KOOINDAH WATERS
Words and Photography: brendan james

ENTERING ITS THIRD YEAR OF PLAY, KOOINDAH WATERS’ ROUGH EDGES HAVE DISAPPEARED AND THE QUALITY OF THE ROSS WATSON AND CRAIG PARRY DESIGN IS STARTING TO SHINE THROUGH.

Throughout his playing career, Craig Parry won tournaments using sound strategy complemented by good ball-striking and a world class short game.

The maturing of trees alongside the fairway and behind the green have turned the 161-metre par-3 4th into a beautiful hole.

As the co-designer of Kooindah Waters – near Wyong, on
NSW’s Central Coast – he brought those elements of golfing brains over brawn to the design table and the result is challenging and enjoyable. Parry collaborated with highly acclaimed course designer Ross Watson on the Kooindah Waters design. He said he and Watson had few constraints in coming up with the design as the land was at and pretty lifeless.

“You could say it was a blank canvas … there was nothing we
had to incorporate, no special feature that needed inclusion,” he
said. “And, because of that, we were able to create a very good golf course that will test the strategy of every golfer, no matter how good, or bad, they are at the game.”

Kooindah Waters, in modern terms, is certainly not a long course at 6,083 metres from the back pegs. Length was never a major issue for the design team because they did not set out to create a brutal test of the game that large sections of the golf-playing public might be intimidated by.

“One philosophy we had about Kooindah from day one was that
it had to be user-friendly,” Parry said. “When the course was almost finished I would go out with my young boys and hit some shots and if it was too hard they would not want to go back.
“The last thing you want to do, especially with a public access
course, is scare people away after one round. You don’t want them going away saying, ‘I’m never gonna play that golf course again.’

Then they tell their friends and before too long your course has a
reputation for being too hard or not being fair.”

Kooindah Waters was playing even shorter than its scorecard
distance when I visited there recently. While it is not a links course, the fairways were firm under foot, as were the greens … courtesy of the hot Australian summer. The playing surfaces were wellmaintained and a pleasure to hit off and putt on.
But the firmness really changed the whole complexion of the
course I had previously played, which featured lush, slow running fairways and well watered greens.

Now faced with fast, hard fairways I had to resort to the Parry
school of strategy as the fairways were now, not only shorter, but
much narrower as most of them are either flanked by wetlands
or have small and deep, or large and shallow, fairway bunkers
punctuating your progress from tee to green. Where I might have
previously unsaddled the driver and let one rip, I found myself
pulling in the reins with a 3-metal or long iron.

A good lay-up strategy is needed to beter the par-5 8th hole.

I felt, with every swing, I was walking a tightrope where the next
shot might catch a wrong bounce and finish in a trap or I might
not land my approach to a green in the right spot and be left with
a lightning fast downhiller that would need to hit a wall to stop
anywhere near the hole. I was having a ball.

See the March 2009 issue of Golf Australia to read the rest of this review. On Sale Now

FACT FILE

LENGTH: 6,083 metres (black tees), 5,720 (gold), 4,955 (jade).
PAR: 72. ACR/AWCR: 72; 70 (jade)
CORPORATE DAYS?: Yes.
Experienced staff can organise every aspect of your event.
MEMBERSHIP OPEN?: Yes. There are several membership options currently available.
GREEN FEE: $59 (18 holes, Mon-Thur), $69 (Fri-Sun). $15 per
person per cart. Nine-hole twilight rate (inc. club and cart hire) $32.
ADDRESS: Kooindah Boulevarde, Wyong, NSW.
PHONE: (02) 4351 0700.
WEB: www.kooindahwaters.com.au
GETTING THERE: From Sydney, take the F3 freeway north towards Newcastle. Take Wyong exit and follow the turn-off signs from the old Pacific Highway.
GOOGLE MAPS: Map of Kooindah Waters

From the April 2009 issue of Golf Australia