Kingston Heath Golf Club is one of the premier golf clubs in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, located in

Cheltenham Cheltenham () is a historic spa town and borough adjacent to the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort following the discovery of mineral springs in 1716, and claims to be the mo ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

. The course is situated on the sandbelt region in the southeast suburbs of

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

famed for its golf courses, with Kingston Heath consistently ranked in the top 3 courses in

and top 20 courses in the world. The club has hosted many major events, including 7 x Men's Australian Opens, 1 x

Women's Australian Open The Women's Australian Open is a women's professional golf tournament played in Australia, operated by Golf Australia and the WPGA Tour of Australasia, long co-sanctioned by the Ladies European Tour (LET). Beginning with the 2012 event, it is ...

, 7 x

Victorian Open The Victorian Open is an annual golf tournament held in Australia. It was founded in 1957 and is the Victoria state open championship for men. It is run by Golf Victoria and is a Golf Australia national ranking event. The event is held concur ...

s, 2 x

Australian Masters The Australian Masters was an annual golf tournament on the PGA Tour of Australasia held in Victoria, Australia from 1979 to 2015. History The tournament is the brainchild of schoolteacher David Inglis. The Australian Masters was intended to ...

and the

2016 World Cup of Golf The 2016 World Cup of Golf (known as the 2016 ISPS Handa World Cup of Golf for sponsorship reasons) was a golf tournament played from 24–27 November at Kingston Heath Golf Club in Melbourne, Australia. It was the 58th World Cup. Twenty-eight c ...

. The Men's Australian Open was scheduled to return to Kingston Heath in 2020 but was cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Kingston Heath will host the

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 except Europe as that continent competes against the United States in a similar but ...

in 2028.

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 Elsternwick Park (known as Sportscover Arena between 2002 and 2018 because of naming rights) is an Australian rules football and cricket stadium in Brighton, a suburb of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia. The name also refers to the wider parkla ...

. In 1920, the committee discussed a relocation to the South-Eastern suburbs of Melbourne. This area would become world famous as the

Melbourne Sandbelt The Melbourne Sandbelt is a region in southeastern Melbourne, Australia, known for its sandy soil. Several significant golf courses are located in the region. Location The Melbourne Sandbelt is a rough triangle extending from Brighton, Victoria ...

Cheltenham (1925–present)

The club relocated to its present location in

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 Daniel Gordon Soutar (3 December 1882 – 30 November 1937) was a professional golfer who played a significant role in the development of Australian golf. He was a native of Scotland who brought his expertise and dedication to the sport, impactin ...

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: Advice was sought from

Alister MacKenzie Alister MacKenzie (30 August 1870 – 6 January 1934) was an English golf course architect whose course designs span four continents. Originally trained as a surgeon, MacKenzie served as a civilian physician with the British Army during the ...

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 Mackenzie, Mckenzie, MacKenzie, or McKenzie may refer to: People * Mackenzie (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Mackenzie (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Clan Mackenzie, a Sc ...

'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 innermost holes of the property as the front 9, returning them to the clubhouse after 9 holes. They then play the 9 outermost 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 The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

IFQ, 2013 :: (Women)

Karrie Webb Karrie Anne Webb (born 21 December 1974) is an Australian professional golfer. She plays mainly on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour, and also turns out once or twice a year on the ALPG Tour in her home country. She is a member of the World Golf Hall ...

Jiyai Shin Jiyai Shin (; ; born 28 April 1988) is a former world No. 1 ranked South Korean professional golfer who primarily plays on the LPGA of Japan Tour. She previously played primarily on the LPGA Tour and the LPGA of Korea Tour (KLPGA). She has broke ...

: 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 Stephanie Kyriacou (born 22 November 2000) is an Australian professional golfer and LPGA Tour player. She won the 2020 Australian Ladies Classic – Bonville by eight strokes as an amateur and joined the Ladies European Tour on a two-year winner ...

: 66 (-8), during the 2017 Port Phillip Amateur Championship

Championships

Professional events

Australian Open The Australian Open (stylized ΛO) is a tennis tournament organised by Tennis Australia annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. It is chronologically the first of the four Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Sl ...

: 7 *

: 1 *

World Cup of Golf The World Cup of Golf is a men's golf tournament contested by teams of two representing their country. Only one team is allowed from each country. The players are selected on the basis of the Official World Golf Ranking, although not all of the fir ...

: 1 *

: 2 *

: 7 * Australian Match Play Championship: 7 ::1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992

The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...
International Final Qualifying

Kingston Heath was the preferred Australian venue of

the R&A The R&A (or more formally, the R&A Trust Company (No. 1) Limited) is the collective name of a group of companies that together play a significant role within the game of golf. Historically, "the R&A" was a colloquial name for the Royal and A ...

for the staging of International Final Qualifying for

The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

, which was held each January from 2004 to 2013.

Amateur events

* Australian Men's Amateur Championship: 1 (1963) * Australian Women's Amateur Championship: 2 (1952, 1996)

Course ranking

The course is consistently ranked within the top 3 courses in Australia. It also regularly features in publications such as ''

Golf Digest ''Golf Digest'' is a monthly golf magazine published by Warner Bros. Discovery through its TNT Sports unit. It is a generalist golf publication covering recreational golf and men's and women's competitive golf. The magazine started by John F. ...

'' and ''

Golf Magazine ''Golf Magazine'' is a monthly golf magazine. One of the first "special interest" magazines of its kind, it was started in April 1959 by Arnold Abramson and Robert Abramson, the owners of Universal Publishing and Distributing Corporation, who sol ...

'' 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.

References

External links

*
Kingston Heath Golf Club Profile, Golf Australia
{{coord, display=title, -37.573357, 145.051627, type:landmark_region:AU-VIC Golf clubs and courses in Victoria (state) Golf clubs and courses designed by Alister MacKenzie Sports clubs and teams in Melbourne Sports venues in Melbourne Sport in the City of Kingston (Victoria) Buildings and structures in the City of Kingston (Victoria) Sports venues completed in 1909 Sports clubs and teams established in 1909 1909 establishments in Australia Presidents Cup venues