Woodlands Golf Club

About the club

Woodlands, built before World War I, was one of the first courses in Melbourne's Sandbelt. Rowley Banks, the Albert Park professional, designed this course in collaboration with Mick Morcom, who went on to become the Royal Melbourne's greenskeeper. The first few holes are not too demanding, mainly short par 4s, where not length but accuracy is rewarded. Some pars here and maybe a birdie will help to maintain a decent score as the course grows increasingly more difficult. Couch grass covers the fairways, which are tight and set with daunting bunkers. The greens are firm, quick, and not large, and are defended by dips and lumps; there is in fact none tougher on the Sandbelt than the par 3 on the 17th. The 6100-meter length is modest, but there is plenty here to keep players guessing. Though less talked about than other Sandbelt courses, but Woodlands makes for some really fun golf.