SA 'heaps good' Course thread

[Hard_Pan]

No mention of Royal North Haven?

Sadly, no.

[thecollective]

I reckon you could get to Mt Compass in 45 mins

[wazamac]

Vines to host Australian Mid Amateur this November. It's not that good I would have thought.

[WBennett]

Vines to host Australian Mid Amateur this November. It's not that good I would have thought.

It doesn't have to be A Grade - Gold Creek hosted it in Canberra maybe 8 or 9 years ago in winter. It was brutal!

[wazamac]

I'm a member there. It's not brutal either in the sense that it isn't long and at that time of year won't be boggy.
Lady Bay had it recently and that can be one brutal course.
Out of all of the tier 2 courses it probably does have the best conditioning, layout leaves a little to be desired.

[thecollective]

I'm a member there. It's not brutal either in the sense that it isn't long and at that time of year won't be boggy.
Lady Bay had it recently and that can be one brutal course.
Out of all of the tier 2 courses it probably does have the best conditioning, layout leaves a little to be desired.

condition is king these days and hence The Vines takes the cake in that aspect

[Hard_Pan]

The Vines was no:7 on the list.

[Hard_Pan]

Stayed with the family at Milang by the bonney shores of Lake Alexandrina over the recent long weekend and managed to squeeze in 18 holes at Lake Albert GC.

I don't think there is another golf club in Australia of this quality where you can hit off at 8:30am on a perfect Sunday morning and be the only frickin' person on the whole course!!

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Approaching the 2nd green.

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The 10th green. Normally, the greens are the biggest disappointment here. All the bent grass died during a big drought a few years ago but with the colder weather the couch that replaced it is dormant and a lot truer to putt on than in the warmer months.

[nadg63]

A guy I used to work with that played a lot of golf course always rated Mt Albert GC very highly HP, reckoned it was a hidden gem.

Stayed with the family at Milang by the bonney shores of Lake Alexandrina over the recent long weekend and managed to squeeze in 18 holes at Lake Albert GC.

I don't think there is another golf club in Australia of this quality where you can hit off at 8:30am on a perfect Sunday morning and be the only frickin' person on the whole course!!

Attachment 47975

Approaching the 2nd green.

Attachment 47976

The 10th green. Normally, the greens are the biggest disappointment here. All the bent grass died during a big drought a few years ago but with the colder weather the couch that replaced it is dormant and a lot truer to putt on than in the warmer months.

[Hatchman]

Lake Albert is one of the best layouts in the state.
The par 3's let it down a fraction as there is not much variation.
Before they lost the greens and had to replace with a courses blade couch they were up there for some of the best in the state.
They held a senior Vardon round there one year and the entrants were blown away with how good the greens and course was.

[Chilled]

Playing Mt Compass this Saturday, actually been a few years since I've played it so looking forward to getting out there with a few mates and hacking it up. Be interesting to see how it is after so long, and if the good reports are justified.

[Chilled]

Course in great condition. Everything as I remember it, but noticeably less hazards in places where they have taken out some of the yum yums. I'd forgotten how tricky it can be and it was blowing an absolute gale so that made it even more difficult.

Some bunkers lacking sand and some false fronts (wind didn't help also) were horrendous....eg the second hole green....old mate well hit shot to pin high, little bit of spin and rolled back down into the water. I also hit the green on my second shot and lost the ball (with a big bunker behind), wtf!?? That wind was brutal.

For a Saturday they used the white tee's which was really disappointing.

Also not overly happy with the Pro Shop staff, quite unwelcoming and would rather talk to the locals than deal with us....we had to butt in to pay our money.

So a bit mixed but overall great to play the track again. Have no doubts, it's in great condition and my highlight for the day was a 15 foot putt for eagle on the 10th (2 perfectly hit 5 woods). Needless to say because of that damned wind I only made par, lol.

[thecollective]

Course in great condition. Everything as I remember it, but noticeably less hazards in places where they have taken out some of the yum yums. I'd forgotten how tricky it can be and it was blowing an absolute gale so that made it even more difficult.

Some bunkers lacking sand and some false fronts (wind didn't help also) were horrendous....eg the second hole green....old mate well hit shot to pin high, little bit of spin and rolled back down into the water. I also hit the green on my second shot and lost the ball (with a big bunker behind), wtf!?? That wind was brutal.

For a Saturday they used the white tee's which was really disappointing.

Also not overly happy with the Pro Shop staff, quite unwelcoming and would rather talk to the locals than deal with us....we had to butt in to pay our money.

So a bit mixed but overall great to play the track again. Have no doubts, it's in great condition and my highlight for the day was a 15 foot putt for eagle on the 10th (2 perfectly hit 5 woods). Needless to say because of that damned wind I only made par, lol.

Chilled: im not a big fan of the 2nd green; reminds me a bit of #17 at your home track with that pond that seems so artificially out of place. (getting back to MC#2) The bail out area left is ok though and well routed, makes for a very interesting pitch.

#10 IMO is the weakest hole on the course, if you venture far right fairway off the tee you do get a good angle into the green; hit it too hard and you have a lost ball in the jungle, I would get out a chainsaw and expose some of the natural valley contours on both sides of that fairway, but thats just my opinion.

The site is quite exposed to the wind and hence that is probably the reason for the bunker inconsistency. Revetting would fix this but I highly doubt the owner will fork out the cash (that Glenelg did) to get this done

The false fronts are a signature Crafty move; we have tons of them @ Tanunda that his father Murray designed. I think they work really well on some holes particularly the Par 3's on the back nine

[Chilled]

#10 IMO is the weakest hole on the course, if you venture far right fairway off the tee you do get a good angle into the green; hit it too hard and you have a lost ball in the jungle

Perfect risk/reward requiring a pretty good amount of accuracy and knowing your game. You shouldn't go into the jungle if you know your club distances.

I would get out a chainsaw and expose some of the natural valley contours on both sides of that fairway, but thats just my opinion.

You mean make it easier for the hackers? I disagree. Too many courses are having too much growth removed to make it easier for hackers.

[marcel]

You mean make it easier for the hackers? I disagree. Too many courses are having too much growth removed to make it easier for hackers.

Spot on, I'm sick of playing with people who play with a handicap of 24 when clearly, given a course presented as it should be, they'd be lucky to be off 27. A blight on the game.
Hole 10 at Mt Compass annoys me greatly, when next I play there I'll remember why and let you know. It's a quick, awful way to get to the better land of hole 11 onwards

[marcel]

Played Kooyonga today and having a hit at Glenelg next week.

Kooyonga along with RA are in the best winter conditions I've ever experienced them in. I guess because of the relatively dry weather.
Hopefully Glenelg is also

[thecollective]

Yeah hackers suck, they should just like stop playing

Oh wait a minute

[Chilled]

Oh the confected outrage.....the huge manatee of it all. I'll have a waaaaahmbulance on standby.

You can't see me now but my soul is crying on the inside.

What is with this silly obsession of some people to want to denude every course and make it some poor clone of the weak Royal Adelaide GC.

[Benje]

Glenelg is in fine condition Marcel (played there 10 days ago).

RA worm casts on the first 8 holes were back today - gosh they are sticky.
Otherwise, course is excellent (as long as you like fast greens).

[thecollective]

Glenelg is in fine condition Marcel (played there 10 days ago).

What are your thoughts on the revetted bunkering?

I have only played the new layout a handful of times and on most occasions it’s been an Ambrose format (corporate golf days, hence never in bunkers after best ball). One of Tanundas members/pennant players raves about the consistency of lie and sand qty since the change

Certainly a distinctive look they bring

[Benje]

The half revett works well. Condition is always good.
It is a pity that Glenelg doesn't have as much acreage as the other sandbelt courses.

[marcel]

It's also a pity they used their best land to locate the clubhouse and maintenance facility

[Chilled]

It's also a pity they used their best land to locate the clubhouse and maintenance facility

Well you be sure to register your outrage at the pro shop when you arrive for your game. I’m sure it will be duly noted and relayed to club management. Oh, but don’t forget to pay before you comment ok.

[Chilled]

Oh noes.....looks like Royal Adelaide just lost one of it's Pro's to Kooyonga

[coalesce]

He’d probably still go back to RA to practice