The Course

The relocation of the Portsea clubhouse to a different position on the site necessitated a shift in the traditional course routing. Not much needed to change with the physical layout (although some updates and alterations are planned for the future), however the starting and finishing holes for both nines had to switch in order to facilitate rounds beginning from the 1st and 10th tees. These tasks fell to course architect Todd Hyland from Cashmore Design.

The primary physical change to the layout was shortening the former par-5 6th hole to a par-4, as the hilltop site of the back tee was exactly where the new clubhouse and carpark were to be built. The hole was always a shade on the weak (read: short) side for a modern par-5 and it loses little of its impact as a par-4 played from 140 or so metres further down the hill.

The routing change also sees the old 6th begin the round. Players wander down from the pro shop located on the side of the new clubhouse to a new teeing ground to tackle the revised opening hole. From there play continues via the former 7th thru 12th holes (now holes 2-7) before deviating to play the old 18th and 1st as holes 8 and 9. This routing takes play to a point just below the new clubhouse, bringing nine-hole rounds or rounds starting from the 10th tee to within close proximity of the clubhouse and carpark. The re-sequenced back nine begins at the former 13th and continues to the old 17th before taking in holes 2-5 under the original routing (now holes 15-18) to conclude the round.

Given the new clubhouse’s location, it’s a practical routing and realistically the only option possible in order to achieve two returning loops of nine holes. However, whether by coincidence or some manner of cosmic forethought all those decades ago, the new sequence strengthens the overall layout by placing the most strategic holes at key points in the round. The new 17th and 18th holes, for instance, are two strong par-4s that previously sat innocuously in the middle of the front nine. The death-or-glory short par-4 that is now the 15th falls at a far more preferable part of the round than it did as the old 2nd. Likewise, the back nine begins with another of Portsea’s wonderful short two-shotters that works as a potential kickstart to the inward half. Rounds also now start with a benign but pleasant uphill short par-4 with plenty of space in the fairway to help alleviate 1st-tee nerves and get the field away. There’s also an ideal location for a future halfway house at the junction of paths behind the new 9th green as players pass this point three times, after the 7th, 9th and 14th holes.