Commonwealth will now compete with other top courses for international visitor play as it returns to the conversation of go-to clubs in the area.

Standing on the fairway of the first tee, my playing partner asked “Are the members of your home club as friendly as ours?” What a lovely reflection of the membership at Commonwealth Golf Club that their members feel this way. And now they have something more than its membership that they can be proud of. Commonwealth has recently undertaken a rebirth under Renaissance Golf architect Brian Slawnik following the sale of some of their land that resulted in some cash bolstering the club’s balance sheet.

Commonwealth has been recognised for a sustained period now as a sleeping giant of the sandbelt, with this being a long awaited redesign. But rather than a significant rebuild, the changes are simple and subtle, rather than a grand facelift. The course has had the equivalent of some facial fillers meaning evolution rather than revolution. Trees have been removed, unwelcome vegetation has gone which allows indigenous species to thrive, greens are remodelled and greenside bunkers are now tied in to the manner you’d expect of a top sandbelt club. The changes to the greens are clever, with the playing size of the greens actually being much smaller than they appear in many cases given the sneaky slopes and run offs across several of the greens. And once on the greens, the internal contours and slopes are canny and artful such that those putting lines will likely bamboozle many a visiting golfer.

The course maybe lacks the expansiveness of Victoria and Royal Melbourne, or the precision of Kingston Heath which still prevents it from being truly elite, and whilst the par-three holes are good, they are rarely outstanding, something that often distinguishes a course from being good to great, although I reserve the right to offer much love to the 15th which can sit alongside other sandbelt gems.

There’s also a slight dip in momentum with the holes around the turn, although the deep pot at the front of the 10th is an excellent addition and had me troubled during my visit. The famous lake hole on 16 remains, that fortunately for me, has a slither of a sandy beach that provides a margin for error such that death to your golf ball isn’t always guaranteed if you enter the hazard by a whisker.

Other highlights include the 8th hole which will be one that remains in the memory during those post round discussions; a raised green with a cavernous bunker that eats into the right side of the mounding on which the green sits. 18 is also glorious long finishing hole that with a good drive, has an opening in the mouth of the green allowing those long, running approaches from distance to sneak their way onto the surface.