Soweto Country Club gets major boost
This will benefit the residents of Soweto‚ as well as those from surrounding areas
Soweto Country Club’s rebirth will be given another major boost when the refurbishment of the golf course begins by the end of the year.
The historic course was designed by native South African and the country’s most beloved sportsman, Gary Player.
The World Golf Hall of Famer announced at his birthday celebration, held at Soweto Country Club, that he would gladly undertake the golf course redesign at no cost.
The City of Johannesburg gave it further impetus by hosting a Mayoral golf day last month where all of the proceeds have been donated to the refurbishment of Soweto Country Club.
The project has already seen the building of a new club house‚ a new practice facility‚ a conference centre‚ and a fence constructed along two boundaries of the golf course itself.
The existing storage facility will be turned into a fully operational pro-shop and a South African Golf Development Board Academy‚ named after Rivonia Trialist‚ apartheid activist and avid golfer‚ Andrew Mlangeni.
Herman Mashaba, the Executive Mayor of the City of Johannesburg, also expressed his gratitude for the support of this project at the launch of the R16.5 million ($1.2 million) tournament at Soweto Country Club on Wednesday, September 20. He also urged residents in Soweto to take responsibility of the club as it also belongs to them.
“This will benefit the residents of Soweto‚ as well as those from surrounding areas, and will go a long way towards creating business and job opportunities‚ as well as access to major sporting codes and tournaments‚ such as the Joburg Open, to all our residents‚ irrespective of class,” said Mashaba.
Selwyn Nathan, Executive Director of the Sunshine Tour, also announced at the launch that with the help of the Sunshine Tour, European Tour and various sponsors the initial funding has been sourced, to begin with, the golf course.
“We have had incredible support from our partners such as the City of Joburg, Investec, Dimension Data, Telkom, SuperSport, PWC and several private sponsorships.
This investment means we can now begin with the upgrade of the golf course as we continue to seek further funding to be able to complete the course upgrade,” said Nathan.
Meanwhile, the Joburg Open will make history as it becomes the first tri-sanctioned golf tournament on South African soil, and it also features a new date and the venue on the Sunshine Tour this year.
Nathan announced at the launch that the Joburg Open will be played at Randpark Golf Club over two courses from 7-10 December and will be tri-sanctioned by Sunshine Tour, European Tour and Asian Tour.
Former Open champion Louis Oosthuizen has also confirmed that he will play in the Joburg Open as it makes the new era in its history.
“I am very excited to be supporting the growth of what is one of the premier tournaments in world golf. I am a proud winner on all three Tours and look forward to playing in Johannesburg again,” said Oosthuizen.
Social Media Platforms for News:
Twitter: @SowetoUrban, Facebook: Soweto Urban News, Instagram: @SowetoUrban
News site 1: Westside-Eldos Urban News, News site 2: Soweto Urban News
