Last week I was lucky enough to attend the ISPS Australian Open - Having returned to Melbourne for the 107th showing this year, the historic event was held at 2-world-class courses on the famous Australian sandbelt at both Kingston Heath Golf Club and Victoria Golf Club.
The event yet again featured the mixed-gender format with the addition of the inspiring All Abilities Championship. With the field playing both Kingston Heath and Victoria courses Thursday & Friday before a Saturday, Sunday finish solely at Kingston Heath GC.
Kingston Heath Golf Club
The premier course is celebrated for its natural beauty and strategic design, featuring expertly crafted greens and bunkers.
It has hosted numerous prestigious events in the past, including the Men's and Women's Australian Opens, Victorian Opens, Australian Masters, and the 2016 World Cup of Golf - With the club set to host The Presidents Cup in 2028.
Originally formed as the Elsternwick Golf Club in 1909. The club relocated to the South-Eastern suburbs of Melbourne in 1920 - including the complete dismantling and moving of the original clubhouse to the new site, renamed as Kingston Heath.
Designed by Dan Soutar, the course opened in 1925, originally measuring 6,800 yards with a par of 82, making it the longest and most challenging course in Australia - Its visionary founders believed it would be easier to shorten the course than to lengthen it.
In 1926, shortly after its opening, Dr. Alister Mackenzie visited, leaving his mark by developing the bunkering scheme, and refining several holes including the iconic par-3 15th hole.
Victoria Golf Club
The Victoria Golf Club was established in 1903 by Mr. Bill Meader, originally situated at Fishermans Bend in Port Melbourne. In 1927, the club relocated to its current site, where the new course was designed by Oscar Damman and Bill Meader, with contributions from the iconic Dr. Alister Mackenzie.
Today, the beautifully landscaped course spans 6,905 yards and is known as one of the tougher layouts in the Sandbelt, featuring lightning-fast greens and some of the finest bunkering in Australia. It has similarly hosted numerous prestigious events, including the Men's and Women's Australian Opens, Victorian Opens, and Australian Masters.
The Mixed Format
Since 2022, the format has seen both the men’s and women’s fields compete together across two courses, with alternating men's and women's groups in each round - including an equal amount of prize money.
The mixed format has recently been a hot topic in the golf world with differing views on both the positive and negative effects of simultaneously hosting the Men and Women’s events. With Australia's own Ian Baker-Finch’s view as both Men’s and Women’s events being ‘diminished’ as a consequence of being played at the same time - With the difficulty of attracting more of the best players in the world across both genders with a limited prize money for the men and scheduling difficulties with the LPGA tour.
“It’s no secret that some of our leading men’s players don’t like the format, but they like the date. And on the flip side, some of our leading female players don’t like the date, but like the format,” Golf Australia chief executive James Sutherland said.
It was interesting to see the impact of the playability and its effect on the cut lines between the men (-2) and the ladies (+4). With the course playing soft, the pin placements were strategically hidden behind the punishing bunkers. This proved to be a big difference between the Male and Female golfers, the Men were able to attack the pins more regularly with the shorter clubs in, however, the women players struggled to stop the ball on the green with the longer clubs flatter ball flights making it difficult to play aggressively.
Part-Time Caddie
For sure the highlight of the week was having the opportunity to caddie for Hong Kong based Professional Isabella Leung who is experiencing her first year on the WPGA - Whilst it was not the week that we were both hoping for, it was still a great experience and a great achievement to have reached the prestigious event in the first place.
I’ve caddied a couple of times now including on the Asian Tour in Hong Kong and it always seems to reignite that golfer in me and makes me desperately want to get out there practicing and playing competitively (not that I’ve ever been anywhere near the top level!).
Please follow the links for more information on the following:
ISPS Handa Australian Open
Kingston Heath Golf Club
Victoria Golf Club
