Kangaroos on Anglesea golf course
Tee off on the Great Ocean Road near Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
It's a club with a touch of animal magic... But could Tiger Woods or Ernie Els be happy with the extra hazards on the fairways and putting greens in Victoria?
The Anglesea Golf course in Anglesea near Melbourne, Victoria, Australia is a club with a difference. After all, where else can you tee off for a round of golf where there are kangaroos on the fairways and joeys on the greens?
A dedicated golfer can be willing to take on the most fiendish of traps – a thing fairway surrounded by bunkers, a lake just behind the pin, a viciously sloping green – but some times you just have to give up and laugh about it.
And when your perfectly struck tee shot lands in the pouch of a passing kangaroo, which then bounds off into the distance, that it is probably one of those times. Club legend has it that this happened to one unfortunate soul at Anglesea golf course, and upon arriving, it’s not difficult to see why.
In fact, before we even arrived, we’re being menaced. Just before reaching the turning for the club, a rather big roo leaps out from the side of the road, forcing me to use the emergency stop for the first time since my driving test. Given the size of him, I’m not sure who’d come off worse – Skippy or the hire car.
When they said they had a few kangaroos on the golf course, here, they certainly weren’t kidding. We pull up next to the practice area, and there are scores of the iconic creatures, seemingly unperturbed by anything going on around them.
The hosepipes watering the grass are no real obstacle, and a mob of five slowly come closer to the car park, making the signs warning that these are wild, potentially dangerous creatures seem a little heavy-handed. Wild they may be, but over the years they have had enough interaction with humans to realise that we’re far too in awe of them to want to try and steal a joey or two.
The roos of Anglesea pretty much have a free rein, which can make for some comical incidents. If a few are roaming the greens, then so be it, you’re just going to have to wait for them to move. In practice, this isn’t too difficult. They may be relatively tame, but they’re still a little wary if you approach – they’re not going to roll around and let you tickle their tummies, that’s for certain.
It’s astonishing that they’re not warier, however. A fair few of the hundreds that roam the fairways have come across nasty accidents. A flying ball clocking a kangaroo on the head is a fairly common occurrence, but it’s evidently not enough to make them move on to new pastures. Perhaps they should just try paying attention when someone shouts “Fore!”
Right at the start of the Great Ocean Road, about 115km out of Melbourne, Anglesea is one of the more understated treasures of the famous tourist route. It has not developed in the way that the likes of Lorne and Apollo Bay have, but it has a relaxed charm because of this.
Obviously, given that the furry spectators don’t seem to be able to keep to the viewing areas, Anglesea’s course is hardly the finest 18 holes in the world. After all, can you see Tiger Woods or Ernie Els being too happy about losing a big-money title because his ball has accidentally been kicked into the trees? However, it is rather pretty and, if you’re not the sort that is obsessed about getting your handicap down, then the novelty value makes it a fantastic spot for a not-too-serious round. And let’s face it, no photo album is complete without a picture of you teeing off with Skippy at your ankles, is it?
For your information
What: A round of golf amongst the kangaroos.
Where: Anglesea Golf Club, Anglesea
Call: 03 5263 1582
