By Michael Davis
ROSEBUD Country Club is turning 60.
And the club’s chief executive officer, Danny McGrath, says it’s time for this unsung hero on the Mornington Peninsula to take its place back in the top handful of courses in the country.
The 36-hole parklands layout has always been very good. But McGrath has well and truly raised the stakes since he took over six short years ago.
One of the first things he did was to lure renowned course superintendent, Ian Todd, from elite sandbelt club, Victoria. Todd has really put his stamp on the golf course.
It is now genuinely not drawing too long a bow to say that the back nine of the North Course at Rosebud Country Club (RCC) has shades of Augusta National about it, although many believe this was always the case.
And if you think we are gilding the lily here, take the hour or so drive from Melbourne to experience RCC firsthand.
“It is one of the best nines on the Mornington Peninsula because it just highlights the beautiful undulations of the property,” McGrath says.
The club is thrilled with the work of Todd and his assistant, Damien Winsor. Todd moved to Rosebud Country Club in August 2017.
“It was the best thing that ever happened to the club getting him on board,” McGrath says of Todd’s appointment. “He’s had a blank canvas to work with and the results have been outstanding.”
And rest assured both 18-hole courses at Rosebud CC will be even better once the top golf course design firm – Ogilvy, Cocking and Mead – finish the planned renovations.
The club is hastening slowly with the architectural work. It first engaged OCM in October last year and will get them back each year around the same time.
“We would love to do it all at once but it’s important to keep an eye on the cost and that the course remains open to members,” McGrath says.
Hosting two recent tour events for men and women, and the accompanying international television coverage they received, has further enhanced the reputation of Rosebud Country Club (RCC)
McGrath believes RCC lost its way a little during its 60-year journey when so many new courses were built on the Mornington Peninsula in the 1970s and 80s.
They included big links-style ‘beasts’ like The National, Moonah and St Andrews Beach. Prior to this, the main courses on the radar were Rosebud Country Club, Portsea, Sorrento, Flinders and Mornington.
“So many great golf courses had been built over the years that the focus went off us,” McGrath said. “But now we’re starting to get back in the conversation.
“Our aim is to become the leading golf and entertainment destination on the Peninsula.”
The club must be doing something right. In 2015, RCC had less than 900 members. Today, it boasts close to 1500.
Before Covid, Rosebud Country Club was running four or five major functions a year which were sold out on Friday and Saturday nights.
Next month it will host the first big social event at the golf club since the pandemic struck. It will feature a Queen Tribute Band.
“You can’t buy the atmosphere this club has through its membership. You know when you walk into a clubhouse whether the membership is stale or not. But this place really has a vibrant atmosphere to it,” McGrath says.
It is something of which the CEO is rightfully proud.
You cannot do it without first and foremost offering a good golf course. But the pre-golf and post golf experience are an important part of the package. And we reckon RCC has got it right. Green fee players often remark how well they are treated when they play RCC – especially in the clubhouse.
At Rosebud, its size lends itself to this. But plenty of higher profile neighbours with similar facilities lack the soul evident here.
Apart from the clubhouse, the pro shop run by the club and the separate on-site club fitting and coaching business offered by PGA professional, Matt Bolton, complement the whole golf experience. And as an added bonus, there are also three bowling greens and on-site accommodation – the 39-room Fairways Resort. The food and drink offering at RCC is better than pub food but not Michelin Hat in quality or price – perfect to be honest.
The blue collar heritage of Rosebud has spawned a generous membership of both men and women when it comes to charity days.
The women’s charity Golden Putter Day is legendary and recently featured players from 32 different clubs. RCC also runs a Cancer Charity Day and supports the Fight MND Campaign. It has also raised funds for many local hospitals, schools and charities over the journey. It says a lot about the generous spirit of the membership.
Women have always been a strong part of Rosebud Country Club. It’s nothing to have 70 of them stay for a ‘cuppa’ and a chin wag after the weekly comp. The same can be said for the men. It helps create a real buzz on a daily basis in the clubhouse.
McGrath is quick to point out none of this would be possible without the support of the board and his team.
But he’s not getting carried away with the success.
“The most important thing is that we do not lose momentum. Golf everywhere received a huge surge in participation during Covid. We have to make sure we continue the upward journey we’re on.”
RCC appears to be in the hands of a very capable team.
Russell Wilson: No story about the Rosebud Country Club celebrating its 60th birthday is complete without veteran former club professional, Russell Wilson.
He took the job as club pro on December 20, 1970 and retired 42 years later. More recently he has been made Patron of the club.
“When I first arrived there, the driveway was just a corrugated dirt road. The car park was just gravel with pine trees in it and the pro shop was just a little shed. It didn’t have hot water. It didn’t have a toilet. It was pretty hard going there in the early days.
“And of course we only had 18 holes at that point. The clubhouse was in its old state, but slowly and surely the business built up into what it is today.
“The membership started to grow and green fee numbers were strong. Our members’ fees were kept down because of the number of green fees we used to take,” Wilson recalls.
Then came two pretty impressive golf tournaments staged by the club. The first was the 1976 Australian PGA Championship.
“It was a huge occasion which was televised on the ABC and marked the beginning of colour television. Billy Dunk beat Peter Croker in a playoff. We played four rounds of golf and because it was a tie they came back on the Monday and played an 18-hole playoff.
The televised event really put the club on the map.”
The following year the club hosted a 36-hole Open event which the great Rodger Davis won. And in 1980, the Victorian PGA was won by Billy Britten.
“We had a lot of big events and that’s when things really started to move,” Wilson says.
The South Course was built which in the early days meant there would be an interchange of golf courses using East, West, North and South layouts. The first and 10th tees were all around the clubhouse and that made it practical to interchange the courses.
“It’s only in recent times the club has stuck to the North and South situation it has now. “This is why the North Course has its credentials back as one of the best, if not the best golf course on the Mornington Peninsula,” Wilson says with pride.
“We’re on the map again now which is fantastic.”
Wilson’s wife, Maureen, is the longest serving member of the Rosebud Country Club.
She joined in September 1964 and is now a life member of the club.”
But Wilson says the greatest thing about Rosebud Country Club is that for many years, men and women can get a game seven days a week.
“That’s quite unique and it’s been that way for many years,” he says.
“You can always get a game of golf at Rosebud and that’s why our membership keeps growing.”
Female membership has always been one of the biggest of any club on the Peninsula.
And the social side of the membership has always equated to great times with RCC hosting many international stars.
“They were always terrific functions at Rosebud Country Club including big international stars like The Drifters and (Welsh comedian) Harry Secombe.
Wilson says CEO Danny McGrath along with superintendent, Ian Todd and local boy, Damien Winsor, have “really turned the place on its head”.
“From the day he arrived you could tell Danny was invested in the Country Club.
“He hasn’t looked back. He just gives his all to the place. These three guys (McGrath, Winsor and Todd) have really transformed the golf course and the running of the place. They’ve been terrific.”
Matt Bolton: Rosebud Country Club’s PGA teaching professional, Matt Bolton, has been around the club since he was a teenager.
“I grew up down there and know a lot of the members personally,” he says.
It all helps to add to the marvellous ‘family feel’ at RCC.
For the past 13 years, Bolton has run the hugely popular state-of-the-art teaching, club-fitting and repair facility at RCC.
His reputation precedes him, with one satisfied customer making a 10-hour round trip to be fitted for new clubs.
“It just feels like home to me because I’ve spent so many years here,” Bolton says.
“I was working there as a junior doing the handicapping and I was a kitchen hand right up until I was 21. I turned pro and worked at Sorrento Golf Club for three years and then went back to Rosebud as a teaching professional.
“The camaraderie, the mateship, the quality of people around the place and the outstanding facility make it just feel like home.”
“It has a really good club feel. The people are very personable and I’ve built a lot of personal relationships with members. You feel like you’ve got a lot of mates around the place. It never feels like work.”
Bolton’s golf academy operates on the driving range and independently (yet seamlessly) alongside the pro shop.
“Although people at first tend to be overwhelmed by the technology, we make sure we keep it simple and we don’t overcomplicate it. People get results with it. I keep it simple.
“We want people to go out and enjoy their golf on what is a very different course for the Mornington Peninsula. Rosebud Country Club gives you a bit more of a parklands feel. It just has a magic feel about it. I think the back nine on the North Course is one of the best layouts in the country.”
Bolton is on site Monday to Saturday and accepts non-members as clients. But you’ll need to book.
Rosebud Country Club
207 Boneo Rd, Rosebud VIC 3939
Clubhouse: (03) 5950 0800
Golf Shop: (03) 5950 0888
reception@rcc.golf
www.rosebudcountryclub.com.au
This article was prepared by Inside Golf on behalf of the Rosebud Country Club.
Australia's Golf News Leader, Inside Golf gives you in-depth coverage of Australian golf news, golf events, golf travel and holiday destinations, Australian and international golf course reviews, the hottest new golf gear and tips and drills to improve your golf game. Written by award-winning journalists, Inside Golf also features interviews with Australia's top professional golfers, the game's rising stars, industry leaders and golf equipment manufacturers. You can even win great golf prizes and equipment. It’s all in Inside Golf. FREE at Australian golf courses, driving ranges and golf retailers across Australia. 
![Win the golfing experience of a lifetime, at the Hawai‘i International Week of Golf, valued at $6,900 [Winner Announced]](https://www.insidegolf.com.au/wp-content/uploads/Hawaii-Comp-500x294.jpg "Win the golfing experience of a lifetime, at the Hawai‘i International Week of Golf, valued at $6,900 [Winner Announced]")