13th Beach Golf (Beach)

To the southwest of Melbourne lies the Bellarine Peninsula, the counterpart to the Mornington Peninsula opposite. At their extremities the two are separated by a stretch of water that can be crossed by ferry in 40 minutes. Although the golfing lands are not as rich on this peninsula, their value has been increased with the completion of two relatively new courses just outside the town of Barwon Heads.

The Beach course at Thirteenth Beach is as accomplished an offering as Tony Cashmore’s previous work at The Dunes, across the water near Portsea. Thirteenth Beach has in its favour a closer relationship to the sea by virtue of a 3km stretch of land adjacent to the dunes, though these dunes separate the golfer from the beach itself and any views of Bass Strait. While the land at the Dunes is sand based, the sea has receded somewhat further, giving way to farmland. Both courses are open to the public and come strongly recommended for the touring golfer.

As with other courses on the Bellarine and Mornington Peninsulas, it’s a fair bet that most rounds of golf will involve some leaning into the prevailing winds of the day.

It is not easy designing and building public access courses that keep the attention of the local club champion but that can still entertain without demoralising the weekend out-of-state visitor. The economics of the business require a consistent circulation of happy swishers. Tony Cashmore has achieved this on a course that you will want to play several times.

The above passage is a brief edited extract from The Finest Golf Courses of Asia and Australasia by James Spence. Reproduced with kind permission.

The Vic Open has been the flagship tournament in men’s golf in the state of Victoria since 1957 when the inaugural event was staged at Riversdale Golf Club. The equivalent Victorian Women’s event was first played in 1988 but soon faltered and disappeared from the ladies’ calendar until 2012 when Golf Victoria innovatively decided to promote both male and female professional golf at one inclusive tournament. The 2012 championship was simultaneously staged for men and women at Spring Valley and Woodlands and was a roaring success.

In 2013, the ISPS Handa Vic Open moved to 13th Beach Golf Links where its success on both the Beach and Creek courses continued to gather momentum. In 2019 the men’s tournament was co-sanctioned by the European Tour and the ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia, while the women’s event co-sanctioned by the LPGA and the ALPGA Tour. Despite there being a separate championship for men and women, there’s equal prize money on offer and all four rounds are played in alternating men’s and women’s tee times. The event is a breath of fresh air.