A major revamp at Stellenbosch Golf Club ahead of the recent Investec South African Open Championship (SA Open) has resulted in an upswing in popularity for them, said the club’s director of golf.
The SA Open was hosted in Stellenbosch from 26 February to 1 March. Co-sanctioned by the DP World Tour and Sunshine Tour season, the championship served as the 115th second-oldest national open in the world.
Benjamin Follet-Smith, a competitor in the Investec South African Open Championship, practices at the Stellenbosch Golf Club. PHOTO: Grace Henderson
Louis Destroo, the director of golf at the club, detailed the renovations made in preparation for the international tournament. It included the reconstruction of 11 tee boxes, the flat areas where each hole begins, and the resurfacing of four. “Fifteen tee boxes were redone out of the 18. This increased the length of the course by about 300 metres, making the course 6 628 metres. At sea-level, it became one of the longest courses in the world,” said Destroo.
Improving playability and the aesthetic appearance of the course was also the club’s priority. “Forty-six bunkers were redone, resurfaced, resanded, and resodded,” said Destroo. “Members were very happy with that, because it’s probably the most complained about area in any golf course,” he added.
In addition to doubling the size of the putting green and growing out the rough, the dam on the eighteenth hole was enlarged to increase the difficulty of the course. “It now stretches about 18 metres into the fairway and surrounds the left side of the green,” said Destroo.
Benjamin Follet-Smith, a professional golfer and a competitor in the tournament, confirmed the intensified complexity of the fairways. “The course has improved, and is definitely much longer than it previously was. The narrow fairways and the thicker rough made it feel more difficult,” he said.
The dam at the eighteenth hole of the Stellenbosch Golf Club. During the course’s renovations, it was extended into the fairway and into the left side of the green. PHOTO: Grace Henderson
With more than 40 000 spectators, Destroo confirmed that the championship had expanded the club’s market. “I’d say the best thing the tournament did for us was that it brought in another dimension of people: juniors and females.” According to Destroo, the national open showcased “the fun side of golf”, and that the game was no longer “a stale, old-man sport”.
Whilst people were able to experience the changing culture of golf, Stellenbosch Golf Club was also rendered a trending and “must-see’ course in South Africa. “People are eager to experience the course in the changed conditions. It’s definitely more on people’s radar since an SA Open was played there,” said Matthew Dippenaar, a fourth-year BCom (International Business) student at Stellenbosch University (SU), and a member of the club for the last three years.
One of the 46 reconstructed bunkers in the Stellenbosch Golf Club in preparation for the Investec South Africa Open Championship. PHOTO: Grace Henderson
Following the club’s upgrades and the championship itself, Stellenbosch Golf Club introduced a Bethpage Black Course. This is a difficult, championship-level course, devised for highly skilled golfers, and is an uncommon feature in Western Cape golf clubs. “This never would have happened without the tournament. Without the construction, we never would have been able to be re-rated, re-sloped, and re-stroked,” affirmed Destroo.
With over 1 600 members, Stellenbosch Golf Club already had a bloated capacity, and the upsurge of interest has been felt by the club. “It’s always been a very busy course, but now it’s a very, very busy course. There’s definitely an increase,” said Destroo on 17 March.
Angus Cochrane, a third-year BCom (Economic Sciences) student at SU and a member of the club, echoed this by confirming the lack of available tee-times. “It was already difficult to book a time because it’s a commercial course,” he said on 16 March.
Established in 1904, the Stellenbosch Golf Club was already a historic course, but the onset of extensive renovations and coverage of the SA Open has left a lasting impact on the club. “Across the board — from the ladies to the younger men, to the better golfers, the older golfers, the bogey golfers — everybody is excited about the change,” said Destroo.