Metropolitan - Victoria - Australia

Golfing home of Mike Clayton, LPGA player Su Oh and current US Mid Am Champion Lucas Michel. Mike often speaks about never having had a bad lie in 30 years a member of Metropolitan GC. While conditioning is often used as a surrogate for good design amongst golfers around the globe, the conditioning of Metropolitan is truly exceptional, the course ain’t bad either!

Metro is on the must play list while in Melbourne, perhaps not quite as dramatic as the great topography that exists at Victoria (I’m sure that RMGC ticks this box in spades also, however I have yet to play there) or indeed the understated elegance of Kingston Heath. Metro is much more than the sum of its parts, facilitated in the main by the complimentary nature of both the routing and variety of the challenges that face the golfers. The overriding memory is of a collection of exceptional par threes (this appears to be a recurring theme on the Sandbelt) that would be the envy of any club the world over

It is a shame that the original back nine was lost to compulsory purchase order when the local government wished to build a school back in the 1959. Consulting course architects Paul Mogford and Neil Crafter are currently spear heading a course enhancement plan to marry the newer back nine with the characteristics of the front nine. The plan involves enhancement to the existing back nine holes, only two holes (12 and 13) will see any significant redesign.

For more information on my Australian golfing adventure, please click the following link: The Long Road to Van Diemen's Land

It is probably 50 years since I last played Metropolitan, just at the time the club had lost some of its land at the end of their property and the new holes looked very sparse especially in comparison to the glorious first nine with so many fine eucalyptus trees .Time heals all wounds and the new holes have gained much in beauty even without the towering gums and the condition of the course is the same all over;excellent . The wonderful thing about Metropolitan is that it is a delight to play , sandy loam fairways beautifully covered with couch and fast but totally fair greens together with a glorious collection of tweetering bird life . It is a flat course but as good as any in Surrey or Berkshire and that is saying something!!

Metropolitan GC is known as the best conditioned course in Australia, and one of the best in the world- comparisons have even been made with Augusta National because of the magnificent carpet of santa ana couch fairways, and immaculate presentation of bunkers and greens. But Metro has more to offer than it's wonderful presentation.

It is a joy to play, and demands a golfer put some thought into his game. The fairways are wide, but the distinctive clean edged bunkering is everywhere. Fairway bunkers push you one way off the tee, and then challenge you again with approaches to greens amply protected by more sand.

There is no better example of this than the long par 4 first hole. The 'safe' drive to the right side of the fairway avoids a larger bunker complex at driving length on the left. As with much of the fairway bunkering at Metro the bunker intrudes well into the fairway, and draws the player’s eye. However the green is heavily protected on the right side, and has more gaping bunkers well short and right as well- meaning the safe tee shot to the right will then demand a long approach over a number of bunkers to reach the green. It is strategic, it is difficult, but it also eminently fair as it is all laid out before you on the tee.

Welcome to Metropolitan!

The first 6 holes at Metro are absolutely world class in my opinion. The aforementioned opener is followed by a devilish, but picturesque par 3, a dogleg par 4, short par 5 with tricky elevated green, and very tight tee shot over sand and rough, and a par 4 and par 5 that flow through the native gum trees and shrubbery. The vegetation is dominated by the red flowering gum that became the club logo, and it frames the holes beautifully. The bunkering is wonderful, and the crisp lines eat into those santa ana carpet fairways and demand your attention. But it is the sculpting of the fairways around the bunkering that really impresses me. I don't know of any other course where these dips and hollows in the fairway carpet are so captivating – they give movement to the fairways in such as way as to make them a natural extension of the bunkers.

However after hole 6 the course is laid on flatter terrain. This is a result of the land swap in the 60's. There are many good holes later in the course- the par 3 11th is a gem. And the short, tight dogleg par four 16th is memorable with bunkers everywhere. The longer par 4 seventeenth hole is unique with a copse of non native trees protecting the right side of the green. And the closing par 4 is a strong hole.

However as good as the course is, it does not consistently match the quality shown in those first 6 holes. The latest revision by Crafter + Mogford Golf Strategies may well rectify this!

Peter Wood is the founder of The Travelling Golfer – click the link to read his full review.

Metropolitan is quite simply one of the best courses in Australia, beautifully manicured fairways are a treat to the golfer upon standing to address their shot.

Pure couch fairways with large landing areas are kept in pristine condition all year round, fast bent grass greens are hand mown to the edges of the outstanding greenside bunkers which are those ones found typically on the Melbourne sandbelt, they're a real treat.

Enjoy the opportunity to play here if it comes your way :)

Tyson

This course is faultless! Played here on a Melbourne golf trip and the course was in excellent condition having recently hosted the Amateur open. The greens are the most ridiculous things I've ever putting on (in a good way). They were like billiards tables and very true. It was a struggle having not played on anything so quick before however they have to be the most enjoyable 3 putts I've ever made. The green side bunkering is top notch with the bunkers cut directly into the greens. A couple in our group putt into bunkers on a couple of occasions due to the speeds.The clubhouse and hospitality from the pro-shop also added to what was a fantastic day, even though I only had 27 points. Will definitely try to get back for what was a fantastic golf outing

Metropolitan is a MacKenzie course—twice. The first designer was a member, J.H. Mackenzie. His work was modified as a result of his namesake’s (Alister) historic 1926 Australian visit. The course was further altered by Dick Wilson in 1960 when the club lost land to a school. And more recently, Michael Clayton made significant changes to three holes and smaller ones to half a dozen others.With all these hands stirring the pot, one might expect a bit of an architectural mongrel. But that is not the case. In fact, it is not easy to figure which holes were authored by whom. The routing flows quite naturally and Metropolitan’s signature bunkers—in many cases scissored right into the edge of the greens—are found throughout the course. While Metro is justly famous for its conditioning—the finest of the Sandbelt courses—it’s not entirely manicured. Sandy waste areas (short of 2, between 3 and 4, and at 5, 11, and 13) add to the visual appeal, as do the variety of trees that play host to a veritable aviary of Australian birds. The course is peaceful, but not entirely quiet. The firm and fast conditions and opportunities to play running approaches make for a fine links-like experience. After Royal Melbourne West, my favorite in the Sandbelt.

I was just thinking when walking round metropolitan, how can you produce such a great course from such flat land? The answer I feel is obviously great design with world class bunkering and greens. I agree with most of Fergals words on the course, there is indeed a fair collection of world class holes here and yes mainly on the front 9 but the back 9 is still pretty dam good. I wasn't a big fan of the 18th and point taken on those trees in 17, but for me there was a good bit of interest on every other hole on the back 9 and I thought 13 was the best par 3 on the course. it was also the only hole that wasn't open at the front on an otherwise firm course that would allow the running approach. my favourite hole overall was also the great par 5 6th. probably because I was able to fly a 3 wood over the back in two before playing the flop shot of my life over the back bunker and stopping it 3 inches from the pin for my birdie.. ultimately it made me keen to return for more sandbelt golf and I believe metropolitan has the quality to be well in the top 100.

Attention to detail and conditioning at “Metro” is second to none, I even heard that some of the green-side bunkers have their edges hand-cut with a scissors! To help you visualize the bunkers, imagine a set of waves about to crash onto the shore. Imagine the waves as they rise to a crescendo, take their last breath and fight for position before unleashing their power. Fortunately the greens are very large, which is an act of fairness given the brutality of the bunkers that ravenously hunt your golf ball. Most of the holes have some movement and offer very firm and bouncy playing conditions. Weaker (and condemned) aspects of the course are driven by recent disappointing alterations and re-routing, noticeably the lack of accessibility to the par three 13th hole (third effort at this hole in recent years!) and the vast non-descript par five 14th fairway. I also thought that the man-made reservoir and very bright evergreen trees close to the 17th green stood out as being uncharacteristic with the rest of the vegetation on the property. With that said, despite being so close to the city and civilized development, there’s an enjoyable sense of containment and isolation from the hustle and bustle of nearby housing estates. Among a collection of world-class holes, my favourite hole was the par five 6th hole which moves uphill from left to right and possibly has the most interesting green on the Sandbelt. Wonderful contours swim their way between the hostile bunkers and add to the best stretch of the course. Metro is regarded as a “tier 1” course and I support the motion.

The best conditioned and presented golf course in Australia, if not the world. I have played all of the top 20 ranked courses in Australia and many of the British open and championship courses in the UK. None come close in terms of purity of grass cover and overall conditioning. The fairways are unbelievable 12 months a year, the greens tight, hard and fast, and the bunkers immaculate. The design of the course, with numerous sweeping bunkers eating into large rolling greens, and tree lined fairways meandering through the secluded estate, is both challening and spectacular. The best course in Australia.

Metro is a good course but I don't feel it should be ranked as high as it is. I felt the first few holes were the best, and by the finishing holes nothing felt new. 16 (the short par four) was quite an average looking hole, although I did like the green complex. Some of the par fives were relatively short, and I didn't really understand the "great finish" people have talked about. The condition was what you would expect for anywhere on the sandbelt.