Favourite VIC Champs venue

[Courty]

I've had some discussions recently with a few VIC Champs regulars about favourite venue, and have subsequently decided to throw it to the people. I've devised a 'March Madness' style knockout tournament to get this done:

• I listed out all of the Thursday-Sunday official courses.
• Due to some duplicates I was short a few, so I threw in a couple of the better-attended Monday venues and a special 'wild-card' to round it out to 32 courses.
• They were then seeded based on their 2020 Top 100 ranking, with the unranked courses in random order.
• I have a table with all of the matches which will be posted here shortly.

I'll provide a link to a Strawpoll each day, which will end at 7pm the following night (I've allowed an extra day for the first poll). The first match will go a bit longer. The results will go up in this thread/ post, and the next link will be provided. I'll update this post with anything else I've forgotten.

Now, the important stuff... your vote should be for your 'favourite' Champs venue. It has nothing to do with the best architecture or conditioning. The Top 100 rankings already does that for us.

Which course invokes the best memories, where did you feel like you were in golfing heaven on earth, which course suited your game better, where did you have the most fun etc? That is the sort of thing you should consider in casting your vote.

To jog some dusty memories, here is a quick summary of the courses and related info:





Round 1
Match 1: https://strawpoll.com/d7p9dy93
Match 2: https://strawpoll.com/s74hr799
Match 3: https://strawpoll.com/6b99ek8e
Match 4: https://strawpoll.com/k76g49ss
Match 5: https://strawpoll.com/6r2efhb8
Match 6: https://strawpoll.com/2ywpff39
Match 7: https://strawpoll.com/xre5zec3
Match 8: https://strawpoll.com/ck4gpf45
Match 9: https://strawpoll.com/313a7sr2
Match 10: https://strawpoll.com/w6p74g5d
Match 11: https://strawpoll.com/f8e66a7b
Match 12: https://strawpoll.com/p4wwg369
Match 13: https://strawpoll.com/xrr8ghcb
Match 14: https://strawpoll.com/y3fkdyya
Match 15: https://strawpoll.com/82aaf24e
Match 16: https://strawpoll.com/w6xr546k

Round 2
Match 17: https://strawpoll.com/chh7keh7
Match 18: https://strawpoll.com/wk9f29k8
Match 19: https://strawpoll.com/2d198ppe
Match 20: https://strawpoll.com/p7pfsfza
Match 21: https://strawpoll.com/4ge41x78
Match 22: https://strawpoll.com/pf927e77
Match 23: https://strawpoll.com/zzghh3x3
Match 24: https://strawpoll.com/fgz747fs

Round 3
Match 25: https://strawpoll.com/s9brgy6y
Match 26: https://strawpoll.com/1xz94kp8
Match 27: https://strawpoll.com/6rgrhyd2
Match 28: https://strawpoll.com/cg2w34be

Semi Final
Match 29: https://strawpoll.com/awse5rrb
Match 30: https://strawpoll.com/8cer86yr

Finals
Match 31 (3rd/ 4th final): https://strawpoll.com/ba8bcag3
Match 32: Grand Final: https://strawpoll.com/5g6g6gba

[Ron Burgundy]

The helicopter picture is spectacular.For a good player like Lefty, the hole is 3w 3w when played downwind. Unless you want to go left and take a different risk.It's not a hard par 5

Or he could’ve hit driver still, but just hit a better drive.

[Ron Burgundy]

The man does love a fairway bunker. Hung out in this one for a couple of shots. Luckily the cameraman managed to fly this trap with his drive....

[BUSHY]

The man does love a fairway bunker. Hung out in this one for a couple of shots. Luckily the cameraman managed to fly this trap with his drive....

[thecollective]

Lefty your best line would have been left of the centre bunker with a draw shape that rolls into the centre through the gap. You tried to take (what you thought) was the easy path right and got caught out

At your level you should be able to hit that shot

[WBennett]

The man does love a fairway bunker. Hung out in this one for a couple of shots. Luckily the cameraman managed to fly this trap with his drive....

I can't work out which course that is, let alone which hole that is. The OOB stakes in the background are confusing me.

[AndyP]

Port Fairy, isn't it?

[Ron Burgundy]

Port Fairy. Last oceanside hole. Dogleg left. 16 maybe.

[WBennett]

Makes sense. I was hugging the right side of the fairway next to those pegs. Didn't walk within 40m of that bunker 😂

[BUSHY]

Port Fairy. Last oceanside hole. Dogleg left. 16 maybe.

Ahhh, the old “carry me if you can” bunker on the corner of the dogleg.... theres a pattern forming here...

[LeftyHoges]

Lefty your best line would have been left of the centre bunker with a draw shape that rolls into the centre through the gap. You tried to take (what you thought) was the easy path right and got caught out

At your level you should be able to hit that shot

You're absolutely ****ing kidding me, surely....????

Ahhh, the old “carry me if you can” bunker on the corner of the dogleg.... theres a pattern forming here...

I wasn't going anywhere near that ****ing thing. The 30m cut I hit had different ideas. Then I nearly lost my driver in the marrum grass.

[Dotty]

There's also the option of hitting it softer and straighter.

[LeftyHoges]

There's also the option of hitting it softer and straighter.

Oh. You mean laying up?

[Dotty]

Oh. You mean laying up?

Yeah, yeah. It was my strategy, why I was 60m short of the bunker.

[LeftyHoges]

Yeah, yeah. It was my strategy, why I was 60m short of the bunker.

You're a thinker, Dotty. Looks like I'll be laying up next time too.

[WBennett]

There's also the option of hitting it softer and straighter.

Using course management? There is a concept

[Toxic]

You're a thinker, Dotty. Looks like I'll be laying up next time too.

Just carry it further, par 5, just rip it

[LeftyHoges]

Using course management? There is a concept

Oh, more fancy words for forced layup.

Just carry it further, par 5, just rip it

Wow, had never thought of that.

[hippo10]

Forward tees mate, no beast here.
Strategy of the hole my ****ing arse.

Oh dear, playing from forward tees and complaining that the designer put a bunker (and surrounding slopes to feed ball into the bunker) at the distance that you would drive it from said tees. Can't really categorize that hole as a forced layup when depending on the tee, wind and your driving ability you have plenty of options. If you want a forced layup go play Half Moon Bay 13....
Just imagine the complete reverse direction this thread would have taken if Lefty had aimed straight at the bunker, flown it using his beast skills and ended up with an easy 170 into the green for his second. The par that followed would have been epic

[Courty]

Portland wins with over 60% of the vote.

Next match link is in the OP

[Captain Nemo]

Barwon was a cracking track, one of my favourites...

[Ron Burgundy]

I played both on the same day and Barwon is a better course, but Heywood was the better experience. It’s the vibe.

[Captain Nemo]

True, Barwon didn’t like my T-shirt and jeans vibe when I rocked up into the clubhouse with Oldracer for a pre round beer, lol!

[LeftyHoges]

Oh dear, playing from forward tees and complaining that the designer put a bunker (and surrounding slopes to feed ball into the bunker) at the distance that you would drive it from said tees. Can't really categorize that hole as a forced layup when depending on the tee, wind and your driving ability you have plenty of options. If you want a forced layup go play Half Moon Bay 13....
Just imagine the complete reverse direction this thread would have taken if Lefty had aimed straight at the bunker, flown it using his beast skills and ended up with an easy 170 into the green for his second. The par that followed would have been epic

I don't have beast skills, and centre fairway bunkers are ****ing dumb, end of story.

And comparing it to HMB 13? WTF, not even close to the same thing... It has no relevance here.

[peter_rs]

Absolute madness, 3-6 is the best consecutive 4 hole stretch on the course.

I didn’t say they are not nice holes I just like the flow of the back 9 more

[thecollective]

True, Barwon didn’t like my T-shirt and jeans vibe when I rocked up into the clubhouse with Oldracer for a pre round beer, lol!

@ Barwon last year I politely said 'Good Morning' to a large group of female members who were at the first tee box (after paying for my round that started at dawn) all I got was crickets and you could cut the air with a knife.

In all fairness though an older lady (on her own closer to the clubhouse) replied, 'morning, hope you enjoyed your round'.