Course 37 for 2023 – Portsea GC, Vic
The challenging 169m par3 7th. Clubhouse in background
Nomadic_golfer : November 2023 – Portsea Golf Club, Vic, review
Par 71, 5747m slope 135 $75
4 par3s 151-169m, 11 par4s 256-407m, 3 par5s 436-484m
Portsea GC started out in the 1920s as a 9 hole Alex Russell design. Sloan Morpeth, then more recently Mike Clayton, and now OCM, have all left their stamp on this wonderful layout on an undulating site at the bottom of the peninsula, that is both intriguing, challenging and fun. A slope of 135 for a par71 of only 5747m attests to the elements of challenge here and it is not due to super-narrow fairways. There are lots of options off tees and there are a number of holes where the premium really is on the tee shot (think the shortish par5s in 3 (436m) and 11 (447m) that possess 2 of the trickier tee-shots, with trouble on both sides of the fairway, and no bail-outs). There are a few blind tee shots also, while exposure to the elements is a key factor here; when that wind is up (which happens more often that not) those fairways play narrower, the greens smaller and the yardages longer.
The green complexes hold the key here overall though. I loved the quick, smallish bent/ poa greens. Some have severe slopes/ tilts, but you feel like they are all so appropriate for the hole they are attached to. There are some excellent shape/ slope/ tilt combinations (narrow/ shallow) that define the particular hole. The shallow green on the 151m par 3 13th looking diagonally at you from short left to long right is a beauty, as is the narrow, heavily high-back to low-front tilted green on the 158m 16th. The firmness of the surfaces also means you must approach from the right angles as even well struck wedges landing on downhill sections of these greens will be difficult to control. Fairways were firm and running also, requiring an extra dimension of thinking on distance control off the tee.
Recent works that disposed of most of the cypress trees, have ensured the ti-tree and moonah are prominent and sexy, and deliver a real sea-swept look about the course. A program to fill waste areas with native grasses has had a great start and will continue to enhance the look, feel and integrity of the property too.
Other features that appealed to me were: the approach and green complex on 6 (330m par4 with tight tee shot that turns a little right and steeply uphill to a heavily bunkered and contoured green – those bunkers look so menacing but so natural); the ‘Little Devil’ (256m uphill par4 10th, a polarising equivalent to the 5th at Cathedral Lodge with lots of tilt on the fairway kicking your ball strongly towards an array of large, deep, soft bunkers); the unusual and spectacular 407m par4 14th (blind drive over a crest before turning slightly right and downhill to a brilliant green complex nestled into banks at the bottom of the hill and protected across the front by bunkers left and right); and the classic short4 15th (tee shot is key on this 267m par4 that turns left to right around a large mound, with jungle left and a ‘table-top’ fairway to hold.
Overall, this old classic at the bottom of the Mornington Peninsula feels like it is insulated from suffering at the hands of modern technology, with its natural defences having elements of immunity against sheer power. The hard & quick surfaces, lay of the land, price you pay for wayward tee shots and exposure to the elements ensures you need to do more than just tee up driver after driver and bomb away. It has an unforced natural feel about it, and it won me over.
