Course no. 13 – Coomealla GC, Dareton NSW
A tough test of your golfing skills with heavily wooded areas flanking the fairways on this course in the Mildura district that sits smack bang on the Murray and is well known for it’s quality.
Nomadic_golfer : February 2020
Par 72, 6093m, slope 126, green fee $35
4 par 3s from 137 – 200m, 10 par 4s from 309 – 407m, 4 par 5s from 469 – 515m
I first played Coomealla back in the 80’s and when I think of this course, it conjures up images of wayward drives ricocheting from tree to tree like a ball in a pinball machine. Not much has changed, it’s a tough track but a beauty, both aesthetically and from a golfing perspective. The Murray is in view from a number of holes on the front nine, but is not in play. You do share this course with a large number of roos.
Large gums everywhere makes driving difficult and the length of the course means you need to hit the fairways; driving is key. The tight knit Santa-Anna fairways are not narrow but the tall trees make it appear that way and if you miss them, it’s normally a chip out sideways. They were in really good condition on this February morning as were the bent greens, which ensured plenty of action on the approaches from those nice tight fairway lies. The finish to the front 9 is excellent, with 8 (476m) being a lovely par 5, best played with a tee shot down the right side to get around left trees to the green with your 2nd. The 407m 9th is one of the wider fairways and sweeps gently right to an undulating green. Back 9 highlights are the hard left turning 14 at 397m and the left to right 17th at 371 with dry banks catching the left tee shot but sloping back towards the fairway. There is hardly a weak hole on this course, and it remains a great test of golf and aesthetically pleasing.
