TWIN CREEKS G&CG

BRENDAN JAMES GETS A SNEAK PREVIEW OF GRAHAM MARSH’S NEWEST CREATION IN SYDNEY’S WEST AND SUGGESTS YOUR BUNKER PLAY SHOULD BE UP TO SCRATCH IF YOU GET TO PLAY THE COURSE.

Graham Marsh, the player, has never been flamboyant. Each shot he faces, even today on the US Champions Tour, is thoughtfully considered and the following swing beautifully controlled. His ability to strategically plot his way around a course remains one of his strong suits.

But Graham Marsh, the golf course designer, certainly has a creative flair and a flamboyant edge, which has seen his work earn high accolades in the United States.

Strategy has been an intrinsic element of all his designs and that remains the case with his latest offering, Twin Creeks – a private Golf & Country Club, which will be the showpiece jewel of a massive residential development at Luddenham, about 60 minutes’ drive west of the Sydney CBD.

The view down the 1st fairway sets the scene for many of the holes to come at Twin Creeks

While the value for good shotmaking exists, this latest creation is a departure from his previous work in Australia, which includes Sydney’s Terrey Hills course, Secret Harbour and The Vines in Western Australia, North Lakes near Brisbane and his last completed layout, Growling Frog, on the northern outskirts of Melbourne.

What makes Twin Creeks different from all his other work is the bunkering style.

Golfers who have played any of the courses mentioned above will know that Marsh’s bunkering style is predominantly round fl owing shapes with well-manicured edging and usually accompanied by surrounding mounds and swales.

That was until now.

Marsh’s bunkering at Twin Creeks is unlike anything you will find on any other Australian course. Visually, it is intimidating and strategically, it is superb. But it is the shape, varying size and depth of the bunkering that impresses.

The shaping in particular is intricate in its detail, with each bunker, showing small and large fingers of surrounding grassed areas encroaching into the sandy hazards. I have no doubt it will be expensive to maintain these bunkers, but if the high standard of presentation can be continually met, Twin Creeks will gain many plaudits on its bunkering alone.

There are several holes at Twin Creeks that will remain long in the memory, simply because of the vast sprawl of bunkering between tee and green. You are faced with a huge expanse of sand at the outset, with a huge complex of bunkering down the left and a smaller bunker to the right of the driving zone on the par-4 1st. From the tee it is 359 metres to the centre of the green and sand dominates the vista. But as is the case on most holes at Twin Creeks, there is more room to land your tee shot than first appears. A drive and a short-iron is all that is needed to fi nd the huge green, which, not surprisingly features sand short and long of the putting surface.

Huge bunker complexes dominate the journey on the par-5 9th.

The first of two quality short par-4s at Twin Creeks can be found when you reach the 3rd tee. The 302-metre hole will have longer hitters champing at the bit to try their luck in reaching the green with their drive. A generous landing area short of the putting surface makes the shot even more tempting. But to pull the shot off, you have to hit straight over the edge of a water hazard and avoid three bunkers lining the final approach.

On paper, the second of Marsh’s classic short par-4s looks like a pushover. But the 309-metre 12th is far from it, with a massive fairway trap splitting the hole into two fairway routes to the green. The shorter play to the green is to the right of ‘Marsh’s Desert’ but the drive must be precise to avoid finding long grass right of the fairway.

The safer play is to the left of the bunker, which will leave
a short pitch to a big putting surface guarded by sand traps in the front and steep slopes to the rear.

The 402-metre par-4 18th is a wonderful closing hole that calls on you to see your round out to the very last hit. To shorten the hole, your tee shot must skirt a huge Gum tree on the left side of the sweeping left fairway. This playing line will leave you with a long approach over the edge of a lake in front and to the left of the green. Those players, who bail out away from the water, are guaranteed to end up in the vast complex of bunkers lying to the right of the putting surface.

At the end of my round I was surprised on reflection that I had managed to only play one bunker shot during the round. Not that I played out of my skin, but I suspect that the sandy hazards have more bark than bite. There is plenty of room to hit every shot at Twin Creeks if you are smart and pick your moments to be aggressive. If you don’t, I suggest you put in some long hours of bunker practice before tackling Twin Creeks.

Twin Creeks offi cially opens in May and will be managed by Troon Golf. It is a private course but will be open to corporate days, guests of members and a limited number of resort guests when the boutique Peppers Resort opens adjoining the clubhouse next year.

Fully transferable share memberships (private, family,
corporate and life) to the club are still available as are huge acreage residential lots overlooking the golf course. Purchasers of residential lots do not have to buy a share membership to enjoy the course but can pay annual fees to be a member.

In time, Twin Creeks’ long par-4 18th will gain a reputation as a formidable closing hole.

FACT FILE

LENGTH: 6,444 metres (black tees), 6,147 (gold), 5,808 (silver), 5,363 (jade).
PAR: 72
ACR/ACWR: TBC
DESIGNER: Graham Marsh.
GREEN FEE: TBC for members’ guests.
ADDRESS: Twin Creeks Drive, Luddenham, NSW, 2745.
PHONE: 1800 144 947 or (02) 9834 5647 for membership inquiries.
WEBSITE: www.twincreeks.com.au
HOW TO GET THERE: From Sydney and Parramatta, follow the M4 freeway west and take the Mamre Rd turn off
at St Clair. Turn left into Mamre Rd and then right into Luddenham Rd. Twin Creeks is two minutes’ drive from this
intersection.
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From the April 2006 issue of Golf Australia magazine