Metropolitan Golf Club (Course A)

Overview: Metropolitan Golf Club is an 18-hole championship course in Oakleigh South on Melbourne’s Sandbelt. The heathland setting is defined by firm playing surfaces, native vegetation, carefully positioned bunkers and greens with slopes that influence the best line into the putting surface. The official hole guide repeatedly rewards an approach from the correct side of the fairway: a drive can be safe but leave the wrong angle, while a bolder line can open the green. That combination of width, contour and precise hazards gives Metropolitan a strategic character that is more subtle than a purely long course. The directory records the championship layout as par 72 and 7,065 yards.

History: Metropolitan’s institutional story reaches back to 1891, while the club moved to its Oakleigh site and began play under the Metropolitan name in 1908. The original course was designed by member engineer J. B. MacKenzie, and Dr Alister MacKenzie recommended design changes during his 1926 visit. The club has hosted major championships across generations, including the Australian Open in 1930, 1936, 1951, 1986, 1993 and 1997. Holes 12 to 14 were significantly redesigned by Michael Clayton Golf Design in 2005–2006, and a later greens restoration programme reopened the course in March 2025.

Did You Know? During his 1926 visit, Dr Alister MacKenzie described Metropolitan’s second hole as one of the best short holes he had seen in Australia. The hole guide still shows why: its green is protected by surrounding bunkers and sloping ground, so a short hole can demand a carefully chosen line even when the yardage looks manageable.