Kloof Country Club looking healthy
GOLF clubs throughout the country have taken huge financial knocks in the recent years - Covid-19, floods etc - but I’ve got to admit that Kloof Country Club has taken giant leap to help their finances in the years ahead.
A visit to Kloof Country Club last week after the region has experienced some “healthy” rainfall which was mighty beneficial as the course was looking wonderfully green, lush grass, exceptional greens and the surrounds looking so fresh. The only area that is still being worked on at present on the golf course are the bunkers.
Bunker sand has arrived in the recent weeks and with the greenkeeping staff working full-out the bunkers are expected to be re-shaped slightly and could be completed before the holiday rush.
Hats off to the management under Pam Mayberry and the green-keeping staff, headed by Benny Chagwe of the Matkovich Golf Course Management Group.
Another giant leap into the future was taken recently when the club decided to have four Paddle Tennis courts to be constructed.
And this weekend it could be a huge rush at Kloof Country Club as there is an Open Day for Paddle Tennis as enthusiasts have booked to play the brand new game while adult family members will be teeing-it up for rounds of golf. The all-woman - day-to-day management team undoubtedly make things happen at Kloof Country Club and it no wonder so many service providers feel at home dealing with the team.
Mayberry said: “I know and all of us at Kloof Country Club believe we’ve made the right business decisions in recent years for the club’s survival. We are hoping the new dimension added to the club will bring hundreds if not thousand more people to the club.”
THERE’S a bit of excitement among the local professionals as they head into this week’s co-sanctioned Sunshine Tour and DP World Tour event - the Joburg Open at Houghton Golf Club - which began today.
According to three key Sunshine Tour professionals - Christian Bezuidenhout, George Coetzee and Richard Sterne - driving and short game could be the key success this week.
“The rough is not up this week so I think the scoring will be low, but the greens are pretty slopy so missing on the wrong side of the hole will result in sloppy bogeys. You also need to keep it in play off the tee. The fairways are narrow and tree-lined so I feel if you can drive the ball well this week you’ll give yourself lots of chances,” said Bezuidenhout.
Sterne, a two-time winner of the Joburg Open in 2008 and 2013, agrees that the Houghton Golf Club greens will play a big role in deciding this week’s champion.
Coetzee, the 2014 Joburg Open champion and a two-time winner on the Sunshine Tour this year, has his focus on a strong game off the tee.