Course 42 for 2023 – Kingston Heath GC, Vic
Approach to the short par4 9th, 330m
Nomadic_golfer : December 2023 – Kingston Heath Golf Club, Vic review
Par 72, 6342m slope 133 (Blue)
3 par3s 127-172m, 12 par4s 268-420m, 3 par5s 461-515m
Kingston Heath might still be my first choice if I wanted to play a non-composite 18 hole course on any given day in the world of golf. It is always in good nick, there’s never any fuss, the layout is special and I have found that the setup is closest to what you see when they play the big events.
The superb 1925 Dan Soutar design sits on a flat, small parcel of land in the suburbs, albeit on a famous stretch of loamy sand base. It’s signature is the spectacular bunkering, closely followed by superbly contoured greens that place a huge premium on attacking from the right angles and kill you if you get on the wrong sides around the green. Rumour has it that a medical practitioner named MacKenzie had a bit to do with the bunkering here, and these deep traps that appear so very natural and are often cut straight up against the green surfaces, are just exceptional.
With firm surfaces as expected on the sandbelt, fairways are typically firm and running. The fairways gradually turn to scrub-filled sand out wide, which is best avoided, so subtle shape off the tee is often very handy here, grabbing extra yards and keeping your ball on the mown stuff!
It possesses as good a final 4 holes as anywhere in golf with the iconic 142m par3 15th (which MacKenzie suggested be changed from an original short par4) characterised by deep bunkers and an elevated, tiered green; the 397m left to right dogleg 16th with generous but blind tee shot and ti-tree both sides with no bail-out, that ends on a rolling double green. 17th is quite unique, 420m with a flat drive before turning a little left and uphill with a blind 2nd over a crest to a very wide green that runs away from you and is bunker-free. 18 is another long par4, 391m and straight-away this time, to a narrow landing area, bunkers encroaching left, before a flat approach to a green full of swales, and an opening front left!
There aren’t any bad holes on this track. Other favourites of mine are: the short par4 3rd. At 268m, it is reachable by many but being heavily protected by ti-tree and armed with a very narrow neck into the green, it is a pretty dangerous proposition. There are many options off the tee and a greenside bunker is not the worst spot off the tee. Any layup still requires a very precise pitch. I parked myself by this green for about 4 hours at the 2000 Australian Open and it was fascinating to see how the pro’s handled it and the many different approaches they took. The only player to hit the green from the tee in that time was probably the most unlikely one – Craig Parry; and the 127m par3 10th which has so many personalities depending on breeze and pin positions. The elevated green has many undulations and is heavily bunkered, and while it does occupy a fair bit of land, the ‘wandering-edged’ shape makes it play much smaller. A pin on a tiny back shelf into a 2 club breeze on my last outing showed a side of this hole I hadn’t seen before – it was tough. Despite only having 3 par 3’s (this 10th, together with 15 and the 172m 5th), this set of one-shotters is as good as I have ever played, with the bunkering and different looks the varying pin positions give you, the standouts. The spare hole (~140m between the first and 2nd holes) is pretty darn good too, and talk was that they would use this at the upcoming 2024 Aussie Open. [I apologise for not having a pic of 15, it was out of action on the day of my visit.]
I was fortunate enough to live within a 5 minute drive of this place for 20 years and played it at every opportunity. The1925 layout has stood the test of time & technology and rightfully sits at the very pointy end of every expert’s list of the world’s finest golf courses.
