In full swing
Split with deep-pocketed funder was acrimonious – and not made public
Management seek new course at elite club
Tim Davidson, operations director and inspiration behind the classy Olivewood Private Estate and Golf Club at Chintsa, has resigned.
The resignation was not made public. Davidson and London-based chairman Kuldip Singh Dhillon reached an agreement over Davidson’s departure last month.
For East London’s east coast it is not about a spat between directors or a financial right or wrong. It’s about jobs, new residents, and a golf course that urges people to make the area their home.
The two men differed acrimoniously on the cost of the course and on infrastructure, all of which soured the relationship. Dhillon has invested more than R140-million in Olivewood in the past 12 years, and is on record saying the project is a bottomless cash bunker.
Davidson had a big team and says everything was done on a shoestring. “Millions were saved by doing the work ourselves. If we had used contractors, it would have cost double.”
Insiders say Dhillon wants sales and cost-cutting. At the time of writing, he was not available for comment.
Davidson always saw his priority as building the course and infrastructure.
He repeats the philosophy of Sol Kerzner, when commenting on Sun City, who said: “Build it and they will come.”
Davidson’s reply to questions regarding completion of the project were constant over the years: “It will be ready when it is ready and not before.”
He also said: “I will not sell stands on Olivewood until the course is playable.”
He has stuck to this. It was a bold promise and pivotal to his departure. Cash flowed and cashflow did not.
Dhillon announced his annoyance with costs during his speech at the launch ceremony last year. Despite hugging and laughing, he remarked on regular money arguments.
The resignation implications could be catastrophic, in that Olivewood is a gem, rated by Golf Digest’s editor Stuart McLean as the finest new course in the Eastern Cape. The problem is keeping the gem polished is expensive, and demands a large and skilled staff component, from greenkeepers to engineers, waiters and gardeners.
It employs almost 200 people. If curbing cost is a priority, staff are usually the first to suffer.
Olivewood is Chintsa East’s largest employer.
Another aspect of possible job-cutting is that the course is core to the sales. Having set a standard of excellence, any downgrading will get punters thinking twice about investing.
“There is no way Olivewood will slip from its high rating, on and off the course,” said Pam Golding Properties East London franchise principal Sean Coetzee, who is marketing the estate. He bought the first home, is vice-captain of the golf club, and serves as the resident agent.
“Tim’s departure will obviously be seen as a negative – after all, he was the soul of Olivewood, and it is sad to see him go. However, he has left a tremendous project that perhaps now needs a different focus to take it forward.
“It’s up to our company to turn his work into sales.”
Caretaker CEO Richard Watt, an East Londoner with property experience in Britain, also acknowledged Davidson’s role. Watt said his challenge is keeping the positive momentum, as well as the staff motivated.
He would not comment on the threat of job cuts.
Whether Davidson was cavalier with his attitude of completing the course before reaping cash from stand sales is open to debate.
The 550 stands are valued at R750-million. What is inarguable is that Davidson used every dilapidated farm building to construct an estate infrastructure that equals the finest in the country. This measure certainly pulled a few million out of the cash bunker.
Tim’s departure will obviously be seen as a negative – after all, he was the soul of Olivewood