TOURNAMENTS Moonah Links hosted the Victorian PGA and reprised Moonah Links PGA Classic in consecutive weeks in early February. Pictured is the 6th hole of the Open course which hosted the final two rounds of the PGA and all four rounds of the Classic
Moonah Links goes
Tournament golf returned to Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula in early
February with Moonah Links hosting the Victorian PGA Championship and PGA Classic back-to-back as part of a three-event swing. Superintendent Kyle Wilson looks back on a hectic fortnight for his crew.
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fter a 2020 which was marked by long-term course closures due to COVID-19, the start to 2021 couldn’t be farther removed for the 36-hole Moonah Links on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula. It has been a whirlwind start for the crew after the club offered up its two championship layouts – the Legends and Open courses – in early February to host both the Victorian PGA Championship and the Moonah Links PGA Classic in consecutive weeks. The Victorian PGA Championship was looking for a new home late last year after nearby RACV Cape Schanck became
unavailable. With the new Players Series event being hosted at Rosebud Country Club (superintendent Ian Todd) in late January, the PGA of Australia was hoping to secure another peninsula venue to offer Tour players a few events close by. Following a year of limited to no local tournament golf due to COVID-19 for Tour players, Moonah Links was asked if we would also host and revamp the old Moonah Classic that was formerly part of the USPGA. Com Tour. Moonah Links had previously hosted the Classic over a three-year period between 2008 and 2010. The following is a snapshot of what our 10 full-time staff (including myself as
PHOTOS: MOONAH LINKS CREW
back-to-back superintendent, assistant Rick Lee, Legends foreman Craig Christie, Open foreman Nathon Brown and full-time mechanic Stephan Schmitter), plus two casuals and two estate staff were trying to achieve both in the lead up and during the tournaments. The Legends is the easier of the two courses, with a par of 72 and measuring 6315 metres from the back tees, while the acclaimed Open course, which hosted the 2003 and 2005 Australian Opens, measures in at a whopping 6829m. These tournaments were held over consecutive weeks – the Victorian PGA from Thursday 4-7 February and Classic from 9-11 February – across both courses, with minimal to no break in between. The opening two rounds of the Victorian PGA were held on the Legends course before switching to the Open course for the final two rounds. The PGA Classic would be played solely on the Open course. The Victorian PGA Championship also comprises an amateur/pro pairing as a separate event within the main tournament. A field of roughly 72 amateurs is cut down to 25 for the third round and then to eight for the The par five 9th on the Legends Course. The Legends hosted the first two rounds of the Victorian PGA Championship, with players enjoying the difference in design to the Open course and the scoring opportunities it presented
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AUSTRALIAN TURFGRASS MANAGEMENT 23.2