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

[Kyle Henderson]

For mine the P3's (13 and 16) are the only real good holes over the road. 16 in particular is worth seeing on its own and is close to the best long P3 in Australia.

Agreed, although the green complexes are pretty decent on 14 and 15.

[Ben Jarvis]

Personally, i enjoy playing 14 and 15 West. I'm not sure that they are great golf holes but i wouldn't say they are bad either. It has some pretty tough competition either side of them!!

[Kyle Henderson]

While it is easy to miss the sudden shift in topography at the short 13th, the 14th (335 meters/366 yards) appears starkly flat compared with its siblings across the road.


The fairway bends right around native grasses before diving through a narrow gap between bunkers protecting the green’s front.


The green slopes from right-to-left, favoring players that lay back to the left edge of the fairway. Big ballers could drive this green with favorable winds.

[Scott Warren]

To me, 13-16 is brilliant flat ground architecture. The features are smaller, more low-profile and understated than on the wild land over the road.

I also like the variety you get at 14 and 15 - the fairway hidden beyond the sea of native grass on the right at 14 and the rough-covered ridges at 15.

It all adds to the amazing amount of variety the course has and perhaps adds more to the whole than four more holes on wild undulations might have.

[Kyle Henderson]

Of the 15th (434 meters/477 yards), which was formerly the 4th hole on the old “Sandringham” golf course, architect Alister MacKenzie remarked “I’ll leave it more or less as it is, to show people how bad the old design was.” I didn’t think the 15th was half bad, though the tee shot is a bit dull.

The tees are left of frame (this is the view from the 14th green) and pointed at the wide and rather flat fairway viewed yonder.


Once in the fairway, things may get a bit more interesting, especially if the green is within reach. If it is not, the broken ground up ahead is cause for concern.


One can lay up past the broken ground and carry bunker (favor the right side) for an easy uphill approach.

[Kyle Henderson]

At the 16th tee one is faced with the last and longest par 3 of the round (202 meters/ 221 yards). The bunkering scheme seems to favor a right-handed draw, barring a significantly influential wind.


There is a bit of space just short of the green for low shots to run, but over-clubbed approaches will often run through the back.

[Kevin Pallier]

There's a nice little fallaway over the back of 16 and it's OK to be long or short - just not left or right 

[Kyle Henderson]

Players are faced with a challenging par 4 at the 17th tee (401 meters/439 yards). The drive must negotiate bilateral bunkers and an off-camber fairway that bends a bit to the left.


The simplest approach shots are played from near (or over) this bunker on the high, inside corner of the fairway.


Tee shots that stray to the right will force players to contend with bunkers guarding the green’s starboard flank on the approach. The slope of the fairway may also push tee balls into the bushes boarding the low side of the fairway.


A pronounced slope at the front of the green complicates efforts to fire at this day’s pin position. Bunkering is used well here, not only from a strategic standpoint, but also to tie the green complex in with the bordering native areas.

[Neil_Crafter]

I love this hole. The best green and greensite on the course IMHO, and it has some stiff competition.

[Kyle Henderson]

The 18th hole (396 meters/433 yards) asks for a tee shot that carries a diagonally positioned bunker complex to an off camber fairway that curves to the right, a nice counterpoint to the 17th tee shot. Sadly, with modern technology, the carry is not particularly daunting for decent players


At the final green complex, the large putting surface is attractively bunkered around the periphery such that the day’s pin position will largely determine the hole’s overall difficulty.


A poor recovery shot or a strongly wind-aided tee shot might leave one with the “hardest shot in golf.”


A wide view from the right provides a better sense of the green's enormity.


Hefty visitor fees not withstanding, the West Course, is nearly idyllic as a golfing experience.

[Scott Warren]

I got fooled into carrying the bunker and was in rough. In reality you don't want to hit it right of the big turf island in the left side of the bunker.

[Kevin Pallier]

I got fooled into carrying the bunker and was in rough. In reality you don't want to hit it right of the big turf island in the left side of the bunker.

Scott

Did you hit the shot with a draw ?

Last time I played it - I aimed over the last section of it at the tree in the distance and got a nice kick onto the flatter section of fairway.

[Ash Towe]

Kyle,

Thanks for the tour.

It is a great course and the 18th is a fitting finale to a memorable experience.

[Matthew Mollica]

I love this hole (17). The best green and greensite on the course IMHO, and it has some stiff competition.

+1. Such a brilliant greensite, and exquisite bunkering.

Thanks for the photos & commentary Kyle.
That drive on 18 looks a little different these days with the absence of two large trees right of the fairway bunker complex.

MM

[Kyle Henderson]

I got fooled into carrying the bunker and was in rough. In reality you don't want to hit it right of the big turf island in the left side of the bunker.

Scott,
Tyler (accidently) hit a pushed fade over the right trees and had a flip wedge in while Bill and I played on your line and ended up through the fairway.

[Brett_Morrissy]

So Kyle, where does RMGCW sit in your world of golf, with some time for contemplation, not a ranking as such, and in particular against the wide variety on 'new' courses you have played?

great tour, again, thank you.

[Patrick Kiser]

Yep, good stuff El Capitan.

Fond memories...

A special place and not to be forgotten any time soon.

Thanks for sharing as always.

[Neil_Crafter]

I love this hole (17). The best green and greensite on the course IMHO, and it has some stiff competition.

+1. Such a brilliant greensite, and exquisite bunkering.

Thanks for the photos & commentary Kyle.
That drive on 18 looks a little different these days with the absence of two large trees right of the fairway bunker complex.

MM

what good taste 

[Matthew Delahunty]

Matt and Neil,

I agree.  The 17th is probably now my favourite hole on the course.  It doesn't quite reveal itself from the tee, but the view which unfolds as you walk up the fairway is one of the best in Australian golf.


Kyle,

Thanks for the pictorial.  Great photos of a great course.   

[Kyle Henderson]

So Kyle, where does RMGCW sit in your world of golf, with some time for contemplation, not a ranking as such, and in particular against the wide variety on 'new' courses you have played?

great tour, again, thank you.

The Royal Melbourne Golf Club probably boasts the best pair of courses of any 36-hole club I've visited, though The West (RMW) is clearly the star of the show. The Composite course is just a smidge better than RMW - not as much as I expected - and I was very surprised by the quality of the 16th from the East course, as it will be used in the Composite for just the first time in this year's president's cup.

From the few dozen courses I've now played down under, I think RMW ranks behind Barnbougle Dunes for me. BD is just a bit more “fun” and features a greater number of holes from top-to-bottom that I'm dying to play again ASAP. While there are no bad holes at RMW, I wasn’t overly enamored with 1,7,11,12, or 14. While they are likeable, almost every hole at BD is better than those ones, IMHO.

RMW is now a part of the city and while the quality of the course is undeniable, the ubiquitous security gates and hefty visitor fees detract from the experience. BD (and lost Farm) also benefit from peace and quiet and the relaxed, accessible vibe that I prefer.

Verdict: While I would relish another day at RMW, Barnbougle is the one I would revisit first.

Relative to American courses:
Cypress Point is still my favorite MacKenzie course. Ballyneal is still my favorite course anywhere. RMW and BD are just a bit behind, according to my sensibilities.

[Scott Warren]

So Kyle,

If someone asked you to put on a rater fedora and cold, hard rate them, you'd have:

1. Barnbougle Dunes
2. Royal Melbourne (West)

??

[Sven Nilsen]

A little video starring Mayhugh and Whitaker with special guest the RM Oldest Member:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiRHmorhwjQ

[Kyle Henderson]

So Kyle,

If someone asked you to put on a rater fedora and cold, hard rate them, you'd have:

1. Barnbougle Dunes
2. Royal Melbourne (West)

??

Well, as I said, RMW is hard to beat as an experience or a golf course, but sitting here at my desk I would most like to remove my ranking hat and have another round at Barnbougle Dunes or Lost Farm, away from the city, the housing, the streets and the crowds (on some very good courses).

In the Melbourne Sand Belt, Kingston Heath is probably the next best course after RMW, though I really enjoyed Victoria. But, again, I like the isolated feel (and topography) of Peninsula, so I’d probably opt for a day on the North and South courses with Mr. Ferguson, even though I probably would not rate either course quite so highly for any official publication.

Further down the Mornington Penisula, St. Andrews Beach is a unique offering of considerable merit. The property of The National Golf Club is pretty spectacular, even if none of the 3 courses quite match their potential. Portsea, though quite short and with many small flattish greens, is an absolute blast from tee to green – so many quirky and original holes are offered there!!!

[Mark Bourgeois]

I love this hole (17). The best green and greensite on the course IMHO, and it has some stiff competition.

+1. Such a brilliant greensite, and exquisite bunkering.

Thanks for the photos & commentary Kyle.
That drive on 18 looks a little different these days with the absence of two large trees right of the fairway bunker complex.

MM

Warms my heart to see the three of us agreeing on 17 green. In all my travels I've come to believe that bunker represents the apex of artistry on a golf course -- perhaps the entire complex. Such wonderful proportions and elegant asymmetry.

Many thanks for the tour, Kyle.

[Kevin Pallier]

Thanks Kyle for sharing your passions with us.

Keep the tours coming.