NELSPRUIT GOLF CLUB

Mpumalanga, South Africa

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RANKED TOP 50 in South Africa!! Nelspruit Golf Club is one of Mpumalanga's top courses and is a must play when visiting this area.

Nelspruit is close to the Kruger National Park (60km) and is part of the Tropical Lowveld with its beautiful scenic routes.

Mpumalanga's Top Golfing Destination

Nelspruit Golf Club is an attractive Lowveld layout that has risen spectacularly in the Golf Digest rankings over the past few years.

In 2004 it made the biggest climb of any course in the Top 100, leaping 26 places from #96 to #70.  In 2005 it elevated itself yet again to #57 and, while the club does not live and die by the Top 100, it achieved its specified goal of breaking into the top 50 in 2006 when ranked #47.

"We view the rankings as a measure of where we stand compared to other courses in South Africa and aim to create a better all around golf experience for members and visitors alike," says Club Manager Richard Rillema.

Rillema joined the club in 2000 during a difficult period. A year earlier all 18 greens had been lost to chemical burn while in 1998 the course had been through a long upgrade process.

While the course served its 550 members well as a convenient and affordable place to play golf, it always battled to stay in condition. That changed in 2002 when the club was fortunate to secure the services of Course Superintendent Leon Willemse, who had previously worked at the new Woodhill estate, and prior to that for golf course designer Peter Matkovich. Willemse brought with him a wealth of experience that is evident in the improvement to the course conditioning.

Nelspruit is famous for hosting the annual Jock of the Bushveld event, considered the biggest amateur tournament of its kind in the world. Started in 1968, it has grown to the extent where some 800 competitors play more than 2 000 rounds during a week in May.

The focus of management is to continue improving the condition of the course and club facilities and ensure that Nelspruit Golf Club remains Mpumalanga's top golfing destination.

Nelspruit Golf Club – A unique ‘bush golf’ experience

Golf Club management Magazine - November 2007

“…The club prides itself on things that Gauteng courses wish they had – GREEN winter golf. The fairways are lush year-round, which makes the track far more aesthetically pleasing. Gauteng at the same time of year is brown, bare and desperate for rain! For all the environmentalists, the experience at Nelspruit Golf Club doesn’t end there. This parkland course is lined exclusively with indigenous trees! No exotics on the course.

“Now here’s a lesson that Mpumalanga and the South African golfing community as a whole should follow if they are not already doing so: At Nelspruit Golf Club visitors are treated exactly like the members at sincerely affordable green fee rates, as well as bar prices that are tough to beat anywhere in South Africa.

“Nelspruit GC is enhancing the ever increasing number of improving golf courses in the area along with White River Country Club, Sabie River, Malelane, and Kruger Park Lodge…. These clubs, along with Nelspruit can certainly put the cherry on top of a potentially relaxing bush golf holiday. Could this region challenge the Garden Route when it comes to competing for local and foreign tourists...? Nothing quite beats golf in the bush. No highways, no power lines, no smog! So be sure to drop into Nelspruit Golf Club. It’s certainly worth a visit.”

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