On a recent trip to Barnbougle for the production of golfing series the 19th Holes, producer Nick Wall fell in love.
Unfortunately for Nick, he had to leave his fair-way maiden to return home to his wife, however has graciously taken the time to review his experience of Barnbougle for me.
Once more Barnbougle retains her dignity as “the one that got away”; capturing the hearts of men but never giving in to the temptation of running away and eloping in a foreign climate – thank goodness or I would be unemployed and out of luck (the unlikely event of a runaway golf course would surely mean something is working against me!)
Thanks to Nick for his fabulous words – enjoy!
Biz x
Three years ago My Father played Barnbougle and has not shut up about it since, we’ve played a ton of Mornington Peninsula courses over the years and after every round it was the same…’Great course but not as good as Barnbougle’
So you can imagine my excitement when I had the opportunity to film Barnbougle for golf show; The 19th Hole came about.
We flew in on Monday afternoon with Heli -Adventures Tas and proceeded to get some aerials of the course, very amusing watching a helicopter flying as low as the dunes and watching Golf Balls wizz by the chopper!
Later in the clubhouse everyone approached us to reveal how close their ball went to hitting the chopper and our cameraman/producer Benny claimed he had tree branches hitting his feet as he filmed, half dangling from the chopper. Suffice to say, it always helps your pictures when you have a great chopper pilot and tracking along the fairways at 100mph in and out of the dunes at 100km/h has produced some ripper pictures! I would definitely recommend a trip in the chopper to see this place from the air!
15th hole along the Forester River
Barnbougle was everything I had heard and more. I have played some fabulous courses around the world but Barnbougle has to be the finest layouts in pristine golfing landscapes that I have ever encountered. Not only was the course magnificent, the service and hospitality onsite has to be some of the best I have received anywhere in the world.
For two days we filmed and played Barnbougle. On the first day I felt like we were in Scotland with overcast skies and light drizzle. The second day was a completely different experience, with beautiful sunny weather and a strong afternoon southerly. The contrast between the 2 days was just incredible and the camera footage, awesome!
On the final morning we woke to an early morning sea mist across the back nine. As the mist lifted and the first rays of morning sun shone onto the fairways, the view from the 16th tee was mesmerizing.
The sight gave me goosebumps on my arms and was probably the most emotional I have felt since my wedding day – love at first sight!
I did ensure that the camera wasn’t rolling when I likened the feeling to the one I had when my wife was walking down the aisle on our wedding day (I have since received a slap for comparing her to a golf course!)
Sunrise over the 18th
A huge thanks to the whole Barnbougle Crew down there, it literally feels like a family atmosphere everywhere you are and I am sure it will be the highlight of the show this year. Watch out if you ever play Richard Sattler though, he will lull you into a false sense of security then hit a ‘worm burner’ 140m to within 4 feet. What has been accomplished down there is a huge credit to him and his staff and I implore you to experience it yourself.
As we finished up the last of the filming on our final day, I was perched high above the 8th Green late in afternoon filming back towards the sunset, when a group of 3 played up - one of whom was celebrity chef ‘Geoff Jansz’ .
Geoff hit an approach in to the green which trickled ever so close to the hole but unluckily caught the back downslope and ended up 30 feet from the pin. After some heckling from us up high, he hit a textbook chip shot within inches, I yelled down ‘Can Cook….can play Golf’ . Chuckling Geoff replied
‘Well, I do make great chips’
Touche Mr Jansz touche
8th Hole view of green to tee
