Course no. 10 – Mannum, SA
I don’t think locals would mind me using the racing vernacular ‘a step down in class’ to describe this 9 hole course in the houseboat capital of SA, after just playing Royal Adelaide and Victor Harbor .
Its very well-watered, heavily favours the right to left golfer and unusually for a 9 holer, has an 18 hole par of 73
Nomadic_golfer : February 2020
Par 73, 5707m, slope 117, green fee $25 (18 holes)
4 par 3s from 118 – 140m, 9 par 4s from 276 – 390m, 5 par 5s from 421 – 445m
After a couple of great tracks, expectations were reset a little as we (the ol’ left-handed fella was still with me) tackled this 9 holer with 18 different tees. Mannum is a beautiful town on the Murray ~100 km east of Adelaide and is home to many houseboats, both holiday and residential. You will also find paddle-steamers on the river here, and get to experience the quaint, old-style, steel-cabled ferry to cross the river. The golf course is an interesting beast, with some positives and some quirky little features. With the 2 sets of tees on each hole, the outcome is a par of 73 with the par 5 first hole changing par for the 10th as it utilises a tee that is 55m forward.
The first thing that hit us at the beginning of February was how soft the fairways and greens were; they must have been pumping a lot of water onto the course. The greens, despite being soft and slow were fairly smooth and as such, predictable. They are very small and severely sloped. Fairways are rye/ kikuyu and were very lush. The first 3 fairways are flanked by pines but it opens up after this, with less trees, not necessarily wider fairways. There are half a dozen bunkers around the course.
One very unusual part of the course’s composition is that 6 of the 9 holes (6 out of 7 if you discount the par 3s) shape from right to left, with most being severe doglegs. It’s a happy hooker’s delight! The 5 par 5s under 450m give you a good chance to score well, provided you can work the ball right to left consistently. Highlights are the par 3 6th (118m) & 15th (131m) with a part carry of a quarry, which sits short and right, to a back to front sloping green, and the scary par 5 7th, a severe dogleg left around the town’s cemetery. Longer hitters are required to drive across the cemetery and you can chew off much more than you think if you are game to deal with the consequences if you don’t make it across!
