Ogilvy Clayton Golf Design - principally Mike Clayton, Ashley Mead and Mike Cocking - did an immense job on the first seven holes of their redesign of Bonnie Doon Golf Club.
I've said that before and I will say that again. I am undeniably biased as a member of BDGC, but as someone who joined the club almost solely on the strength of the news that OCGD was redesigning the course, I feel more than a little bit invested in the outcome. And I sleep well at night.
The first seven holes (and practice facility - 250m range and short game area) were completed early in 2012 and opened in May.
May is the beginning of winter down here in the Southern Hemisphere, so while the course was at an advanced enough state to be played at that stage, it was far from grown in.
Now, in mid-November, summer is still a few weeks off and the best growing months of the year are still ahead of us, yet in the 10 weeks or so of spring that have already passed the progress of the course has been noticeable and is at the stage now that some widespread photographic coverage will do the quality of the place justice.
The on-course crew deserves massive congratulations for what they have done the past while. For starters they have 21 or so holes to maintain while we are in the midst of work, but of late the standard of the new work has really boomed in its presentation. And they have been brilliant at setting the holes - pins and tees - up in ways that maximise the variety and fun of the holes OCGD designed.
Next time you see something on your home course that impresses you, thank the next greenkeeper you come across. They do some fantastic work at ungodly hours and in appalling weather at times.
And so, to the holes. 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 18 are new holes. 14 and 15 on land that was previously a former rubbish tip between BDGC and Eastlake GC and the rest are redesigns of existing holes.
9 - Short five, ~430mElevated tee, approach blind unless you're within about 160m of the green, which is defended left and right by cavernous bunkers. This hole, 10 and 18 have the most subtle of the new greens. many will drive it to 180-190m from the green, from which point they see only the top of the flag and have a gut-tearing choice to make in relation to whether they go for it.
10 - Long par four, 420m+Bunkers in the foreground are imposing, but shouldn't come into play on this hole (an extension of them to the right of shot is in play for a fanned approach to the 9th). A long drive will catch a steep slope stealing you another 40m or so. Diagonal bunkers down the right challenge the stud, but note the cape of fairway short of them that give the duffer an out. Green a great example of the "bowl and knob" style of OCGD, where many greens contains both bowls that will feed the ball to the hole and exposed (often frontal) knobs that provide the perfect place for a deflecting pin that rejects all bar the perfect approach.
12 - Short four, ~290m at tips, usually plays about 265mThis hole is thoroughly covered
HERE and
ALSO HERE. In short, it's the perfect tempting, risk/reward short four and with strong winds regularly varying between the north and south, we get all conditions that make this hole so much fun to play every day.
13 - Mid three - ~165mOn the longer side, but playing downhill. Winds tend to blow southerly or northerly in the east of Sydney, so this is generally downwind or into it. I've hit a 9i and I've had a flushed 3 hybrid fall short. Generally it's a 5i-7i shot. The green is mostly blind thanks to a diagonal ridge halfway between tee and green. The green is massive, but features some wild contours that make a two-putt a tough ask from the wrong segment of the green for that day's pin position.
14 - three-shot par five - ~520mThere's far more going on here than pictures can express. This hole needs a few plays in varying winds to be understood. Diagonal ridge visible in drive pic separates the course from the range and is the OOB line. Great use of a forced feature (the edge of the range) to create interest. The fairway bunker is reachable downwind, but into it you are short enough that the same hazard renders the lay-up zone blind. Left of a broad rough/native area is a LHS lay-up spot that provides a preferable angle to LHS pins. It's a benefit worthy of the risk of getting there from the driving zone. Green is really steep in the middle, further rewarding smart approach strategy and execution.
15 - Short three - 75m to 130mBold green feeds to chipping areas short if a ball carrying too much spin finds the front of the putting surface, which looks wild, but is far gentler up its right side than its left. Back left is a fantastic pin that gathers anything in the correct zone and really repels anything else. A bold hole, but at such a modest length there's no excuse for poor execution. Generally plays across the prevailing wind. Sometimes into the wind, almost never downwind.
18 - Long four - ~410mOne of my favourite holes on the course. Elevated drive gives you a shot downwind (maybe half the time) of taking on the LHS drive bunker at 250m from the tee and having a shortish iron in. If you drive to the safer RHS then a pushed-up hill of rough and sand obscures your approach to the bunkerless green. Challenges every shot without ever introducing a lost ball to the equation.
So that's it so far. 8, 11 and 16 get their facelift in the coming winter. can't wait for that stage, which takes us past half-way - to be complete. It features some of the best land on the course, over which two ~300m part fours will be built.
The pictures don't do it justice. If in town please drop me a line and come out to see it for yourself.