSW, RA and BD, and ahead of Vic, St AB, and the rest.

Actually I think that the stretches of holes you mention are as good or better than anything else in oz, except for what you find on the West (and up there with stretches of holes like 14-18 at KH (yes I do like 17!),  5 thru 9 at NSW, 3-7 at BD and the like)

Thanks again

[James Bennett]

Q1.  Tony

how would you compare the degree of land movement on the east over the three paddocks, and perhaps compare it with the West.


Q2.  JES II (and Tyler Kearns and Matt Cohn and other visitors to Australia)

If you see this, do you have a comment on the degree of land movement in the sand-belt vs the best courses in NE USA?  Did this surprise you?


Q 3.  Tony and others

further to JWL and Tom Doak's comments on the dominant Culture of Club's vs the Culture of Course's (see the thread on 'do course ratings matter to clubs'), I'd be interested in a snapshot of any significant changes to RM East over the last say 40 years.  I understand that the greens were returfed to penncross in the 1980's for a while, and then returned to Suttons Mix.  However, apart from the recent works, I am not aware of any details on green relocations, significant changes in green undulations and bunkering amendment.  If so, then RM East has been well preserved, to date.  

James B

[Shane Gurnett]

Tony, thanks for taking the time and effort to provide a tour around one of Melbourne finest, yet largely underrated courses (notwithstanding some of the recent works).

Modern technology has certainly taken the sting out of a hole like 18 East, to the point where during the last Heinekin commetators like Jack Newton were suggesting that it needs some new fairway bunkering to toughen it up for the modern players. With players hitting short irons into the hole these days as opposed to mid to long irons 15 years ago, I can see his point, yet hopefully the club will resist any further changes to holes on the main paddock at least.

The new clubhouse at RM is certainly a vast improvement over the old brick veneer specimen they had for 30 years.

[Chris Kane]

Shane, there is ample room for a new tee 25 metres back on 18, which would be an ideal solution for the tournament.

[tonyt]

how would you compare the degree of land movement on the east over the three paddocks, and perhaps compare it with the West.

The middle and outer paddocks on East have little overall movement, with just (as mentioned above) some seamlwess minor folds and faultlines that if not incorporated into the course, wouldn't get noticed. Which I think is part of its brilliance.

The main paddock moves a lot more in places and more dramatically, with the second West paddock probably midway between the two.

[Tyler Kearns]

Q2.  JES II (and Tyler Kearns and Matt Cohn and other visitors to Australia)

If you see this, do you have a comment on the degree of land movement in the sand-belt vs the best courses in NE USA?  Did this surprise you?

James,

Unfortunately, my golf travels have not taken me to the NE USA (yet!!) so I cannot make any comparison. As far as the 'Sandbelt' courses that I played, Peninsula County CC (North) had probably the best movement in the land which was surprising to me because the course does not recieve a lot of recognition, although I think that is changing as Michael Clayton continues to dramatically improve the layout.

TK

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