I've tried searching for posts on the newly opened Lonsdale Links and haven't found anything, so I thought it could be an interesting first post.
I recently made the trip down to the Bellarine Peninsula for a weekend away with the family and snuck in rounds at Barwon Heads and Lonsdale Links. Barwon Heads was as fun as always, but I was really excited for the Sunday round at Lonsdale.
For those that don't know, Lonsdale Links (formally the Lonsdale Golf Club) is the recently completed project by Ogilvy Cocking Mead. The first 9 holes opened in late 2019 to positive reviews, and the second 9 holes and clubhouse opened in December 2020.
OCM used the work of Charles Blair Macdonald, Seth Raynor and Charles Banks as inspiration featuring a number of template holes for a unique look for an Australian course. Elements of these templates at Lonsdale include the Alps, Biarritz, Plateau, Eden, Leven, Punchbowl, Thumbprint, Redan and a version of the Road that played as a 235m Par 3 for us.
The course also features frequent straight lines and square-edged greens - features that I believe are rare in Australia.
The club's new website that has a fantastic looking video is available below.
https://www.lonsdalelinks.com.au/cms/ All in all, it was an absolute blast to play. There are a number of drivable par 4's, the second shot into the reachable par 5 Punchbowl was thrilling, but the par 3 Thumbprint was the highlight for me.
As someone who hasn't had the privilege of playing NGLA, Fishers Island, Sleepy Hollow or any other Raynor, Macdonald or Tillinghast course, and likely won't get to for a while, Lonsdale Links felt like a little taste of the courses that are out of reach for most Australian golfers.
I would love to hear from people with more than my (admittedly very limited) knowledge of the project and why we don't have more (any?) courses like this in Australia.