By Jeffrey A. Rendall, Photos by Matthew Rendall
Hard as it is to believe, when you’re sent halfway around the world and slated to play in a golf tournament, and you’re just out of high school, there’s a lot more to see and do in Australia than just fulfilling your duties at the golf course.
Prior to departing for the southern hemisphere, the folks from Coast 2 Coast (the organizers of the venture for golf and track) signaled that the endeavor wouldn’t be all about golf, and that the trip would be a great opportunity for the young participants to experience a part of the world they’d never seen (this probably goes for the parents, too) and broaden their horizons, so to speak.
The cost of the trip to Australia wasn’t inexpensive, but the up-front fee did include pretty much everything involved, including airfare to the land down under and “local” flights within the country itself as well as ground transportation once there. Hotel stays and daily allowances for food were allotted, too. The only thing not covered up front was excursions and, of course, souvenirs.
When asked if he’d known what to expect when cut loose from the bounds of high school and parental authority in the country of his birth, Matthew Rendall simply answered – “No.”
“We’d had a number of conference calls with the Coast 2 Coast organizers of the trip, but I hadn’t met any of them in person before seeing them that first day. I only recognized their voices, so the only way I could determine who was who in Dallas when I got there was based on who was wearing the shirt,” Matthew recalls.
The golf participants understood that they were traveling to the hard-to-reach foreign country to tee it up but didn’t have any inkling who they’d be competing against or what skill level the Aussies would be. “Winning wasn’t really that big of a consideration,” Rendall explained. “I definitely wanted to compete well ‘down there’, but I wasn’t sure if I’d be paired against kids similar in ability to mine or if all of Australia was more akin to legendary players like Greg Norman or Adam Scott or Jason Day.”
They’d find out soon enough, as the Aussie players that arrived to compete with their American visitors were mostly pretty darn good golfers, and they were taking part in a ‘home game’ for the locals, who knew the course and the variations in playing conditions from the United States.
Matthew also didn’t know how much free time he would have to explore the new continent. “During the golf portion of the trip, which took up entire days during the first part, we didn’t have much free time to roam around, and what free hours we did have was at dinner time. Beyond meals, I did squeeze in a few excursions such as the ‘Quacker duck’ boat tour (an 
amphibious vehicle that rode on the streets, then went in the water), which was basically a tour around Surfers Paradise (the beach near their hotel), and a little trip out on the water to explore more views of the city.
“The other excursion I did was surfing,” Matthew said.
More on the surfing later. Matthew was talked into trying surfing by one of his teammates, a new friend who hailed from North Carolina, which is kind of like a neighbor when considering how close the two states are to each other. There’s nothing like visiting Australia to succumb to persuasion on a surfboard.
The Coast 2 Coast team was informed that they’d be staying in a luxury hotel and would be paired with a teammate to room with unless a parent was making the trip with them. Matthew described the room as small and he and his new roommate couldn’t walk throughout the space simultaneously because they’d end up tripping over their accumulated belongings on the limited floor space.
But what their accommodations lacked in square footage was made up for in ocean and beach views from the ample windows. This was a pretty sweet set-up, all in all.
How about the food? What was Australian food like?
With nothing but Outback Steakhouse to go on from home, Matthew said Australian food was… weird. “The food was very sweet and salty,” the golfer recalled. “They don’t really use spice there, so those of us who like a little kick to our eats… it was a big adjustment. Some of it was completely bizarre, too. Their ketchup wasn’t very good and decently different from American ketchup.”
Sadly, Matthew didn’t expand on that point. We’ve all become accustomed to Heinz and other standard brands here in the U.S., so a deviation would be noticed by most of us.
“I believe they use a lot more fructose corn syrup or something sweet, but it was too sweet for me… I didn’t necessarily care for it,” he explained about the familiar red condiment.
Thankfully, Matthew did remember the names of the restaurants he went to. There was a really expensive steak place called “Clifford’s”. They also tried Kitty O’Shea’s kitchen and bar, Beach café, Elston Restaurant and Bar, Longboards Laidback Eatery and Bar, Ben and Jerry’s for ice cream.
“We loved the KFC at Surfers Paradise,” Rendall bragged. So much for favoring the comforts and tastes of home.
The chicken place wasn’t exactly fast food in the strange environs, and the meals were a lot more expensive, too. “A lot of the meals were upwards of 16 or 17 American dollars, comparing it to Chipotle for a full meal with entrée and chips, but you don’t get as much food for the buck in Australia.” Food choices also follow learned experience, even when you’re only 18.
Home sickness wasn’t much of a problem for Matthew, but he did mention how he basically counted the days until he could head back across the ocean. The gravity of visiting Australia and competing on behalf of your country weren’t immediate – but the life’s lessons learned will show up at various times in his life.
As will the people he met. “It was unbelievable to represent your country, even if myself and the other players on the team didn’t do much to show their pride in the U.S.A., in terms of performance. I wish we’d played better as a team, but I think the practical adjustments kind of messed with everyone on our side. The Aussies got the best of us in terms of score.”
The Aussie players Matthew talked with had a lot of envy for America and its new leadership after the 2024 election, since the natives weren’t great admirers of their current prime minister. “I can’t blame them when they’re sipping through paper straws and being forced to eat with wooden utensils,” Rendall expounded.
“The police and laws are very strict in Australia. To demonstrate, the day we got there, that night we headed to our rooms at the hotel for bed check and two police officers stopped our elevator and hopped in. They 
were carrying a big bag of evidence (the Americans noticed what was in there) and they had a tablet with the suspect’s profile on it. When the elevator opened, we were amazed to see them draw their guns and…” Well, they don’t know what happened from there.
Not all experiences are positive.
The few blips aside, the organizers at Coast-2-Coast planned a number of approaches to help the American students experience Australia in a memorable and thought-provoking way. A day hike to nearby Mt. Tamborine helped the group get off to a good start after the long overseas flight. “Mt. Tamborine was very pretty and scenic. The path was really muddy, so you kind of had to watch your step, but it was very enjoyable. We had a blast.”
The path was narrow and wooded. Imaginations could’ve gotten the best of them if they visualized the forest was crawling with poisonous spiders and other creatures native to the land down under. But there was none of that. Just a good time.
The Coast 2 Coast group also toured a wildlife preserve where the athletes got to see and hold the “famous” Australian wildlife, most notably Koalas and Kangaroos.
“The wildlife sanctuary was super fun. I got to hold a Koala (with pictures to match). You wouldn’t believe how soft and adorable they are. Then we saw kangaroos and I petted one. I also petted an Emu because it was just walking around on its own. Truth be known, the Emu was kind of scary because its movements were really quick and unpredictable,” Matthew explained.
“There were animals that looked like dogs (he didn’t remember the name) but were red-haired. But I really liked the Lorikeets, which came and drank right from my plate. They weren’t the least bit scared. They’re probably my favorite type of bird.”
Matthew enjoyed many aspects of Australia. But not surfing. “I didn’t like surfing – I just couldn’t get both legs up on the board. It was frustrating.” he said. But at least there weren’t any sharks that he saw. That’s one Australian predator that didn’t spoil the time, probably because the golfers didn’t venture far into the water.
No visit to Australia would be complete without first spending a few hours in Sydney, which, to Matthew, was similar to the atmosphere of an American city. “It wasn’t scenic like the Gold Coast was and was very densely populated. I preferred the areas around Brisbane.”
What else is there to say? Matthew loved his journey to Australia and found it was definitely worthwhile to go. “I would like to go back to Australia someday, maybe in retirement or on a golf tour of the country,” Rendall concluded, peering into the future. Such memorable experiences will become more and more valuable over time. Appreciate it when you have it, kid.