If Barwon Heads is typical of the many golf courses in Victoria then the golfers here are playing on some of the best courses on earth. Australia’s second smallest state has for a long time been the powerhouse of Australian golf with its perfect climate, playing conditions and ideal terrain. This was my first game in the state and I was impressed. 

Barwon Heads is a traditional links course protected from the sea by dunes with fast-running fairways, rock-hard greens and deep bunkers. Golf has been played on this site since the 1920’s. The major defence of a layout little more than 6000 yards from the Club tees is the wind which can be quite brutal. We were lucky to play on a day of pleasant sunshine and no more than strong breezes. The sand-based surface is gently undulating and very open for the first six holes, thereafter the wide fairways are often bordered on one side by scrub or small trees, although the course never loses its links feel.

Maintenance was nigh perfect although reading the greens was difficult, for if you overhit only slightly on the gentlest of downhill putts you saw your putt going racing past the hole. The summer has apparently been very dry with little rain in the last two months.

The course starts with a short par four with a false front, but the highlight of the early holes is the stretch from 3 to 6. In particular I liked the beautiful short hole at 4 fronted by a steep bank and then a two-tier green set into the dunes, followed by the long downhill 5th rising gently to a good-sized putting surface.

The middle part of the course contains 5 excellent par fours and two quite outstanding short holes. The par three at 8 requires a mid-iron or more, depending on the strength of the wind, over a sandy waste area to a green protected at the front by a large mound, whereas 13 is not only the shortest hole on the course but also the most well-known. There are no bunkers and the green looks large enough, but with a number of run-offs, some quite steep, landing your ball on the putting surface and keeping it there is difficult. I hit what seemed a perfect downhill 8 iron into the heart of this green, only for it to fall off the plateau with what seemed its last roll. The hole is not only Barwon’s signature but it has also given its name to the surrounding area, now known as Thirteenth Beach, also today with two further golf courses carrying its name.

The course ends slightly quietly with two tough par 5s and the testing uphill 18th finishing alongside an old-fashioned Clubhouse which it seems is recognised as one of the best in the land. Hospitality inside was of an impeccable standard.