One issue with flying solo is the lack of a GPS. To solve this, I have been taking my computer and mobile broadband with me wherever I go to give directions. This worked relatively well in reaching my destination of Lakelands GC. Well so I thought until there were two different ??pins?? identifying the Lakelands GC on Google. After invariably heading to the wrong pin first, I was a couple of minutes late for my 9am tee time. But this mattered not as the morning field were all away and I had the first tee to myself.
Following the field I decided to take my laptop out on the course with me to send some emails (necessary at the moment to try and get on top of the 2 months ahead plan ?? which is not quite happening at the moment for the upcoming US leg) and post some live scoring during the round. PGA tour website styles. Except without all the red numbers.
So some of you keen followers may have read that my round climaxed on around the 11th hole after a string of birdies before ending with a disappointing few bogeys to finish with a 74. Still not to bad going for a 6 marker.
I made the mistake today of playing Lakelands off the blue tees. 6400m off the blacks looked a bit long (??? I hear you say) and Bruce??s philosophy of the day prior of enjoying the round and not getting dominated by the course was still in my psyche.
Lakelands is a Jack Nicklaus design, like Kinloch, but it is nothing like Kinloch. It is not a monster, and it is very generous ?? particularly off the tee. The fairways wide and greens rather large, not many people would leave unhappy that they couldn??t tame the course at least during some stage of their round.
The name Lakelands is a bit of a misnomer on the front nine. Only a couple of lakes were seen and it wasn??t until number 8 that the water was genuinely in play. Number 8 was one of the stretch of three par fours that were up and down, the same length to finish the front nine. Uninspiring stuff and surpising from the great man. At least 8 was a really good par four, with pot bunkers off the tee and a perfectly positioned lake surrounding the front and left of the green. This hole reminded me of the 13th at Links Hope Island. And both holes I had success on so that always helps them to stay in the memory bank.
The back nine had a few goodies?? starting with 10 (below) which snaked around the lake to the left. Another birdie and at this stage I had that feeling where you know exactly where you are hitting it. This is possibly the best feeling the have on the golf course (although it is closely rivaled by the ??there is no way I am going to miss this putt?? feeling). The 12th green was another green situated perilously close to a lake to it??s right so much so that my chip from short left was left short for fear of rolling past the pin and into the lake. The greens by the way were quick and true. They seem to be getting better every day of late ?? it might have something to do with the perfect weather.. It is probably accurate to say that the main test at Lakelands comes with your second shots. It really helps to have good angles into the greens and then you need to be precise with your approach. If you hit your irons well here, scoring can be very agreeable (to use a Nick Laing term, who has just got engaged ?? congrats mate!).
The last hole of note was probably the tiny par three 14th. This is the hole that probably features on the Lakelands post cards. Have a look below. The tee shot to the shallow green is a genuinely fun shot to play. Reminded me of the 3rd at my old home track, Russley, which I used to absolutely love to play ?? probably because of it??s low degree of difficulty but nonetheless great fun! I??d go back to Lakelands just to hit that wedge shot on 14 again.
So, with the internet as my marker I finished the round and retreated back to base camp to have a mid-afternoon nap and get on to a bit of administration and blogging. Until tomorrow?.
Most golf courses insure all the golfers who play on them for any stray shots which may career into neighbouring properties and cause damage. So I was surprised to see this sign on one of the tees at Links Hope Island. Perhaps there is an opportunity for an insurance salesman on this tee - the way I was hitting it last week the threat of iiability for a(nother) duck hook would have put the jitters up me.. Luckily no issues today..
I have arrived on the Gold Coast. Courtesy of a great chap from Christchurch, NZ called Tony Dowell I??m all set up in a great wee pad just north of Surfers Paradise. The next few days show much promise.
The Gold Coast is a popular place for kiwi??s to come and escape the cold, enjoy the sun, the surf and increasingly some quality golf. This week on the agenda is the Links Hope Island, Lakelands, The Glades and Sanctuary Cove so I have the opportunity to see what all the fuss is about.
First up was the Links Hope Island with playing partner and golfing media guru, Bruce Young. Bruce is from these parts and has kindly helped arrange a few games of golf. Bruce is probably best described on his website but is often seen, heard and his work read through various golfing media channels. He is the chief writer at iseekgolf which is a successful golfing website that is definitely worth a look!
Jamie and I had first met Bruce down at the New Zealand Open at The Hills. What I didn??t pick up then was that Bruce is actually a Kiwi! And a South Islander from Dunedin ?? his stocks continue to rise. His life in the golfing industry began as a 17 year old when he wrote to John Lister - a prominent kiwi professional - and asked if he could caddy for him. From there he caddied on and off for a few years carrying the bag for a few winners along the way. He was in the unique situation where he caddied for two kiwis, in consecutive weeks on the European Tour, who both won ?? Bob Charles and Simon Owen.
The Links Hope Island is currently in the process of becoming a private members course with 990 equity shares currently up for sale. Half have been sold to date. After the round I had the opportunity to sit and enjoy a beer and hear about the golf club (and have some banter) with John the Executive Chairperson whose company owns the resort, Alan the CEO and Luisa the Marketing Manager.
They were some of the finest hosts I have met on the journey to date and I could spend a few evenings in the clubhouse enjoying some more of their hospitality! The club is developing a strong culture amongst the members and this was evident as I was introduced to a few of the locals who reside on the course. But to the course -
Set in a 360 ha residential resort community, the par 72 course measure approximately 6,500 metres off the championship tees. Designed by five times British Open winner Peter Thomson and design partner Mike Wolveridge, the course was initially carved out of a dairy farm, with the layout following the natural contours of the land.
The immediate feature was the GPS in the carts. This gave precise numbers to reach all hazards and to the pin. A number of the holes had very generous landing areas so if you knew how far to carry the bunker you could just hit the appropriate club off the tee to leave you the widest landing area.
So, GPS in tow, the front nine was very user friendly: large landing zones, generous greens that were pretty flat and bunkers being the main hazards to steer clear of. That said, the par five 8th had quite a number of bunkers, and also scrub around the fairway that was very much in play. I managed to lose my ball in the scrub, but made birdie with my second ball for a bogey 6. Bruce??s golf was pretty handy considering he hadn??t had a hit for a few months. Thru nine holes there was probably only a hole or two in it. However over the course of the front nine the old caddy started giving me tips on how to read these couch greens and these tips started to pay dividends...
Couch greens have grain in them. This is something I am not used to. And it is definitely the reason behind my poor putting of the last week or so. I have not been able to judge the pace of the greens, whether putting or chipping onto them, and the issue was the grain. Bruce gave me the pretty simple advice to walk around the hole and work out where the grass was darker ?? when you could see the dark grass you were looking into the grain. Obviously the ball will try and go with the grain, so putting down-grain you need to be particularly careful (especially on pure, fast greens such as the beauties at Hope Island).
That lesson learnt, the back nine was there for the taking! I called an under par nine but a two chip, two putt bogey on the last put an end to that. The course builds to a crescendo on the back nine eventually leaving you well and truly satisfied and keen to return. The 13th is probably the first hole to raise the tone, a dog-leg par four to the left around a lake and probably one of the toughest par fours on the course.
From here, some excitement kicks in on the 16th which is a drivable par four at around 300m. From the blue tees it was very reachable, but neither Bruce or I managed to make birdie. I enjoyed the hole as it was generous enough to reward a well hit tee shot, but subtle to punish a miss in the wrong spot on the left or to the short side of the pin. Pitching out of the curly rough is difficult to finesse.
The signature holes are definitely the last couple. 17 is a long par three played over water, and often into the prevailing wind. The word goes that the biggest defense of this course is often the wind, and in this respect it reminded me part of my home course Clearwater. But today it was very still, and 17 was manageable with a 5 iron which I hit to about 15 feet and almost, but not quite, read the grain of the green for birdie.
And finally the 18th, played towards the clubhouse and around the lake (which had some rather tasteful houses perches on the other side of it, and houses that were far enough out of the way to not impact on the golfing experience). 18, like the par five 11 encourages you to get as tight to the trouble on the left as possible to make the hole reachable in two. This line obviously has its associated perils, but if you play out right you have virtually no show of getting the green in two.
So the match finished with another victory 4&3, and I was relatively happy with my +4, 76. The golf is finally getting better! After a few snaps with the owners I left the course very impressed and in great spirits ?? a great day on all fronts!
I'm on the first tee at Lakelands, about to play what looks like a top track.
No-one else is around so I'm going to have the internet as my marker and do some live scoring via facebook. Jump on facebook, find puregolf2010 and watch Lakelands tear me apart.
Royal Queensland Golf Club. That famous track 6km from the Brisbane CBD nestled alongside the Brisbane River and underneath an almighty bridge known as the Gateway.
Actually the golf course is now known as The New Course at Royal Queensland, after a complete redesign by Mike Clayton. This redesign was triggered by the federal government decision to build a new Gateway bridge alongside the existing one. During construction the golf course land was required and so a settlement was reached and RQ redesigned. Unfortunately the new design no longer requires shots to be played underneath the bridge ?? this could have been a bit of fun considering how high I hit the ball?
So after a very early start up on the Sunshine Coast I made it to the course with plenty of time and met my playing partner, a fine gentleman from these parts by the name of Ray. Ray and I were a two-ball at the end of the field, which meant plenty of time to take some photographs and have a good chat.
On the first tee another gent, by the name of Shaun came across, welcomed me to RQ and gave me a course guide to help me through. The course guide said something along the lines of: ??at RQ it is not simply about hitting it to the middle of the greens, but you need to assess the exact position of the flagstick and ensure you position your ball on the right area of the green?. This was the most pertinent comment of the day and the defense of this course is undoubtedly it??s greens. My first taste of this was on the gentle par 5 opening hole. Just short for two I pitched up to around 25 feet, where I proceeded to four putt for a 7. The pin was on a treacherous spine and the hole was one you just couldn??t attack.
The next episode came on the glorious short par 4 third hole. At about 290m this is a genuine chance to knock it on and make 2. But water looms to the right and the green is one that you must approach from the right spot on the fairway. This green has a swale in it front right that is seriously deep and any shots even 4 feet to the right of the flagstick (or short if the pin is position on the back of the green) will gather to the bottom of the swale. I made the error of leaving my sharply uphill putt from aforementioned swale short and watched as it rolled right back to my feet. Humiliation. This was a green that some might say was ??tricked up? but on this short par four it really worked for me. The other short par four on the course, number 11 also worked nicely with perfectly positioned bunkers protecting a more gentle sloping heart shaped green.
As Ray and I wandered down the next few holes I really began to enjoy the atmosphere of the place. With the yachts cruising along the river running alongside the course, 100 year old heritage-listed fig trees dotted here and there and the huge man-made feature arching over us RQ really has a distinctive feel. The main block of land directly in front of the clubhouse was particularly peaceful as the holes glided through the trees almost inconspicuously before the greens and surrounds really got up to give the course bite.
The two main features of RQ as a golf course are the bunkers and the greens. Both of these features were like no others that I have seen this year. The bunkers were like little trenches, cut out of the ground on the fairways and around the greens. They are so thin that there is often no flat ground at the bottom, so you either get a downhill or uphill lie. They are dotted all over the course and are timid on the eye, but a real obstacle to play out of. They are, of course, surrounded by the scruffy Mike Clayton edges, which again I don??t think are always necessary, particularly on a traditional track such as this one. This is not a links course. After a day or so to dwell on it, I have decided that I really like the bizarre style of these bunkers. What I don??t particularly enjoy are the 2 or 3 waste bunkers which line the 8th, 11th and 12th holes. To me, these are out of character with the quaint bunkers on the rest of the golf course.
As I have already described in part, the greens are gnarly. And I can say that from experience after my 42 putts today. Ray also knocked it around the hole with frustration a few times so we could relate to one another. I imagine many a member walks in after striking the ball well only to read a scorecard that looks a bit sorry-for-itself. The swales here do not start besides the green, but actually on it. Take for example the 4th hole where the back tier is barely 30 feet wide, but has a serious slope on the left quarter of it making it that much more difficult to get to. Another gnarly slope like this was on the left side of the 7th green. Although the 7th green also had an unusual ditch running sideways right through the middle of it, separating it??s front and back sections. My ball ended in this ??ditch?? giving me a stepped putt back the short distance to the hole on the front ??tier?. Unusual.
The 9th and 18th greens and 1st and 10th tees are all laid out in front of the clubhouse on an expanse that has very few trees but allows you to look across and see other golfers all enjoying their walk. I enjoyed this outlook, and could imagine this area of the course lined with spectators watching a big aussie tournament go down the wire.
Despite hitting it pretty well all day both Ray and I just couldn??t convert. I ended up with an 83, 11 over par which was particularly poor considering that I hit about 10 greens in regulation. But all in all it was a thoroughly enjoyable round with great conversation and exactly what the doctor called for.
After the round I had another chat with Shaun and Josh in the pro-shop. Shaun (in his bright pink shirt he wore so it could feature on the blogroll) has previously been at Royal Canberra and played a few of the great golf courses in Aussie so we shared a few war stories, including hearing about his spectacular round at the World Famous in Australia Barnbougle Dunes where he only lost one golf ball (can you believe it) on the last hole. And yes, before you ask like every other Aussie golf fanatic has over the last two months, the plan is to get to Tassie at the end of the year on the way back to NZ to have a crack at this gem!
But back to RQ, another gem of a day in tranquil surrounds on a golf course I would definitely recommend. Thanks to Ray for joining me and for Ross for hosting puregolf2010.
For the record, Nambour is a par 68 and I shot 79, +11.
The course was very wet. I lost a number of golf balls on the middle of the fairway in puddles. I am now running low!
Thanks to Mel and Nambour GC for hosting puregolf2010 on day 115 (I'm losing count already!)
Henry here, Mike's brother and Queensland resident. As Mike continues on the PureGolf 2010 odyssey, I've been given the honour of writing a guest blog;
After an emotionally intense twenty-four hours for PureGolf, Mike, Bryan (fellow Medical Student & good friend) and I rolled up to Bribie Island's Pacific Harbour Golf Club.
We were greeted by the immensely friendly staff, treated like VIPs and were very well looked after. In particular, the Pro running the show, Chris, did a stellar job of keeping us informed and catered for. It was a particularly nice touch that the staff badges had not only their full names, but also home town.
Pacific Harbour is managed by Troon Golf, a company that runs more than 200 courses in 26 countries. PureGolf's first Troon course for the year; certainly not the last.
Mike, having played a good 113 more rounds this year than either Bryan or myself, was charged with determining the haggle. He wisely waited for our drives on The First Tee before appointing handicaps and explaining split sixes. We all pared the opener, a 501m par 5 with a broad fairway, and a splash of water to the right.
The course, Mike tells me, has matured nicely from his previous outing here - with our parents and Grandfather Ernie - four years earlier. The scrub and native regeneration feels decidedly natural, given it was likely flattened by earth-moving equipment upon the course's creation. The bunker also had a distinctly desert-island sand-dune feel, without being overstated or facetious.
By the sixth hole, the match was rolling along nicely, with Mike holding a narrow lead over Bryan and myself. As we played our approach shots, the grey skies made good on their threats and opened wholeheartedly. This has been par for the course all week, unfortunately, and in this case would have done little to ease the flooding on several holes.
Water, the big lake (dam) type - as opposed to the casual-water-free-drop type - is certainly a feature of Pacific Harbour, and as a high handicapper, it's supposed to scare the heck out of me. That there's water on almost every hole, however, certainly makes it easier to mentally block it out. I'd say ignore, but I'm now thirteen unlucky balls poorer for my troubles, so I shan't get too confident.
At the twelfth, Mike had surged to a fourteen point lead in the split sixes, and he suggested that for holes 13 through 17, the part-timers points count for double. At eighteen, all points were doubled. Bryan's pendulous driving and iron-play netted him wins on thirteen and another of the next three holes, with another halved. In fact, Bryan lipped out for what would have been PureGolf's first associated Ace on the 140m par-3 thirteenth, before clinching a solid par for the win.
I claimed sixteen and seventeen after finally deciding my driver was more foe than friend. Seventeen, indeed, a 200ish-metre par 3 (across a beach & lake) and well defended by bunkers, saw me take full advantage of my many extra (but needed) shots.
As we stepped onto the eighteenth tee, Mike mentioned that Bribie's finishing holes were particulary memorable, from his previous outing, and that the course is easily in the top couple he's played in the Maroon State. The Pacific Harbour website says that it's just been rated as the Number 1 Public Access course in Queensland.
The picturesque 408m par-4 eighteenth runs along the opposite side of the 17th's lake, gently breaking around to the right. Now, a brief tangent; Some summers previously, I met with Mike and some friends for a day at the beach and an afternoon of solubrious banter. As one thing led to another, arm-wrestles began. That day, Mike beat me in an arm-wrestle for the first time. Today, I claimed the eighteenth hole and my maiden golfing victory over my younger brother. To be fair, he had given me more shots than those consumed at a 21st birthday party. For twins.
Bryan, almost-Ace and all, gave it a red-hot go, what he missed in putting, he recouped in goodwill with a sterling meal of shark and taties on the Bribie esplanade.
It was a pleasure to be a part of the PureGolf experience. Playing every day certainly has some unique stressors, but by gum, it looks like fun; meeting interesting folk, unique opportunities, blogging and international travel. As we drove home, Mike and Bryan slipped into the land of nod as Sgt Pepper's clicked over to A Day in the Life.
On day 113 Jamie and I played golf at Headland GC. Headland is shaping up for the Queensland Amateur Championships this week and was in fine nick. The gents in the pro-shop were incredibly hospitable and enthusiastic about us playing the track. Indeed, it was in fine condition in particular the greens which were as good as any up on the Sunny Coast.
Said gents also made us aware that Headland GC was the best Club in the region. It has a strong membership, is obviously up to the standard to host premier tournaments and it had a good feel. Accessible for all as well.
The holes itself were often tree-lined ala Royal Canberra so placement was really key. It benefitted from some serious undulations to knock distance control around, and with a number of elevated greens it was often difficult to take enough club.
One thing that makes scoring really tough in these parts is the broad-leafed grass that grabs your bal around the green surrounds. Often it looks like the ball is sitting up nicely but then it is seemingly impossible to control how it??s going to come out. Some times the best option is to splash it out like a bunker shot, other times you need to exhibit some touch. I seem to get this all wrong, probably not helped by my poor ballstriking, and consequently am making very few pars when I miss a green in regulation.
I look forward to seeing how the gun??s get on at Headland this coming week. I think if they hit it straight the scoring could be red hot..
It is with much sadness and regret that I post the following. For personal reasons I have had to return home to New Zealand. My leave of absence from puregolf2010 may be temporary, or it may be final; at this stage, I can't say either way. This unfortunate course of action has resulted not so much out of choice, but out of necessity - and as such, was not taken lightly.
In the interim I hope that you will continue to follow Michael's adventures and support him on his quest.
Anyone who wishes to contact me can continue to do so on jamie@puregolf2010.com.
Jamie
Day 112 was a special day for the Patton family at the Hyatt Regency Coolum. It was April 22 which is the birthdate of Mike Patton (Jamie's father). Every year, the 22nd of April Jamie and Mike play a golfing match, in the matchplay format, for a trophy that is named the Portnoo Trophy, after the holiday venue that the Patton family used to visit.
So today we were joined by Mike and Lesley (Jamie's mother) for this annual battle. Since the inception of the Portnoo trophy, Mike receives an extra shot from Jamie each year. This year was the 8th year of battle and so Jamie was giving up 8 against his dad. But I guess this was always going to be the year that Jamie was adequately warmed up and the red hot favourite to take out the trophy (which incidentally had been left at home in NZ!).
The Coolum resort is one of the golf courses in Australia that everyone knows. It has featured on tele annually over the last few years as it is the home of the Australian PGA tournament, one of the leading tourny's on the Australasian Tour. Winners line the clubhouse and many a famous golfer have played here in the event. One famous story goes that John Daly threw his putter into the lake on the 18th after another dissapointing day on the greens. The putter was recovered and now is framed in the clubhouse.
It must say something about the course that generally the best players seem to come out on top and names such as Allenby, Parry and Lonard line the walls that are reserved for past champions.
The Hyatt is renowned for it's water hazards. Holes such as 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 etc etc are lined by water. Come to think of it, playing the entire backnine, you don't want to get off the fairway. The par three's, in particular on the back nine are memorable. 11 requires a carry entirely over water to a green that climbs out of the pond courtesy of a pleasant looking retaining wall. 14 is more subtle with a creek running short of the green and to the left catching any shots that may draw too much, or get pushed that way by the prevailing wind off the nearby ocean.
The first 6 holes at the resort (which, may I add had brilliant service, facilities and restaurants, and would be nothing short of a superb place to base any trip up this way) are all new. They only came into play last December but are already quite settled. Designed by Robert Trent Jones Jnr, as the rest of the course also was, they were far from a blight on the course. The first is a cracking par five which is surrounded by water and has good reward for the well placed drive. The third and fifth are also par fives, and the third probably is a real scoring hole for the pro's. Interesting, the new 6th hole is barely 100m long, and played across a flat expanse. Quite unusual for a short hole to be so seemingly straightforward. This is where Lesley found her rhythm and hit a beaut iron to about 20 feet. The new holes also allow the developers to add more property to their stables, and from the golfers persepective, they remove the need to travel across the David Lowe Way, a busy road that used to run through the course.
Anyway, I'll keep this brief, but the annual Portnoo match went through to number 17. After a strong start by Mike, JP found himself dormy four up. But then he missed a couple of 10 footers to put the nail in the coffin. But then, on 17, his match fitness kicked in and he took out the 8th Portnoo trophy 2&1. This proved a timely victory, becuase Mike made a spectacular par on the 18th which would have claimed the half had the match made it past 17. Speaking of the 18th, what a cracking hole it is, and great fun to play after watching so many championships come down the wire. I was fortunate enough, after a scrappy day, to knock it to 10 feet for two (but unfortunately missed the putt!).
P.S Check out the "Journey" section of the site for the latest plans - any suggestions welcome!
The wettest day of puregolf2010, without a doubt. But what fun we had at Club Pelican anyway.
The madness kicked off with a photo shoot for the local rag, The Sunshine Coast Daily. Brett had us in all sorts of compromising poses. Photographers have had real fun with us this year; we are but putty in their hands. Dean - the Pro at Club Pelican, who joined us on course - waited patiently and even lent a hand in procuring props for the photo shoot (cart, "USA?" sign, clubs, etc). Bless him. Eventually Brett had his shot, and it was down to business.
Dean's a Kiwi of Central Otago extraction, and has lived in our stomping ground (Christchurch) for the last few years. Christchurch being the big village that it is - with 2 degrees of separation - he knows a lot of folk we've grown up with, including one of our good mates, Dougie. What a small world. Anyway he only recently came to Club Pelican, some 4 months ago, but seems to be settling in nicely (he lives with his partner in a plush apartment in the adjacent Crowne Plaza Hotel, overlooking the 18th hole). He's also in the process of building his client base, so if you live in the area and are looking for a lesson (top value at $90 p/hour), drop him a line.
The golf was pretty slow; the group 2 or 3 ahead rather selfishly played at snail like pace and held the rest of us up. Initially this was aggravated by the torrential rain too. But once we were so wet that we no longer cared and indeed embraced our lot (this only took a couple of holes), nothing really fazed us and we just enjoyed each other's company. God we got wet. No umbrellas; waterproofs were about as effective as tissue paper; and the rain seemed to be coming from both sides and above. Hilarious. The cat that named this place the Sunshine Coast was having a laugh - and was probably a Scotsman.
The rain aside we managed to appreciate what a quality layout Club Pelican is. You may have heard of the designer - a chap by the name of Gregory Norman. Apparently he has blonde hair and can play a bit. Word around the traps is that his golf courses tend to be too hard, and can't be played with much enjoyment by The Average Golfer. Certainly we've seen glimpses of this at some of the other Norman tracks we've encountered this year, but I don't agree entirely with the murmurings of the masses. In any event it's certainly not the case with Club Pelican, which is very fair.
CP has some cracking holes too. Like the 16th, a par 5 that narrows and narrows and narrows as you approach the green. Or the 5th, a dogleg left par 4 that's bordered entirely on the left by water, has a stream guarding the front of the green and is patrolled by several officious looking kangaroos. Or the 12th, a short par 4 that's driveable off the members' tees in favourable conditions, is listed in some book as one of 1001 holes you must play before you die, and holds particularly fond memories for me because it was kind enough to give me a birdie.
Standing on the 14th tee (waiting, of course) the rain got as heavy as rain can possibly get. There was a lovely moment where we all stood there, looked at each other and laughed. No one moved a muscle. When the time came to step up and hit the wee white thing, there was a sense of anticipation among the others - none of us knew which way the ball was going to go (and whether the club was going to fly in the same direction).
On 16 I flew a 3 wood into the greenside trap, which is also home to a small forest (not small actually, just a forest). On this occasion it was also home to a lake. My ball was 10 inches under water and, under normal circumstances, I would've taken a casual water drop. But because I was so wet this was too good an opportunity to miss. Dean readied the camera; I waded into the middle of the "bunker"; and swung for dear life. Needless to say I didn't make contact with my ball; all I hit was H2O. Good clean fun.
By the time we reached the 18th tee green it was pretty well pitch black. If I hadn't been a guest of Club Pelican, I would've told the muppets in front just what I thought of their slow, selfish play. But I was and therefore I didn't. However I can name and shame them: Tom Wilkinson, James O'Callaghan, Phil Terry and Joe McLaughlin. (I read the timesheet). If you jokers are reading this, get your act together.
On a more serious note (those weren't their real names, I didn't think to look at the timesheet until 30 seconds ago), slow golf didn't tarnish what was a pearler of a day. Sure, we were glad of a hot shower at the end - but having embraced our soaked state early in the piece, we just got on with it and had a good time. 'Twas particularly nice to chew the fat with a fellow Kiwi on the way round, and interesting to compare notes on cultural differences between the humans on each side of the Tasman Sea.
Thanks Club Pelican (Dean, in particular) for making Day 111 a memorable one.
A soaked JP
It sure can rain up here on the Sunshine Coast. Judging by today anyway. It absolutely poured down overnight, and during our administration session this morning. The rain was so heavy I was about to call Noosa Springs Golf Course and see if they were under water. But the rain turns on and off like a tap and come 11am when we started turning our minds to the days golf, the skies had cleared and we headed the 20km north to Noosa Springs for day 109 of our journey.
We were joined by Brent & Andrew, two local lads who had heard about our voyage and thought they'd challenge us for a hit. Being both single figure markers, another epic Bledisloe Battle awaited us. But the Aussie lads started with nothing short of a lack of intent and thru five holes, the Kiwi Good Guys were up by 4! Without even making a birdie. Which speaks volumes for the quality of golf by the four of us.
Brent had made contact with me via our website and said he'd be keen as to join us for a hit. It's always great when we get people that we have not met contact us through the site to jack up a hit / accommodation etc. I'd say it is one of the best features of the trip and one that we definitely had not anticipated before we began. So, if you're keen to join us for a round then feel free to email Jamie or I and we'll see what we can do.
So back to Brent, a builder and top Aussie bloke who moved up here a few years back to escape the 'freezing cold' of South Australia who didn't get much sympathy from us South Islanders about the cold. Brent hadn't been playing golf that long, but he could fair whack it. And by whack it, I mean hit a stinging driver 300m with a draw. Probably one of the longest hitters I have seen in the flesh. For those who have played a round with us, he hit it at least 30m past both of our drives. Andy on the other hand hit it arrow straight. Banter was flying out on every tee as he knocked another drive flush and straight. Andy works at another one of the top courses in this area called Perigian Springs which is a private members course, and one that didn't feature in our planning but we hear it is a fine track.
Rewinding to our arrival at the club, Noosa Springs is the premier track in the greater area known as Noosa which is about two hours north of Brisbane and we were warmly greeted by an English gent in the proshop by the name of Robert. We used carts today, which probably added to the walking as it was so wet that we had to keep them on the cart paths at all times. There was some of the customary 'awful cart golf' played when Jamie or I sprayed it on the other side of the cart path.
The front nine had plenty of water, and come to think about it, so did the back nine! Hazards surrounding you is not an ideal scenario to face when you have been hitting the ball as poorly as I have the last couple of days. The greens had been scarified that morning so they were not rolling as well as they may have been, which made putting somewhat of a lottery.
At four down, Andy finally managed to two-putt a couple of holes and he had the Aussie's back in the game. The local's were used to battling the very strong par four 7th which dog-legged slightly left 410m or so and was flanked by water on the right and scrub (lost ball territory) on the left. Jamie and I were not, and had a combined +5 on the hole. It was Jamie's day for everything to go wrong with his golf, as it has done for me the last couple... (and thus I find myself writing the blog, I think for only the 4th day this month, despite continuing my swing woes).
The wind got up on the back nine, and Brent kicked into action with a stream of about 5 pars which was as good as any of us (solid 6 handicappers) managed each day. But the best-ball format made it tough for the Aussies to make a come-back and I think it was caps off and handshakes on about the 16th hole. Another bledisloe victory... My big bro, Henry, whom we are staying with, came out to support the Kiwis (or Aussies perhaps? Henry, despite being only 18 months older than me, considers himself a true-blue Aussie after spending his first 6, and most previous 6 years of his life in this country). Henry was our camera-man and took quite a few snaps. He considers himself a bit of a photographer so I'm looking forward to seeing how they come up on the Mac after I've written this.
The 17th hole was probably the signature hole, a dog-leg left around a lake where the green is protected entirely by water on the front and left. Of course bunkers flank the back of the green so you can't just bail out long. This hole is pleasant on the eye, but probably less kind on the score card. Into the wind today it was quite a test and Andy and I were happy to be sitting on the green in regulation. But that was as good as it got for me as I three putted, and subsequently halved the last couple of holes with JP so the skins carry over until tomorrow. From what I was told, the 17th used to have considerably more atmosphere when there was bush all behind the green, but this has all been cut out, and the 18th hole modified, to allow a new property development to be put on the course. Over a million ozzie dollars a section we were told... It's the way things are up here, with the golf courses serving the dual purpose of adding value to a huge block of land to enable the developers to cash in.
All in all, it was a good day of golf and the course was surprisingly dry considering the amount of rain that had fallen pre-round. Thanks to Noosa Springs for having us and the lads for coming out and making for another top day.
We're now off to check our emails, of which we're sending about 50 each a day at the moment to try and arrange parts of our US leg (including, crucially, getting some kind of car support to get us around in the US - if you have any ideas or suggestions let us know!). The media have also called and will be out tomorrow to take some pictures and run a story at Club Pelican. Can't wait.
Today yielded a perfect illustration of just how funny a game golf can be. 'Twas a beautiful moment, it has to be said.
For the first 15 holes today at Twin Waters Michael played less than his best golf. Actually that's putting it a bit mildly - he was pretty awful, by his own admission. He took to lying on his back on the edge of greens, at times, looking to the skies for inspiration. But as it happens, he found it.
Standing on the 16th tee he was 16 skins to 4 down for the day. He then hit a(nother) snap cut with his butter knife off the tee, into the hazard, and I hit a soaring driver over the fairway traps to within 9 iron range. Then the TV cameras turned up. Ha. Mick took a drop, got it on the green for 4, and drained a 40 footer - after calling it - for bogey. I pulled my 9 iron into the heavy couch pin high left, hacked it up there to 15 feet and missed - so hole halved, 2 skins carry forward. No worries. I'll get 'em off the rascal on the next.
We then halve the 17th - a long par 3, over 200 metres - in par. And on 18 tee he calls it, that if he makes eagle he would get 10 skins (2 for 16, 2 for 17, 3 for 18 and a bonus 3 for the eagle). At the time we thought i was only on 15, so this would end the match at 15-14, a dam site closer than the scales were sitting as we stood there on the tee. He wouldn't pull it off anyway - 18's a long-ish par 5 that's quite tight off the tee, and plays to a raised green. Struggle to get on in two, so phat chance of eagle. Especially when he was 15 over par through 17. Pull the other one mate.
We both hit good tee shots to about 230 metres out, on the fairway. It's slightly into the wind, so I bang 2 iron down to within about 50 metres. He climbs all over his and gets 20 metres closer, to 30 short. I pitch to 25 feet - not a very inspiring effort but there you have it. So the stage is set. And Win TV's cameras are rolling (they've followed us up the last 3 holes, and are now perched greenside filming our every move). (Win TV being the local TV crowd that do the TV news).
Goldstein steps up to his ball, hits a low fizzing pitch, and drains it! From 20 metres. Up an undulating green to a back pin. When he has been playing like a pigmy hippo. As I said before, a beautiful moment. Had it not been for his brother's defunct TV set (we're staying with Henry for a week), we would have relived the moment on the news (surely they included his masterpiece in the segment) at 6.30. But we didn't so we'll just have to rely on memory. And it was beautiful. And it just goes to show that golf is a funny game. My 76 won me only 16 skins to his 14 (with an 85) - just as well we weren't playing for money, otherwise he would have robbed me of a few bob!
Fair play to the man. At least it cheered him up, and made him tolerable company for the afternoon. Had his form continued throughout the entire round I might have dropped him by the side of the road on the way home, so he could walk back and ponder his gloom...
Now that our wee anecdote is out of the way, I better tell you a bit about Twin Waters. Well, it's a fine resort track; quite generous off the tees; possessive of mildly undulating greens; and a very hospitable place indeed. They work with the other clubs round these parts in offering package deals, so yoos fullas in Kiwi Land (that's how Aussies refer to our Great Country, or miniscule quasi-State of Australia, as they see it) and elsewhere around Aussie can come here in the winter and enjoy sunshine and golf on the Sunnie Coast at dam seductive prices. Ask Maxine.
Maxine, the TW marketing manager, had coordinated our visit, and came to meet us on the 16th with Steve from Win TV. A delightful Aucklander (never thought I'd say that), is Maxine. And we had a very warm welcome from Mark in the pro shop too.
There had been a frog massacre, by the way. Not sure how these poor little creatures had come to their sticky end, but their carcasses lined a good few fairways. It made me awfully sad, seeing these dead frogs. For some reason frogs seem to strike an emotional chord, much like penguins. Did you know it's psychologically impossible to be angry while looking at a penguin? True.
But I digress. The course was done some 40 years ago by Japanese developers, and the land around it has been developed resort-styles, although tastefully so. The houses don't encroach onto the fairways as they do at other courses - something Mick and I both detest. The current Japanese owner, we were told, had a hankering for fountains - so they put one in in the middle of the driving range (which is a lake). Apparently the fountain also serves the dual purpose of aerating the water, preventing weed build up. So there you go - I was paying attention to Maxine's words of wisdom. If only I'd paid so much attention back in school...
After golf we sat 'round and chewed the fat on the clubhouse deck with a couple of young blokes we'd run into on the course, Angus & Morry. Morry's a pro and had a few good stories to tell about life on the road. Angus was toying with the idea of heading to Scotland for The Open in July - as we are - so I tried to twist his arm a bit further. We may see him over there. The world's a small place.
JP
Caugh blimey. Here was me thinking that these Sunshine Coast courses would be wide open and tourist friendly and gentle. Whoever designed Mount Coolum obviously had a chip on their shoulder (or even on one both), because it's tighter than a duck's rear end. For the most part, anyway. Mind you it didn't help that last night 10 mm of rain fell hard, narrowing the fairways and turning what's left of them into the sort of slush that you encounter on a busy ski field at 3.30 in the afternoon. Nor did it help that we chopped it and couldn't sink a putt had our life depended on it. Oh dear.
On the bright side, it was about a driver and a well struck 6 iron from our front door step to the 1st tee, so we got a lie in. Until 7.15 am. Which is a lie in by our semi-nocturnal standards. Is there such a thing as semi-nocturnal? Probably not.
Mount Coolum GC takes its name unsurprisingly from Mount Coolum, a big round bap shaped rock that sits between the golf course and the beach. Reminds me of Bass Rock, which you look out on from North Berwick GC (a slightly more famous track near a place called Muirfield in Scotland, from where i originally hail - Scotland that is, not Muirfield). MC is quite an impressive lump of rock indeed, and I plan to run up the thing at a weak moment over the next few days.
What I'd really like to do is see if I can hit a driver from the top of Mt Coolum proper onto the 10th green. Chances are I couldn't, but surely it's worth a crack? Watch this space for an "I fought the law and the law won" blog in the next few days. Being 25 now it's hard to get away with such tomfoolery on the premise that "it was just youthful tomfoolery" or "I'm a student; we can't be held accountable for anything."
On a more serious note. Play Mount Coolum on a fine day when it hasn't been raining and you will have a fine experience. Swampy creeks do their best to swallow your ball on a good few holes, and if they don't get 'em one of the audacious Queensland Magpies will have a crack. They had a go at mine once or twice, little blighters. But seriously, the golf course is pretty good for a rural-ish track, and probably pretty good value too.
Apres golf we decided a swim was in order (you can do that on the Sunshine Coast in April), so headed for the hills with our tour guide Henry - who also happens to be Mick's brother, and lives inside said front door and works as a pharmacist and studies and a med student and plays a fair bit of competitive scrabble or did and now doesn't becuase of the social ridicule - for a place whose name I can neither recall nor pronounce. Klondilla or something of the like. Anyway it has a great big waterfall above which sits a rockpool above which sits little waterfalls and rock jumps. And much fun was had by all, as we threw ourselves into the pool from vines, rocks and rope swings. In the pouring rain.
Can't very well play golf all day, can we?
JP
When I was a kid I used to get up at 6.30 am on a Saturday morning to play golf (before short tennis, of course). But then again I didn't drive 255 km to the golf course, as we did today. Nor did I continue driving 257 km in the same direction afterwards. In fact I didn't drive at all in those days because I had mum to ferry me 'round. Where are you now mum? (Actually, she and dad are on their way over here in a couple of days, for The Big Day - being the coveted Portnoo Trophy match, held on dad's birthday every year, 22 April, for...The Portnoo Trophy. But that's another story, which will be told in due course).
Day 107 was a driving day, with a bit of golf added for good measure. Ocean Shores was more or less exactly half way between Coffs Harbour - where we woke - and Mount Coolum - where we've now set up base camp for a week, with Goldy's brother. Handy. Ocean Shores' location that is; Mike's brother is called Henry, which sounds similar but is a different work if you look closely.
The club's more than a golf club; it's a Country Club. The pulse of the local town; the meeting place for a Guinness Cooler (or whatever they drink in these parts - probably something more...thirst quenching); the place you can spend a whole Saturday (on the golf course, on the bowling green, on the pokies, and in the bar). A local institution, really. It was built 40 years ago by an ambitious American developer (who sold 1000 sections in the first development!), but has since changed hands more times than Alsace. Ownership appears now to be settled, which is more than you can say for a lot of golf resorts. Like poor Kinloch, back in Taupo - which should be promptly snapped up and nurtured lovingly, because it's the best young golf course in New Zealand (if any rich folk are reading this, check out the website and go from there - they might tell you it's not up for sale, but it is - you read it here first).
Ocean Shores has the feel of a place that's treasured by its constituents. We walked into the bar after our round with Peter (the Director of Golf) and Claudette (his wife) - and just about every soul in the joint greeted them heartily, and us too. Some country resorts can have that pale grey stale atmosphere that can't be described as anything but depressing, but Ocean Shores is no such place. We even saw a young couple in for a Saturday evening meal - something you wouldn't see too often back in Aotearoa.
There's a unique feature of the course that I should mention. It has six par 4s, six par 3s and six par 5s. I've never played a course of this configuration, and may never do so again. It's certainly an unusual experience, and for a visitor I reckon it's hard to find your rythmn. Locals must be used to it by now. You also start and finish with a par 5, and the 9th is a par 5 too. Take from that what you will.
Took us a hole or two to adapt to the couch greens, which we'll be seeing a lot of over the next few weeks. After a few misreads and 3 putts however, things improved and we found our radar. Poor Claudette, who's just got new prescription sunglasses which she obviously hasn't yet got used to, shaved the right hand edge of all 18 holes. Actually, not all 18, but lots of 'em. I suggested she wear shoes with higher heels, but I don't think my suggestion was appreciated.
Pete was an interesting chap. Plays on the Senior Amateur Circuit round Aussie, off a 6 marker. Clearly takes his golf quite seriously, but why not when you're semi-retired and can hit it straighter than an airport runway and longer than the Nile and can sink putts from deep fine leg. He's a builder, so he's got forearms like Nick Faldo. Claudette's a book keeper, which I took initially to mean she takes bets. When I asked her whether she runs her own book or works for the TAB, she laughed and put me right - book keeper as in accountant. I know what i'd rather be, and it's not the number crunching type. Suits Claudette though, as she gets Tuesdays off to polish her swing.
We polish our swings Monday thru Sunday, not that it's doing any good. Neither of us has yet shot under par, which is starting to give us a complex. In December we forecasted 10 under par rounds for the year would be par for the course. 107 days in and we're both sitting on zip - percentages not looking good. 80 a piece today, a number that would've been one less had I not missed a 3 footer on the 18th. No use torturing yourself about missed short putts though, otherwise you'll end up as mad as Ian Baker Finch was a few years ago. And that's not a good place to be.
Coolum, on the other hand, is. It's relaxing up here. Despite the humidity, mosquitos and abundance of Australians. I don't mean that at all, of course. Here's to a great week.
JP
Chisholm Park
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