Royal Melbourne Golf Club - West Course: A Pictorial!!! (18th hole posted)

[David_Elvins]

Wade,

I think the approaches are fescue.  

With regards to the 4th, I think the bunekrs were fanstastic when there was ample room to play around them on the left.  

Now that the options to play left or right of them is so treacherous, it would be almost preferable to remove them from a playability point of view. Which is a pity, because they were great bunkers.  

[Matthew Delahunty]

Wade:

Scott, isn't that couch grass rather than fescue?  More importantly, I have it on good authority that the club is replanting the greens  (for the President's Cup) with the Scott's mix that they used to use.  Any comments on that from the turf experts?

The greens have already been changed back, haven't they?

There is - we were told in March when we visited - a ring of fescue around the greens to stop the couch creeping into the greens, as there's a product that kills everything other than fescue than can be applied to that area periodically.

The greens have all been relaid for the Presidents' Cup.  The grass is Sutton's Mix.  The original greens at Royal Melbourne were Sutton's mix but they were ripped up in the late 80s and replaced with Penncross which was never suitable.  I understand that there was a nursery green where the old grass was still growing and some samples were sent to New Zealand and cultivated.  The greens were relaid with Sutton's mix about 10 years ago and provided a fantastic surface for about 18 months before other grasses, then fungus, crept in.  Since then the club appears to have had all sorts of problems with them, including killing several when someone got the concentration of some chemical wrong.  The greens have been relaid in the past 3 or 4 years - I believe with the same grass.  As Scott says the fringes have been converted to fescue.

[Kyle Henderson]

The 7th plays 135 meters (148 yards) uphill to a skyline green. Originally, if I’m not mistaken, the hole was played to a green site a bit further left and from tee grounds 90-degrees to the left.


Bunkers will ensnare shots that miss short, right or long, and the green is heavily canted towards the front.

[Ben Jarvis]

A fantastic short uphill par-3, requiring perfect club selection. With firm greens (as they are now), this hole can be a nightmare when played downwind.

[Ben Jarvis]

6th (391meters/428 yards) tee shot is a dogleg to the right at a fantastic angle that dares players to bite off as much as they can chew.


Failure to carry the bunkers will almost certainly cost most golfers a stroke. Failure to reach the bunkers may provide golfers with the opportunity to play another tee shot…


Beyond the 2nd green of the East Course (outside the dogleg of the West course’s 6th fairway), the West’s 6th green is benched against the hillside, with bunkers protecting both flanks.  Personal anecdote: Standing in the short left bunker in the distance, with my ball just outside of the pot on short grass around waist-high, I gripped a putter 5 inches about the mallet and took a mighty swing to set up a successful par putt from 5 feet.


One may find use the slope along the right side (left of frame looking back from behind the 6th green) of the putting surface to access starboard pin locations, but such a shot must be carefully judged to avoid the adjacent bunkers


The back-to-front tilt of the 6th green and the spatial relationships of its surrounding hazards are viewed from the right along the path to #7.

One of the great driving holes and one of the great approach shots - both on the same hole!

[Sven Nilsen]

Photos can't do justice to how deep the front bunker is on the 7th, and how the green feels like a shelf hanging over the bunkers.  Its the kind of green that if you didn't watch your step you might just back up off a putt and find yourself tumbling into a sandy pit.

I completely butchered my tee ball on this hole and didn't get the benefit of seeing if a ball struck to the left side of the green will feed to the right.  Anyone else able to pull this shot off?

[Scott Warren]

Paging David Kelly.

Sven, DK hit the most gorgeous draw (he is a lefty, of course) that settled about 2ft from the hole.

I was short off the tee and was able to use the slope of the green to feed my chip close, so I can vouch for the green being useful in that regard.

[David Kelly]

Paging David Kelly.

Sven, DK hit the most gorgeous draw (he is a lefty, of course) that settled about 2ft from the hole.

I was short off the tee and was able to use the slope of the green to feed my chip close, so I can vouch for the green being useful in that regard.

That came after having screwed up my favorite hole in the Southern Hemisphere right before. 

Scott, if you remember there were a bunch of guys hanging around that green, looking at plans, looking at the green and having discussions.  Do you know if anything has been subsequently done to the 7th hole?

[jonathan_becker]

 #3-7 look like five of the best consecutive holes you could possibly play anywhere in the world.

For longer amateurs and especially for the pros at the Presidents Cup....is there any reason to hit driver off of #6?  If they do hit driver, are they going to have to completely cut the corner?  It seems too aggressive of a play just looking at the photos.

[Ben Jarvis]

Jonathan,

I played with one of the assistant pro's at RM earlier this year. On the same day he hit 3-wood over the back of the green on #3 (yes, that's right!), he hit a cut driver into A1 position on #6, leaving a wedge into one of the most treacherous greens in the world. Given the format of the President's Cup, i think we'll see more drivers than not...i hope!

[jonathan_becker]

Thanks, Ben.  Was this cut driver with a hurting wind?  Downwind it looks as if you would almost have to slice it some considering how far some guys can move it now.

[Mac Plumart]

I have nothing to add, except WOW!!!  Keep it coming guys, great thread. 

[Scott Warren]

Jonathan,

In Kyle's pics and in the below aerial, you can see a small tree just right of the bunkers on the near side of the fairway. Kind of blends in with the background in Kyle's pic, but you can see the trunk, which shows it's on the right of the fairway and not the left. Anyway, you can see that you can hit the ball bullet straight inside that tree and that would leave about a full wedge in.

According to GoogleMaps the carry from the back tee over the far right bunker is about 225m, so 247yds. Into the wind it would likely require driver for at least some pros.

Of course a cut ensures the ball runs out more towards the green than across the fairway, ensuring the best line in, but I would suggest that with a wedge in hand as opposed to the 6i I had in my hand for the approach shot, the benefit of that preferred angle is diluted somewhat.

[Ben Jarvis]

Thanks, Ben.  Was this cut driver with a hurting wind?  Downwind it looks as if you would almost have to slice it some considering how far some guys can move it now.

Hurting a fraction from the right Jonathan, if my memory serves me correctly.

The fairways at RM are legend couch, meaning that there is much less role than there once was. I think this was used as a measure to lengthen the course somewhat, given the lack of room to move tees back.

[jonathan_becker]

Thanks, Scott and Ben.  

That tree trunk is a super aggressive line.  I'm not too sure how well I would do on that line with my block miss to the right!

I like that 247 number.  Downwind you can carry a 3 metal and into the wind a driver shouldn't get too far away from you.  Man, it looks like depending on your shot shape there are a ton of lines you can take off of this tee.  Just like Kyle said....it dares you to bite off as much as you can chew.

Thanks for the photos everyone.  I'm enjoying this thread quite a bit.

[Patrick Kiser]

Paging David Kelly.

Sven, DK hit the most gorgeous draw (he is a lefty, of course) that settled about 2ft from the hole.

I was short off the tee and was able to use the slope of the green to feed my chip close, so I can vouch for the green being useful in that regard.

That came after having screwed up my favorite hole in the Southern Hemisphere right before. 

Scott, if you remember there were a bunch of guys hanging around that green, looking at plans, looking at the green and having discussions.  Do you know if anything has been subsequently done to the 7th hole?

David,

That was a great comeback on the 7th...

[Kyle Henderson]

The 8th hole (346 meters/379 yards) parallels the 1st hole from the East Course to a green set just inside the property line of the club. The fairway bunker complex along the left side is shared between the two holes.


While the fairway bunkers contain some nasty bushes, drives that narrowly avoid this hazard will yield the best approach angle into the green. The left-to-right angled putting surface slopes towards a pair of hidden bunkers at the rear

[Mark Chaplin]

Shane Gurnett is also the master of the drive and wedge approach to the 6th.

I love the fact there is a nice wide fairway out to the left making RMW6 a playable hole for everyone, yes there is jungle to carry down the right but no one HAS to go for the carry. Most good players will not even notice the fairway down the left but as one gets older it will gradually become the regular route of play.

In round one we all found the fairway and had 7 irons into the classic left centre pin, with the green hard and putting pretty quickly. Our member partner quite rightly suggested we hit to the centre of the green and all four of us duly did as requested. Sadly FIVE was our best score with everyone three putting!

[Wade Schueneman]

Thank you Scott, David and Matthew.  That information is very helpful.  I am very eager to do an Australia trip in the near future (probably RME RMW x 2, KH, BD, LF and perhaps NSW).  Of course, given the distance (and thus the fact that it is a trip that I am not likely to repeat for several years at least) I am eager to get my timing right as far as conditioning is concerned.  I do not care if the course looks like August, but I would love for it to play firm and for the fabled putting surfaces at RM and KH to play fast and true (a friend of mine tells me that when those greens are in top form they are the best in the world).  I have high hopes that after the President's Cup RM will be in top nick for some time.

[David_Elvins]

With regard to the carry distance at 6, it is worth noting that the back tee was removed when the 4th was butchered/redesigned.  Back in the day, aggressive long jitters like Norman and Lindsay Stephen used to hit power fades around the corner and wedge it in.  Mote recently most pros played 3 wood off the tee and about 8 iron in. 

With the back tee gone and advances in equipment, I fear that the hole will have lost some of its magic when the presidents cup comes around.

[Kyle Henderson]

The 9th hole (380 meters/416 yards) rides a wave of gracefully undulating land before culminating at an elevated green site. The bunkers in the foreground of this picture are shared with the 8th hole and well short of the landing zone for the 9th tee shot.


The green runs from short/right to long/left with bunkers on both flanks. Running approaches can access front pins using a “Redanish” kick plate just short of the putting surface.


A large collection area behind the green will prove to be a popular spot with this day’s pin location. From here, the green slopes away rather quickly towards the front.

[Scott Warren]

I liked 8 and 9, and thought they were an important break from the sensory overload of 3-7.

Two holes here with a lot less drama than the preceding holes, but still strong reward for precise placement and execution, and where 8 asks for a fade approach, 9 wants a draw.

I like the placement of the crest in the driving zone at 9, so the longer the strike the greater the reward, too.

[Kyle Henderson]

I like the placement of the crest in the driving zone at 9, so the longer the strike the greater the reward, too.

You like holes that help the longest hitters hit it even longer? Paging Mr. Ward!!!

[Scott Warren]

Sure. Hitting it long is a talent and all talents ought to be rewarded at times. Not just the longest hitters, but anyone who knocks it over the ridge gets a benefit.

NSW 5th, St Andrews Beach 18th (down the right), Pine Valley 4th, Fishers Island 9th and The Addington 16th offer similar rewards for a long and accurate tee shot.

[Kyle Henderson]

Sure. Hitting it long is a talent and all talents ought to be rewarded at times. Not just the longest hitters, but anyone who knocks it over the ridge gets a benefit.

NSW 5th, St Andrews Beach 18th (down the right), Pine Valley 4th, Fishers Island 9th and The Addington 16th offer similar rewards for a long and accurate tee shot.

Those courses blow, moron.    


EDIT: The turbo boost does add to the variety of the round, although long ballers do get quite a few boosts on The West Course (#4, #9, #12, #18).