The final Society dinner for the year was held at Riversdale Golf Club
A “Life in Golf'”as a player, administrator and golf course architect
We were very fortunate to secure Graham Marsh as our speaker and member Tony Rule kindly conducted Q&A session with this Aussie golfing legend.
A bit about Graham …He was born in Kalgoorlie WA. In 1969 he turned professional and won more than 64 tournaments on all five of the world’s major tours.
Voted Australian Sportsman of the year in 1977 and awarded the MBE in 1984.
Graham was also Chairman of the PGA Tour of Australasia for six years.
Graham Marsh Golf Design (GMGD) has been responsible for a number of the world’s leading residential, resort, private, and tournament golf courses, the result of his in-depth knowledge of the game and the intricacies required in golf course design.
Our thanks to John Trevorrow for this report
Riversdale GC dinner report Guest speaker Graham Marsh -September 2024
The third Golf Society dinner for the year drew a large gathering of members and guests to hear a fireside chat with Australian golf legend Graham ‘Swampy’ Marsh MBE at Riversdale Golf Club. Royal Melbourne Captain Tony Rule sat down with the veteran professional to elicit some colourful stories from inside the tournament ropes and locker rooms over the decades, plus details about Graham’s second career, as a notable designer and builder of golf courses.
The dinner was attended by 86 guests at Riversdale Golf Club. Graham, the brother of Australian Test cricket wicket-keeper Rod, told how their father Ken loved both cricket and golf. After Graham broke his arm in several places as a child, the family doctor said he should swing a golf club as therapy once the plaster came off. Young Graham discovered a love for the game and quickly progressed, being selected for the WA state team at 18 and turning professional in 1969 aged 25, winning on the US, European and Japan tours.
Marsh entertained the audience with tales from playing the Masters, many Australian Opens and the Open Championship 20 times. His best Open finish was 4th in 1983 at Royal Birkdale, ahead of Seve Ballesteros, Lee Trevino and Nick Faldo. Marsh shot a wonderful final round 64 on a day of fierce wind, and described how he got back to the locker room early where Arnold Palmer asked how he went. When told 64, Palmer responded: “How did you go on the back nine?” before telling Marsh not to go anywhere in case he had won the Claret Jug. During a nervous 3-hour wait, the wind dropped and Tom Watson went on to overhaul Marsh’s clubhouse lead and win his fifth Championship.
Aged 33, Marsh began to study the design genius of Alister MacKenzie and Harry Colt and later moved into his second career, establishing the Graham Marsh Golf Design company in 1986.
He received warm applause from the audience of Golf Society members and guests when he underscored the importance of golf history: “We have to know where we came from if we are to know where we are headed.”
