JL's Scallop Beds are named for John Lawler, the Melbourne diving identity, life member of the Victorian Sub-Aqua Group and co-founder of the Victorian Artificial Reef Society whose GPS marks appear on many Scuba Doctor site pages, and they lie on the same flat sand as Geoff's Scallop Hole 670 m to the west, off Whitecliffs between Rye and Blairgowrie. The description is identical: a featureless bottom at 10–17 m where the goal of a drift dive is to cover enough ground to fill a catch bag with big scallops, the beds shifting into deeper water at 14–17 m in summer and shallower water at 10–15 m in winter as the animals follow the temperature they prefer. The marine life beyond the scallops is that of the open Port Phillip sand – smooth stingrays, fiddler rays, flathead, standing sea squirts and ascidians, sand octopus and, in late autumn, the large spider crabs that migrate across this ground toward the piers, which the source notes are inedible and are in any case protected during their aggregation.

There are no navigational features, no reef and no photographic subjects beyond the rays; the dive's virtues are its simplicity, its shallow depth, its gentle current and its reward. For divers new to boat diving it is a good first drift and a practical lesson in SMB handling, buddy contact on a moving bottom and buoyancy with a loaded bag. Scallop diving in Port Phillip is regulated by Victorian Fisheries with a season, a recreational licence, size and bag limits that change from year to year, and they must be checked before each trip.

JL's Scallop Beds suit Open Water divers with a boat who want a seafood dinner and an easy dive; those wanting scenery should go to Rosebud Reef or the piers.

Launch at Rye boat ramp and run west for about 1.5 km to the marks off Whitecliffs – 5 minutes – or use the Tyrone ramp directly inshore. Drift-dive it: drop up-tide with an SMB, let the gentle current carry you across the beds, and have the boat follow the float. Nothing marks the site on the surface; a GPS position and 10–17 m of flat sand on the sounder confirm it.

As for Geoffs Scallop Hole: exposed to northerly and westerly chop, best on light southerly to easterly winds and flat water; a gentle tidal drift that suits the technique; visibility usually reasonable and better in winter; boat traffic between Rye and Blairgowrie requires a flag on the tender and an SMB in the water at all times.

Drop up-tide of the marks with an SMB, descend to the sand and drift in a loose line collecting legal scallops, adjusting depth to the season's band. Ascend the SMB line with a safety stop when bags are full or time is up.

No charters; private boats and clubs in scallop season. The Scuba Doctor (Rye) publishes the marks.