1&2: Thank you Ryan and Josh for your hospitality, I hope you come to Switzerland soon and I get to return your favor! I loved all the breakfast places you took me to in your neighborhood.
The original plan was to go and play another round of golf at the National. But, I felt too tired and had cancelled that plan yesterday. Looking out the window in the morning, I was glad, I could just do some planning for my next stops (Gold Coast and Sydney) and walk around the neighborhood of Lygon Street.
The weather has really warmed up today and we played in beautiful conditions. The course is well established and has great greens. It is Toby's favorite. It think it is a bit comparable to Huntingdale, just not as posh and with less of a bunker scare...
On the way back to Melbourne, we stopped to see the sunset at St. Kilda beach before having a drink at the Stokehouse. The sky lit up and looked like it was on fire...
Ahh, did I just say Moonah Links was my favorite... well, I have a new favorite course now. Moonah Course at the National Golf Club is a proper links course with views of the sea. If this was not the other end of the world for me, I would want this to be my home course. Michael, who we met at dinner at Cumulus, is a member here and proved invaluable taking us around his home course. I am in an absolute "moonah" when I think of the courses here.
Such a nice round of golf is best followed by a great lunch. Today's lunch was the best food I had in a long time. At "Ten minutes by tractor", one of the local vineyards, every single thing on the table was a culinary delight. Can highly recommend the drive out here. Totally worth it.
My favorite course so far! Just amazing and very beautiful. My first links course. But a word of caution for those who want to play here. Some may not consider this a proper links course as the sea cannot be seen... or maybe, I just did not see it?! Also, there is the "Open course", which was designed for the Australian Open and is one of the longest around.
I shot a 97 today (again with a better back nine and spoiled by an incredible 41 putts, ahh, I think it is time to buy a new putter now...). Golfing highlights included the sinking of a long putt on the Gene Sarazen par 3 hole 13 for a birdie and my 3 bunker shots that got out exactly as planned.
Lunch at the Portsea Pub was followed by a walk on the beaches on both sides, the bay and the open ocean.
Very prestigious and established club featuring a course full of impressive bunkers. I may have admired them a little too much so that my visual focus of them turned into a magnet and had me in 14 bunkers on the front nine. Bunker practice, plenty of practice indeed. After struggling a bit on the second hole, I got out of them fairly well generally today. As a result of the many bunker detours however, my score was ... well, I am too embarrassed to post the score... just let me say that I had a better back nine. On the pictured par 3 I was in the bunker short of the green and saved par :)
On the way down to Sorrento, we stopped at Paringa for a wine tasting before driving to Arthur's seat to view the sunset over the bay. My feet have only been warm in my golf shoes since I got here. Wearing my jogging shoes (the only alternative to the ballerinas, sandals and flip flops in my luggage), meant I had cold feet and thus was very happy about the fact that they had heating blankets installed as a semi-permanent fixture on the bed in the hotel.
23 years, that is how long I have not seen my friend Ryan from my high school exchange year in Florida. Ryan is just the same, I would have recognized him instantly walking somewhere in the streets. So funny how some people change so much and others are just the same - with maybe a bit of grey hair... The celebration was a DT's, their local pub. Great athmospere and a great crowd. I am looking forward to staying at Ryan's when I get back from my trip down to the Mornington Peninsula.
