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The weather forecast for the day was pretty terrible a couple of days before hand but I’m glad we didn’t call it off. The day was perfect 🙂 We had blue skies with a slight breeze & I couldn’t have asked for more.

Let me start off by saying this was one of the most enjoyable games of golf I have had in a while. The course delivered what it promised & at one of the most reasonable prices going on the Peninsula. It also offers some of the best ocean views of any of the courses that I have played in Victoria. To top this off, the staff were friendly, helpful & very accomodating.

The courses starts off with a short par 4 with well placed bunkers, the bunkering at this course is great, making for some interesting club selections. The sand in the first bunker was a little hard but after that they were pretty good. The greens were top notch, the fairways were close to perfect. It took me 4 holes to find a fairway but when I did hit one they were a pleasure to play off 😉

There are some spectacular holes here at Flinders, none better than the 4th (The Coffin) & the 5th (The Beach Hole) which are played right along the cliff tops offering magnificent views.

I couldn’t have asked for a better day, great friends, great course, great weather an all round fantastic birthday 🙂

Flinders website

 

Ian, Neil, Min & myself headed out to St Andrews Beach on a day that didn’t look too promising at all. Although we were looking forward to playing a course ranked in the top 10 in Australia, the weather wasn’t playing fair 🙁

The day was windy & wet, at one point during the round we were pummled by hail stones, nearly blown off our feet, drowned in a down pour & bathed in sunshine. We had the lot. It wasn’t the worst conditions that I have ever played in but it came close.

The course was surprising right from the carpark. Maybe I built it up a little too much in mind before we got there, but compared to other courses around the same area it is understated to say the least. The clubhouse is just a small shop with a marque style balcony out the front for the 19th hole. Nothing wrong with it, it does the job, but I was expecting along the same lines as Cape Shanck or Eagle Ridge.

The course was along the same lines as the clubhouse. Maybe I was expecting too much. The course was challanging & to quote the Club Pro “Not for beginners”. It is a wide open Links style course where you get punished from vering off the fairways. The greens were fantastic, a consistant speed on all of the them & they run true. From a distance (i.e. the tee) they look a lot bigger than the actually are. The bunkers are placed in perfect positions to catch your ball. Min found himself in a number of bunker, it was out of the ordinary when he went a hole without landing in one 😉 The quality of the bunkers was great, the sand was great, this made even more impressive considering the amout of rain the we had prior to our round.

There wasn’t a stand out a hole, one that you would consider a signature hole. Most were nothing special to look at but there were a couple that looked brilliant. The 18th was a great way to finish the round.

Ian had a new set of clubs that he was trying out for the first time so he was a little wayward. Neil was up & down but he was the first to get a par & the only one to grab a birdie. This was Min first hit since Werribie but he hit some wonderful drives. My game was like Neils, up & down but I did have a purple patch in the middle with 4 straight pars. This was offset but the 9, the 8 & the 7 🙁

All up the day was a little dissapointing, mostly caused by the weather. It’s not a course I would rush back to play

I’ve add some photos that we took. You can check them out here

 

We headed up to Broadford on Sunday for a hit with the RSL. We were supposed to play at Mt Durmit but they put their prices up & it was a little too much for the RSL. 

We played a different format this time, one is wasn’t familiar with. American Foursomes. The way it works is you both tee off, your partner plays your second shot & you play his. Then you choose a ball to play & alternate until the ball is in the hole. Puts a little bit more pressure on your shots knowing someone else will have a play the results of each of your shot 🙄 As it happens I dragged Bob down to my level of play & we proceeded to 3 putt (& a 4 putt) our way around the course. Neil & Jimmy on the other hand blitz’s the comp, coming in with a net 59 to win by about 7 shots 😯

 It was a cool start to the day, 2 degrees on the first tee, but the day turned pretty nice. The sun even came out a couple of time 🙂

The morning didn’t start well. Sitting in the RSL carpark at 6:15 in the morning, it’s raining & it’s freezing, & I’m thinking to myslef “What the hell are we doing????. We must be out of our minds”. When we got to Heathcote it was all good. The sun was out & there wasn’t a breath of wind, still cold but a lot more bearable than Epping. The course was in pretty good nick. The greens were surprisling fast. I though with the amount of dew & frost in same cases that they would be slow, but no. I had a couple of shocking holes, I finsihed with a 9 on one hole after putting my tee shot out of bounds & then following that up with one under a shrub. I had 3 3 putts on the front but some how managered to come in with 18 putts for the front 37 in total. The best putts for the day was an amazing 25. It was a good day out at a nice country course 🙂

Headed out to Craigiburn on Sunday with the RSL. Yet again it was blowing a gale. I don’t think I have ever played here without wind & I’m not sure if I will be heading back 🙁

My mood wasn’t helped by my first hole which I finished with a 9 with 5 putts. 5 FRIGGIN PITTS 😡 I had another 9 on the par 5 4th on was thinking about chucking it in at the turn.  Thankfully I didn’t sooking like a little girl & mangered to pull myself together. I finshed the day with a few pars & a birdie on the 18th with a net round of 76.