Royal Melbourne Golf Club
Encyclopedia
Royal Melbourne Golf Club is a golf club located in Black Rock
, a suburb of Melbourne
, Australia
with two courses. Royal Melbourne has hosted numerous national and international events, including the 1959 Canada Cup (now Mission Hills World Cup), and the 1970 World Cup. It was selected by the PGA Tour
to hold the Presidents Cup
, for the first time outside the United States
, in December 1998. The match was convincingly won by the World team, captained by Peter Thomson, who had himself earlier served as the Club professional at Royal Melbourne. The course was also selected as host for the 2011 Presidents Cup
.
The club had to give up its original site, much nearer the city centre, because of increasing urbanization. It planned a move to its present location in the mid-1920s. Royal Melbourne's two current courses are known as the 'West' and 'East' courses. The West course was designed under the strict standards of famous course architect Alister MacKenzie
. He visited the eventual site, located on the renowned Melbourne Sandbelt, south of the city, in 1926. The actual building of the West course was overseen by the famed Australian golfer Alex Russell, as well as the head greenkeeper Mick Morcom; it was completed for play in 1931, and required much clearing of forested land. The East course was designed by Alex Russell, and was completed in 1932.
The East course is the lesser of the courses with fewer quality holes, but is enveloped by the Royal Melbourne aura. The West course has several world class holes but suffers from lack of length due to it being land locked by existing boundaries. During recent restoration of the West course (and East course Composite holes) in preparation for the 2011 Presidents Cup, fairway grasses were changed to restrict the progress of the golf ball, particularly given the lack of length of the par 5 holes.
Black Rock, Victoria
Black Rock is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 18 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Bayside. At the 2006 Census, Black Rock had a population of 5796.-History:...
, a suburb of Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
with two courses. Royal Melbourne has hosted numerous national and international events, including the 1959 Canada Cup (now Mission Hills World Cup), and the 1970 World Cup. It was selected by the PGA Tour
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour is the organizer of the main men's professional golf tours in the United States and North America...
to hold the Presidents Cup
Presidents Cup
The Presidents Cup is a series of men's golf matches between a team representing the United States and an International Team representing the rest of the world less Europe. Europe competes against the U.S. in a similar but considerably older event, the Ryder Cup. The Presidents Cup is held biennially...
, for the first time outside the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, in December 1998. The match was convincingly won by the World team, captained by Peter Thomson, who had himself earlier served as the Club professional at Royal Melbourne. The course was also selected as host for the 2011 Presidents Cup
2011 Presidents Cup
United States 19 - International 15The 9th Presidents Cup Matches were held from 17 to 20 November 2011. They were played at the Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Melbourne, Australia. The United States team won by a score of 19 to 15 over the International team. Jim Furyk won all five of his...
.
History
Founded in 1891 as the Melbourne Golf Club ('Royal' prefix given in 1895), the founding President was Sir James McBain and the founding Captain was John Munro Bruce (father of later Australian Prime Minister Viscount Stanley Melbourne Bruce).The club had to give up its original site, much nearer the city centre, because of increasing urbanization. It planned a move to its present location in the mid-1920s. Royal Melbourne's two current courses are known as the 'West' and 'East' courses. The West course was designed under the strict standards of famous course architect Alister MacKenzie
Alister MacKenzie
Dr. Alister MacKenzie was an internationally renowned, British golf course architect whose course designs, on three different continents, are consistently ranked among the finest golf courses in the world...
. He visited the eventual site, located on the renowned Melbourne Sandbelt, south of the city, in 1926. The actual building of the West course was overseen by the famed Australian golfer Alex Russell, as well as the head greenkeeper Mick Morcom; it was completed for play in 1931, and required much clearing of forested land. The East course was designed by Alex Russell, and was completed in 1932.
Features
A combination of 18 holes from the East and West courses contained on the main property is known as the 'Composite' course. There have been 21 holes used in the history of the 'Composite' course, from 1959 to 2011, depending on the event being held.The East course is the lesser of the courses with fewer quality holes, but is enveloped by the Royal Melbourne aura. The West course has several world class holes but suffers from lack of length due to it being land locked by existing boundaries. During recent restoration of the West course (and East course Composite holes) in preparation for the 2011 Presidents Cup, fairway grasses were changed to restrict the progress of the golf ball, particularly given the lack of length of the par 5 holes.