TERREY HILLS GOLF & COUNTRY CLUB
REVIEWED BY: BRENDAN JAMES

IT IS NEARLY 13 YEARS SINCE SYDNEY’S TERREY HILLS GOLF & COUNTRY CLUB OPENED FOR PLAY. BENDON JAMES LOOKS AT THE CHANGING FACE OF THE PRIVATE COURSE.

Acclaimed American course architect Rees Jones once said “a golf course is a living and constantly changing thing”.

Jones, who is often referred to as the ‘Open’ Doctor because of his work remodelling courses to host the US Open, was making reference to one of the hundreds of projects he has worked on during the past 30 years. His considered words could also apply to the Terrey Hills Golf and Country Club, about 40 minutes’ drive north of the Sydney CBD.

Jones has never seen Terrey Hills. In fact, he may not have even heard of the Graham Marsh-designed layout but his words accurately describe the transformation that has taken place at Terrey Hills since it opened nearly 13 years ago.

The most significant change has been the maturing of the trees and other flora on the back nine. During the five years from 1995 that Terrey Hills hosted the Canon Challenge, many people unfairly looked upon the course as still being ‘unfinished’ because of the bare nature of the back nine.

Course superintendent Peter Watts, who has been at Terrey Hills since the early days of construction, says the maturation of trees planted in the late ‘90s is now having a big effect on the quality of course presentation and has enhanced Marsh’s design.

“When I arrived here in 1992 it was just a moonscape,” Watts said. “Even the front nine, which was supposed to be tree-lined, was only marginally more vegetative than the back nine. The back nine was completely nude … there was just nothing out there.

“The trees out on the back nine now have suddenly moved in so you’ve got a connection between the front and the back nines.

“For a long time you had two contrasting nines and some people, who played the course, would say the course looked unfinished. But you simply can’t mature trees overnight.

“In some respects the course did have an unfinished look on the back nine. The trees were small and the turf hadn’t connected properly with the edges of the course.

“But our wasted areas are few and far between these days. We’ve got the turf extending out to the bushland perimeter and regeneration of native bush has filled in some pretty bare areas.”

Lining the fairways and edges of the course on the inward nine now are large stands of Turpentine, Tallowwoods and Scribbly Gums, which are trees predominantly found in the adjoining Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park.

“There was has been a lot of work done into connecting the golf course to the national park,” Watts said.

Not only has Terrey Hills filled out in its maturation but the playing surfaces – 1020 Bent grass greens and Wintergreen couch fairways – have also aged well. As far as this writer is concerned, the consistently high standard of presentation of its tees, fairways and greens places Terrey Hills in the top-five courses in NSW.

This level of condition perfectly complements Marsh’s outstanding design, which rewards good driving and accurate shot-making from the fairways. Missing any of the large undulating greens presents its own challenges, whether it is a shot from sand, down a deep hollow or the side slope of a mound.

Terrey Hills boasts some memorable holes where good strategy must be used to equal or better par.

The opening hole – a 472-metre par-5 – is a fine example where a well-placed drive can really set you up for an easy shot at birdie. The hole can be shortened significantly by hitting your drive just left of centre to take advantage of a downslope, which will propel your ball further down the fairway. A good drive will put you in range of the green for two shots but any approach must carry a creek
to cuts across the fairway 10 metres short of the massive putting surface.

The same accuracy from the tee is also advantageous on the 385- metre par-4 10th, which doglegs left around deep bunkers that lie between the fairway and a lake.

A drive skirting the edge of the bunkers and hitting a downslope in the rippled fairway can leave a relatively short iron in the hand for your approach to the green.

It is only when you see the course early or late in the day that many
of the ripples, bumps and hollows built into Terrey Hills’ fairways expose themselves.

Such was the case when I ventured out on the course to photograph some holes for this article. I have photographed and played Terrey Hills many times but I had never noticed the beautiful rolling ripple in the fairway of the par-5 16th hole. The shaping of the fairway and green here is superb and is typical of many holes at Terrey Hills.

Terrey Hills is a private member’s club but individual and corporate memberships are available via a transfer facility.

FACT FILE

LENGTH: 6,437 metres (black tees), 6,090 (blue), 5,155 (red).
PAR: 72. ACR/ACWR: 75.
DESIGNER:Graham Marsh.
GREEN FEE: Private course. On application for members’ guests only.
ADDRESS: Booralie Rd, Terrey Hills, NSW, 2084.
PHONE: (02) 9450 0155.
WEBSITE: www.terreyhillsgolf.com.au
HOW TO GET THERE: From Sydney CBD, head north to Chatswood via the Harbour Bridge and Pacific Hwy. Turn right into Boundary St and follow for 10 minutes.
Turn left into Forest Way and follow to Mona Vale Rd and turn right toward Terrey Hills. Turn left at West Head turn off and follow Booralie Rd to course.

From the April 2007 issue of Golf Australia