Kingston Heath Golf Club

Kingston Heath Golf Club is one of the premier golf clubs in Australia, located in Cheltenham, Victoria. The course is situated on the sandbelt region in the southeast suburbs of Melbourne famed for its golf courses, with Kingston Heath consistently ranked in the top 3 courses in Australia and top 20 courses in the world.

Kingston Heath Golf Club
Club information
Kingston Heath Golf Club is located in Australia
Kingston Heath Golf Club
Kingston Heath Golf Club is located in Victoria
Kingston Heath Golf Club
Kingston Heath Golf Club is located in Melbourne
Kingston Heath Golf Club
Coordinates37°57′33.57″S 145°05′16.27″E
LocationCheltenham, Victoria, Australia
Established1909
TypePrivate
Total holes19
Events hostedAustralian Open (7)
Women's Australian Open (1)
World Cup of Golf (1)
Australian Masters (2)
Victorian Open (7)
Australian Matchplay (7)
GreensA1 Bent
FairwaysSanta Ana Couch
Websitewww.kingstonheath.melbourne
Designed byDan Soutar
Par72

The club has hosted many major events, including 7 x Men's Australian Opens, 1 x Women's Australian Open, 7 x Victorian Opens, 2 x Australian Masters and the 2016 World Cup of Golf. The Men's Australian Open was scheduled to return to Kingston Heath in 2020 but was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[1]

Kingston Heath will host the Presidents Cup in 2028.[2]

History

Elsternwick Park (1909–1925)

Kingston Heath was originally formed as the Elsternwick Golf Club in 1909, and was based at present day Elsternwick Park. In 1920, the committee discussed a relocation to the South-Eastern suburbs of Melbourne. This area would become world famous as the Melbourne Sandbelt.

Cheltenham (1925–present)

The club relocated to its present location in Cheltenham in 1925. This move included the complete dismantling, moving and re-assembling of the original clubhouse to the new site. The club officially opened in April 1925, and was renamed Kingston Heath 5 months later.

Course

The current course was designed by Dan Soutar and was constructed by M.A Morcom. Originally, it played as a par 82 and at the time was the longest course in Australia. Its founders were of the opinion that it was easier to shorten the course rather than to lengthen it. The original scorecard read as below:

Original Scorecard - 1925
Hole123456789Out101112131415161718InTotal
Yards4323602774161954304894253553,3791324314713515352224184524213,4336,812
Par554535554413554545554182

Advice was sought from Alister MacKenzie during his visit to Australia in 1926, who provided a suitable bunkering strategy for the course. Although many link MacKenzie to the actual design of Kingston Heath, his only course routing input was to change the 15th hole. This was a short par 4 (222 yards) which played as a blind tee shot over a hill before descending to the green. MacKenzie's recommendation was to shorten the hole, bringing the green to the top of the rise and becoming a tricky, uphill par 3. Work commenced soon after, with the newly rated par 3 15th becoming one of the most recognisable holes in Australian golf, and Kingston Heath's signature hole.

Over the years, the par of the course has gradually dropped, now playing as a par 72 for Men and 74 for Women.

In 2002, the club constructed a 19th hole - a par 3 positioned between the 1st green and 2nd tee. This hole was designed to championship specifications, allowing the club to insert it into the course rotation during times of required maintenance of another hole. The 19th has since become a fixture in the club's "Tournament" course, often replacing the 10th hole in major events.

An interesting feature of the course is the adaptability in producing different layouts. Given it does not allow a traditional "9 out, 9 in" layout as many courses of its stature do, an alternative was required for the hosting of major events. The introduction of the 19th hole assisted in allowing the club to produce a more tournament friendly layout, known as the "Inner and Outer" course, routing players through the 9 inner most holes of the property as the front 9, returning them to the clubhouse after 9 holes. They then play the 9 outer most holes of the property as the back 9, allowing them to finish on the 18th hole.

Course records

  • Professional
(Men) Mark Brown: 62 (-10), during Round 2 of The Open IFQ, 2013
(Women) Karrie Webb & Jiyai Shin: 67 (-6), both recorded during the final round of the 2008 MFS Women's Australian Open
  • Amateur
(Men) Cruze Strange: 63 (-9), during the 2011 Port Phillip Amateur Championship
(Women) Stephanie Kyriacou: 66 (-8), during the 2017 Port Phillip Amateur Championship

Championships

Professional events

YearWinnerCountryScoreWinning marginRunner-up
R1R2R3R4Total
1948Ossie Pickworth Australia72737074289 (+1)PlayoffAustralia Jim Ferrier
1957Frank Phillips Australia68707574287 (−1)1 shotSouth Africa Gary Player
Australia Ossie Pickworth
1970Gary Player South Africa71657074280 (−8)3 shotsAustralia Bruce Devlin
1983Peter Fowler Australia72766869285 (−3)3 shotsAustralia Ian Baker-Finch
1989Peter Senior Australia66666970271 (−17)6 shotsAustralia Peter Fowler
1995Greg Norman Australia72696968278 (−10)2 shotsAustralia Peter McWhinney
2000Aaron Baddeley Australia69696872278 (−10)2 shotsAustralia Robert Allenby
YearWinnerCountryScoreWinning marginRunner-up
R1R2R3R4Total
2008Karrie Webb Australia72727367284 (−8)PlayoffSouth Korea Jiyai Shin
YearWinnersCountryScoreWinning marginRunner-up
R1R2R3R4Total
2016Søren Kjeldsen
Thorbjørn Olesen
 Denmark72607066268 (−20)4 shotsChina China (Wu Ashun & Li Haotong)
France France (Victor Dubuisson & Romain Langasque)
United States United States (Rickie Fowler & Jimmy Walker)
YearWinnerCountryScoreWinning marginRunner-up
R1R2R3R4Total
2009Tiger Woods United States66687268274 (−14)2 shotsAustralia Greg Chalmers
2012Adam Scott Australia67706767271 (−17)4 shotsEngland Ian Poulter
YearWinnerCountryScoreWinning marginRunner-up
1958Peter Thomson Australia289 (−7)3 shotsAustralia Barry West
1969Kel Nagle Australia279 (−17)3 shotsAustralia Bill Dunk
Australia Peter Thomson
1976Guy Wolstenholme England281 (−7)PlayoffAustralia Graham Marsh
1979Rodger Davis Australia291 (+3)PlayoffAustralia Geoff Parslow
South Africa Gary Player
1987Roger Mackay Australia277 (−11)1 shotAustralia Greg Norman
1988Jim Benepe United States282 (−6)3 shotsAustralia Ian Baker-Finch
Australia Peter McWhinney
1989Mike Clayton Australia285 (−3)2 shotsAustralia Ossie Moore
1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992
YearWinnerCountryWinning marginRunner-up
Robert Boyd Transport Australian Match Play Championship
1986Peter Fowler Australia6 & 5Australia Bob Shearer
1987Ian Baker-Finch Australia5 & 4Australia Ossie Moore
Mercedes-Benz Australian Match Play Championship
1988Ronan Rafferty Northern Ireland1 upAustralia Mike Clayton
1989Ossie Moore Australia1 upAustralia Peter Fowler
1990David Smith Australia4 & 2Australia Peter Fowler
1991Chris Patton United States5 & 3Australia Ken Dukes
1992Mike Clayton Australia4 & 3Australia Peter McWhinney

The Open Championship International Final Qualifying

Kingston Heath was the preferred Australian venue of the R&A for the staging of International Final Qualifying for The Open Championship, which was held each January from 2004 to 2013.

Amateur events

Course ranking

The course is consistently ranked within the top 3 courses in Australia. It also regularly features in publications such as Golf Digest and Golf Magazine in their "World's Top 100 Golf Courses" lists, which has seen Kingston Heath hold a position in the top-20 for a number of years.

YearSourceRanking
Australia's Top 100 Courses
2020Australian Golf Digest#3
2018Australian Golf Digest#2
2016Australian Golf Digest#2
2014Australian Golf Digest#2
2012Australian Golf Digest#2
2010Australian Golf Digest#1 Golf Course in Australia
World's Top 100 Courses
2020Planet Golf#17
2018Golf Digest#16
2016Golf Digest#18
2014Golf Digest#20

References

  1. Ward, Roy (16 October 2020). "Golf Australia cancels Australian Opens, Australian PGA due to COVID-19". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 16 October 2020.
  2. "Australia's Kingston Heath to host 2028 Presidents Cup". ESPN. Associated Press. 26 June 2023.

37.573357°S 145.051627°E / -37.573357; 145.051627

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