The opportunity to play one of the Sandbelt golf courses is an occasion to look forward to and savour. My first game on the Sandbelt, at Victoria Golf Club, came unexpectedly and without fanfare. A fellow student studying photography at RMIT was a member, and he invited me for a game. By the time we finished, I was shattered. To describe myself at that time as a 27 handicapper would have been tremendously flattering. The course was simply too hard, and I did not really enjoy the experience.
My next game on the Sandbelt came a few years later. My golf had improved, and I was invited for a game at Royal Melbourne. As we took on the challenge of the West Course, the beauty of its layout astounded me. After playing our second shots to the first hole and walking towards the green, I was struck by the mounds to the left of the fairway, which were not shown in detail on television during tournaments. John McIlroy, a member of the ground staff for 25 years, and my partner for the day, continually insisted, ‘Just wait till you see the next hole.’ He did not seem to understand that on each occasion I was already in awe of the hole I was playing. We enjoyed our early morning round, when the course is presented at its glorious best. Arising from that joyous outing at Royal Melbourne, I made a personal pledge to one day photograph it in all its majesty.
During the next few years, the idea of a book on the Melbourne Sandbelt fermented away, but always loomed as a project too large to manage by myself. Paul and I had become good friends after playing golf together a number of times. That really is one of the beauties of the game of golf – the people you meet and the friendships that are formed. Paul had written his first book Links Golf: The Inside Story (2000), and was experiencing the usual difficulties that first-time authors can relate to. We had many discussions, invariably over a cappuccino. During one of these chats, Paul asked me if I had any book plans of my own, and I informed him of my secret desire to produce a book about the Melbourne Sandbelt. From then on, whenever I enquired about the fortunes of his book, Paul always finished off with a polite but pointed enquiry about how my book project was progressing. You need an unreasonable friend at times to keep prodding and pushing you towards a goal.
Our aim is that when you close this book, you will have read a snippet about the game of golf that inspires, amuses, or educates you. I would also hope that having looked at a picture, one of two thoughts will occur: you will aspire to one day play that course or, if fortunate enough
to be a member, you will feel pride in your patch of turf, and be reminded of a dazzling shot you once played on that hole. Or perhaps you will contemplate how to conquer it next time.
The Sandbelt Melbourne's Golfing Heaven is a journey through a region of the golf world we are immensely proud of, and extremely fortunate to have on our doorstep.
The Sandbelt Melbourne’s Golfing Heaven. Preface written by David Scaletti.
Testimonials
"Scaletti's photograph's are the most stunning golf landscapes taken in modern times". Geoff Shackleford, Golfdom Magazine, USA, December 2002, review of “The Sandbelt”
"...Scaletti is the star of the show. Regarded by many as the best golf course photographer in Australia." Brendan Moloney, Golf Magazine, December 2001, review of “The Sandbelt”
"...David Scaletti (whom incidentally is rightly considered the pre-eminent golf landscape photographer in Australia)..."
Golf Hacker magazine January 2002, review of “The Sandbelt”
