"Melbourne seems to bring out the odd yahoo, while Sydney is not really renowned for that."

Brent Read looks at Paul McNamee's attempt to mimic the antics of TPC Scottsdale's 16th hole at The Australian's 11th tee. While it screams of a "be careful what you wish for" scenario, there is great joy in reading Robert Allenby trying to dig himself out of a hole.

Allenby did little to endear himself in his home state of Victoria by claiming Melbourne was renowned for producing the "odd yahoo" at its tournaments, while Sydney produced a more refined spectator.

The par-three 11th is based on the famous 16th at the Phoenix Open in Scottsdale, Arizona, where spectators line the hole and create an atmosphere more akin to a rock concert.

"There's no problem in the world with people being loud," Allenby said.

"I'm coming up to 17 years as a professional. I play in America for God's sake. That's the land of the loud. I don't have a problem with someone being loud on a hole. It's when people use foul and abusive language."

Asked whether he expected to be targeted given his strident criticism of the hole, Allenby replied: "I have my earplugs ready for 11, that's not a problem. I know people are going to come just for me.

"That's just the way it is. I'll deal with it. I'm here to win the tournament, I'm not here to come second.

"At golf tournaments, I'm used to people yelling. It's just when people are abusive and use (bad) language, that's not very nice because there's always a lot of kids at our tournaments."

Fast forward...

Pressed on the differences between spectators in Melbourne and Sydney, Allenby suggested the affluence in Sydney's eastern suburbs meant the fans were more respectful.

"The areas around here are a little bit more subdued, sophisticated," he said.

"Obviously there's a lot more money in Sydney than in Melbourne. I don't mean that in a bad way because I am from Melbourne and I have a lot of friends there and people who support me.

"Melbourne seems to bring out the odd yahoo, while Sydney is not really renowned for that."

Allenby also advocated selling light beer at the tournament, as they do in the United States.

"Your average (beer), they're 4.9, 5 per cent," he said. "You down three of them and you're buzzing. It's not so much serving alcohol. It really depends on where and how much you serve."