Curlewis Golf Club has catapulted up the official Australian Golf Digest rankings by a massive seven places, from 69 to 62. The recently published ranking represents the biggest leap of any Australian golf club, no mean feat considering the club was on the brink of closure less than 10 years ago.
Listing shot options as the Curlewis best criterion, the Australian Golf Digest review stated:
It's a healthy rise to a high-tide mark for the part bushland, part Sandbelt-style course on Victoria's Bellarine Peninsula. Curlewis is now a modern and multi-functional facility, but the core remains its' golf course, which continues to improve. The criteria that focus on design are its' scoring hallmarks.
According to Curlewis Course Superintendent, Rob Bradley, the impressive elevation in rankings is the result of an absolute commitment to – and resourcing of - ongoing course innovations and enhancements.
"We have finished off the fairway improvement programme with the final line planting of Santa ana couch into the last of the lesser fairways. We now have 15 hectares of fairway area compared to 9 hectares in 2015," Mr Bradley said.
"Reshaping of tees, fairways and surrounds has also been a focus to facilitate better shot making," he said.
Mr Bradley said the course team were continually working with acclaimed course designer Mike Clayton on bunker positioning, addition and removal.
"We're also undertaking continual re-vegetation work to ensure restoration of indigenous plants and removal of introduced species. I love the fact we are still providing a golf course with the original heath land feel without compromising a day of enjoyable golf by long rough."
Mr Bradley said popularity had come at a price with continual work on cart paths required due to the ongoing influx of traffic on the Curlewis fairways.
"Not that we mind one little bit. It's both a joy and a privilege to see this beautiful course go from strength to strength."
