St Catharine’s Golf Course. KZN.

Now this is a Golf Course with a difference… Piet Nel the owner of the ground, decided to turn old corn or mealie lands into a Golf Course.

It is situated within 100 km. of Ballito, Pietermaritsburg and Mooi River, situated in the Natal midlands.. not far from anywhere and a lot closer than you think..

Piet is also selling sites on freehold, and one can own a piece of this little paradise for life… But he has accommodation which one can hire at very reasonable prices, as well as,  organised golf weekends, corporate days, or just casual day visits… and you must try out their “Home cooked meals”  these are off the top shelf…

The club house a very welcoming place, always full of locals and lots of fun, you can even toss a hook into the water and try your hand at landing a fish..  either Bass or Trout..

Part of the course meanders around the dam but only comes into play on a few holes… now one must remember that this is a privately owned course maintained by Piet and the equipment is made up of older mowers… but when one takes this into consideration, it is actually unbelievable. A wonderful course to play if one is staying in the area…

If one plays there stay till the sun sets… it offers up some of the best I’ve seen in a long time…

Sishen Golf Club, or Kalahari Country Club.

A visit to Sishen where my Son lives has had me photographing and playing this course on a regular basis…..

A wonderful club house greets you, with a restaurant, Ladies bar and lounge, members pub, and a lovely big stoep where braais and socialising takes place on a regular basis..

The course is built within a Camel thorn forest, a protected tree, so unless a permit is obtained even a dead tree may not be touched…  apart from this being a hazard if you play off line it certainly adds to the beauty of the course..

Now for some of the views of the course… a tough course, with great greens that run true… they have some problems but when you consider you’re in the Kalahari….. semi desert…. the course is wonderful..

The Camel Thorn tree can be a great hazard…. strike one and get a thorn in the ball, throw it away. But it also has a habit of retaining your ball if it wants too….

That is in this tree…. way out of reach…..

But then some will refuse to loose a ball and go in search of it….(Where’s the bikini..???)

The tree is in flower at the moment and I took this photo so you get an idea of the thorns and flowers..

I love the signage that the course has… the pictures are mounted on old Railway sleepers…  the red-billed buffalo weavers nests, adorn many of the thorn trees….

 

They have now started to build houses in and around the Golf Course and it is being done very tastefully with them being well back from the course and well camouflaged. Their web site is well worth a visit…

They even have a Guest house next to the first fairway… what a place to stay…

Watch out for the wild life and birds… there are some magnificent opportunities to photograph them.. look at my other blog to see some of what I have captured here….

Southbroom Golf Course.. A jewel on the Coast.

Southbroom Golf Course, situated on the South Coast of Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa, is a definite jewel. A shorter course but boy the wind can eat you. The fourth hole on the coast line, with a tee box that the waves break on to, can differ during the day with the winds change of direction. A mere 100m can change four clubs from the morning to the afternoon. A course set in amid the coastal belt, surrounded by private homes, gives beautiful views of the sea at different holes. Water, water, everywhere, keeps one seeking straight shots down the fairway..

A view from the club house….

Another view from the club house looking at the first green…

A shot across towards the first green from the ninth fairway…

Looking down the second fairway from one of the alternate tees….

A lovely view of ones second shot up towards the third green…

A view from the fourth tee box…

The fifth playing all up hill with a view of the sea behind you…

The 7th hole a tricky one with roads and water crossings…

One of the most picturesque places on the course are at the 7th and 8th green…

 

And up the ninth towards the club house…

The 10th looking across from the 13th a short par 4 reachable by the gorillas…

Looking back from the 11th green up towards the tee box…

The View from the 13th tee… one of my very favourites…

The 17th green tuck amid the trees a small green and difficult to reach in two…

I was the Course Superintendent at this course when these photos were taken, my early rising was often met with sunrises of the following….

Champagne Sports Resort

Situated in the tranquillity of the Central Drakensberg, boasting the most spectacular view of Champagne Castle and Cathkin Peak, lies Champagne Sports Resort. This cosy hideaway’s unique combination of convenient location, country club atmosphere, luxury accommodation and friendly staff makes packing your bags to leave this eternal place a challenge.
Champagne Sports Resort is more than a hotel in the mountains, it is an experience. From the 18-hole championship golf course to the roaming herds of Blesbok and the rare birdlife that inhabit the estate, there is something for everyone to enjoy. And, with five dams stocked with bass or trout, as well as outstanding sporting facilities and cultural activities, this enduring resort provides a balance between recreation for sports enthusiasts and tranquillity for those seeking relaxation.
Only a four-and-a-half hours drive from Johannesburg and 2-hours from Durban, the resort is ideally situated for both relaxing leisure weekends and for corporate conferences.

Golf
Put your skills to the test on our 18-hole championship golf course, designed by Hugh Baiocchi to provide an exciting challenge whatever your handicap.
The clubhouse is easily accessible from the resort and you have access to caddies, motorized golf carts, a well-stocked Pro-Shop, as well as lessons from our Resident Professional Golfer.
The clubhouse is also equipped with both ladies and gentleman’s locker room and a bar, and light meals are served in the golf lounge and on the magnificent veranda which overlooks the golf course and the mountains beyond.

A Golf Hole with a view.

Southbroom Golf Club on the South Coast of Kwazulu Natal in South Africa has a very unique fourth hole. The tee off area is located on the very edge of the breaking sea. Many a golfer will take an old ball and send it flying deep into the sea. The breakers strike the base of the tee box at high tide and the view looking north in the morning is stunning.

The south view of the hole gives a deceiving view of a short hole, if the wind is against you an extra 40 metres can be added to the distance.

  If you are ever in the area, take on this Golf Course and hope the day you choose, the wind is not too strong.

Are Keepers of the Green given the recognition they deserve?

As the preparers of the turf that the Golfers enjoy given the recognition they deserve? In some cases yes, in others, the egotistical members of the committees consider themselves experts in fields beyond their comprehension. Today the expectations of committees, and golfers is for a perfect course at all times. The nuances of nature, the construction of old courses and the changes of the seasons do not allow this to be possible.

Are Green Keepers expected to control the weather, the diseases and the expectations of nature, with the controls of budgets being cut by committees more bent on self grandeur than sensibility? The expenditure being made on improvements to bars and buildings, while the course expected to maintain itself on reduced budgets to finance these improvements.

A golf Course income depends on rounds, the demands of golfers, as well as the competition between courses has reduced the players that can afford to play. What now do committees expect to gain by reducing staff, reducing expenditure, cutting budgets and the like, whilst still expecting the course to remain in pristine condition. Do they fully understand what is required to keep the course looking its best, or is the “Keep” expected to wave his magic wand and all will be good.

The future lies in the correct analysis of course expenditure, what do we spend our money on, and where is it actually spent. What do the differing diseases cost, not as a chemical cost but an actual cost. Are bunkers seldom hit worth having as hazards? Their costing could be higher than if they were converted to a grass bunker and cut as rough.

The future lies in the hands of committees, their insight into actual costs. They can tell you what a coke costs but can they tell you what a green cost?

These are the controllers of the “pennies” let their future be more realistically aided in analysis and may they listen more closely to their employees when they explain the problems faced.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How I Entered the Profession.

Many years ago I was introduced to “Green Keeping” by an experienced “old school” type, who practised his magic on grass greens, the type of which would be any ones guess, yet they were the most fantastic, superb putting surface, one could wish for. I trained under his supervision for three odd years learning to do things his way. The science behind the practises we followed, never came into the picture. “Spring treatment” was done on the first day of September, come hell or high water, soil temperatures, not an issue, so long as the sand for top dressing ran through your fingers and yet was not too fine. The 2:3:2 fertiliser needed to be on hand. Watering was by hand, and the quantity? When it looked enough! The cutting process started when it finally broke through the sand, and had sufficient healthy growth. You kept adding nitrogen until the green looked good, lowered the cutting height when it felt right! Kept an eye out for the dreaded “dollar spot” and algae, and insured the necessary curative chemicals were on hand. This was my introduction to keeping the green. Soil condition, black layering, verti cutting, and soil testing never came into the equation, additions of fertilisers and which combinations to use, were done by feel. “The green tells me what it needs, and that is what I give it”, this was a standard answer to my inquires. Later we became more modernised, and started the practice of verti cutting, and sometimes even dusting. But no matter what we did the greens remained superb. I started on my own to study more, and read all I could get my hands on, whenever a person appeared to know something about golf greens, they became a target for me to harass, not letting up until they had divulged all their know-how. (Knowledge is gained from looking, listening and asking questions)