Premier Andrews supports the destruction of the ‘people’s’ golf course at Sandringham.

Blatant gender discrimination, disregard for heritage, spurious reasoning and little concern for the ‘people’s golf course at Sandringham underpin Premier Andrews supporting the destruction of ‘our’ public golf course.

At its most outrageous, he agrees that shortening the course would attract more women - you have to be kidding!  I would hope that a golfer is a golfer and gender irrelevant.  Premier, do you have ‘girls’ seats in parliament so they perhaps hear better being the weaker gender and unable to match it with the men? 

What a fantastic city Melbourne really is with great public spaces and a culture that was developed with everyone being able to play sport.

Tennis at every corner, cricket at every suburban oval, footy everywhere and golf - the worlds most popular game available to all through a range of suburban traditional courses. 

Courses that were not manicured like the Americans are prone to do, nor world beating in complexity like the Asians but natural courses that the whole fandangle could rock up and challenge.

Enter Sandringham.  True to its name, a sand-belt public course next to Royal Melbourne [where God played] and Victoria [where his disciples supplicated on] but available for a game for a few dollars and no membership and, just a few metres away, an extensive driving range where professionals congregated, lessons could be had and commiserations could be heard over a post hit beer.  Pretty good really. 

Melbourne, golf, public space, life and the average person.

Now, this history is at risk.  Instead of preserving this people’s course Andrews has decided to support the selling off of great sections, to change the historic layout, to incorporate yet another driving range and to turn it into a fun park that ‘women and children’ could enjoy even implying that the current golf course was too hard for women.  This is really sad.

Sandringham golf course is something to be treasured as a national icon for all to enjoy.  A proper suburban un-manicured 18 hole challenge that is part of the history and culture of Melbourne.

Don’t screw up this non-elitist public space because it can never be replaced.

In good faith,

Jon Langevad

I am biased having first experienced golf at Sandringham some 50+ years ago and still try to defeat self humiliation on a semi regular basis.