Q&A With Mike Clayton

Melbourne University Press has published "The Courses Of Royal Melbourne Golf Club," with text by Mike Clayton, Photography by Kimbal Baker, a Foreword by Ben Crenshaw and a Preface by John Green. And just as you'd hope, this beautiful publication focuses on the magnificent 36 holes found at the host of this year's Presidents Cup.

Clayton introduces the courses with a solid and straightforward explanation of Alister MacKenzie's genius and what that meant for golf in Melbourne. Appropriately, the book then moves quickly to the vaunted course, where Clayton's text is augmented by the occasional quotation from a golfing great or architecture critic. Even better, Baker's photography given plenty of room to show off the best features of each hole.

Also included are maps of the various composite courses used at Royal Melbourne and a perfect side-by-side aerial photo collection showing the course evolution. Those interested in the book may purchase it at the club website.

On the eve of the Cup, architect and senior golfer Clayton answered questions about the course and this impressive publication.

What was the genesis of the new book on Royal Melbourne?

A friend of mine,Viv Beer is a member there and we spoke a coupe of years ago about doing a book that could be ready for the President's Cup that spoke about the architecture, the holes and the things that had happened there over the years.


Besides your words, the book features beautiful photography by Kimbal Baker and accurate water color renderings of the holes by Mike Cocking. Tell us about the artist.

Mike Cocking has worked with me (firstly at Michael Clayton Golf Design and now Ogilvy Clayton) for more than a decade. He was a good player - good enough to win the State Amateur and finish 3 behind Colin Montgomerie in the 2000 Australian Masters when he was still an amateur. He and Geoff played a lot of amateur golf together. He is an environmental engineer but draws beautifully and he has had some help from Bob Wade, a renowned Australian watercolour artist. He did the individual hole drawings as well a beautiful map of the Composite Course that is now framed in the clubhouse.


There is a new composite routing at Royal Melbourne for the Presidents Cup, what do you make of it and how it will impact the matches?

The original composite was played in 1959 at the Canada Cup and it was that way until the PC in 1998. This version is another and one noticeable feature is the start where they play 3w,4w,5w,6w,7w and 10 west to begin. It is hard to think of a better opening six holes in the game. The finish is not quite so good. 17 east is now 15 and has been hurt by alterations made to ensure balls stay inside the boundary fence to
the right.

18 east is a terrific hole but then they go to the 1st on the West which is a fantastic opened but a uninteresting 17th. 2 west is played as a long four from a forward tee - it's a really good hole and into the prevailing wind, quite difficult.


What should viewers who've never been to Royal Melbourne be most keen to pay attention to during the Presidents Cup?

They should think about the space afforded the player from the tee - MacKenzie's belief that golf was a bad game if players were constricted from the tee by narrow fairways - but how there is a always a preferred place to play from to get to the flag and even then when the greens are hard (as they are sure to be) you have to hit the right shot to get close. You have to shape it, land it in the right place and control - and estimate - the bounce. It is the sophisticated form of golf championed by Peter Thomson.

Also no rough around the greens highlights how short grass can be a hazard as it feeds ball away from the green but offers a multitude of options for the recovery.


Since joining up with Geoff Ogilvy, how has the design partnership gone and where will we get to see the first results of the new partnership?

So far it has been good fun. Bonnie Doon, next door to The Lakes is coming on well as is Torquay, a beachside course south of Melbourne. Like so many we have a few projects that look like they may happen.There are are three here in Australia that are particularly exciting - and like most designers if we can get to do one of two of them in the next few years it would be a great result. I honestly believe all three could be amongst the top ten in the country.

Geoff obviously is busy playing. He know everything that is going on and it is exactly what he wants to do when he is finished playing. Geoff, Mike and Ashley Mead - the three others in the business - are in their early to mid thirties and I think there is the basis of a fantastic long-term business that can produce some pretty good work.