Royal Johannesburg & Kensington

There is something rather special about driving into the car park at Royal Johannesburg, this giant among golf clubs. For anyone who appreciates the history of the game in South Africa, there is certainly a sense of occasion when entering the portals of the recently revamped clubhouse, but it is when a player steps onto the 1st tee of the storied East course, it is then that the true golfer’s pulse quickens.

The 'real McCoy'

This is not some jumped-up, gimmicky, high-budget course that has recently joined the plethora of estate courses – this is the ‘real McCoy’ – a course that has paid its dues in no uncertain terms and one that deserves respect.

It is fair to say that anyone who is anybody in our golfing history has played here – Royal has hosted every event on the calendar that matters – including seven SA Open Championships – and it is appropriate that this grand old dame was chosen to regularly host Johannesburg’s showcase of professional golf, the Joburg Open.

Much is made of the prefix ‘Royal’, but in many ways this club does not fit the accepted notion – a club that is somehow superior and elitist due to the patronage of some blue-blood. Royal Johannesburg by any other name would be just as special, as much for what it is as for what it is not.

It is, of course, home to two excellent golf courses, both accessible and neither designed to strike fear into the hearts of those who play them.

Yes, one might admit that the membership comprises some of the ‘who’s who’ among professional people and captains of commerce and industry, yet the club is not in any way snobbish, and a fair cross-section of the golfing population of Johannesburg can be seen enjoying what is undoubtedly a national treasure.

There have been considerable changes to Laurie Waters’ original design of the first course by renowned British architect Major Hotchkin (in 1929), with the construction carried out by club professional Bob Grimsdell (both Grimsdell and Waters were resident pros at Royal), and when the layout became too congested, it was decided to construct the second course in 1933. This meant buying a section of an adjoining farm, and by 1935, again with a Hotchkin design and the help of some 300 labourers, Grimsdell completed the construction.

History

The history of this club is naturally intertwined with the birth and growth of the ‘Golden City’, and when the first group of keen golfers decided to form their club,

Johannesburg was little more than a dusty shanty town with little going for it except a great climate and a fortune in the precious metal that lay beneath its surface.

The town that would eventually become the economic hub of the African continent was only three years old when the pioneers of the first golf club in Johannesburg decided to establish their club under the leadership of an ex-colonial secretary, John Tudhope.

It must be said that the club got off to a rather inauspicious start – only six people attended the first meeting and, according to the archives of the Star newspaper, only an informal discussion took place. Another meeting was planned for three days later, when a dozen keen founder members assembled.

But once established, the club wasted little time in laying out a course – a primitive affair situated in an area where today Clarendon Circle and Empire Road is situated.

It took a mere 12 weeks to clear the bush and for the fledgling club to be launched.
Again courtesy of the Star’s records, we know that at the official opening, an appropriate toast of Scotch whisky was drunk, and despite the “bad state of the ground and the long grass, some good form was shown”. We are also told that “a good number of spectators attended, including a good number of the fair sex”.

Interestingly, the Johannesburg Golf Club would eventually establish a separate ladies golf club (as opposed to merely a ladies section) in 1904, and although it had been mooted that the ladies would even be given their own course, this never happened.

The original course lasted only two months, and a new course was laid out between Doornfontein and Jeppestown.

Incredibly, the course would move no less than five times in the first seven years.
It finally settled where it is today, an ideal location overlooked by the Linksfield Ridge, and for 100 years it has remained here.

To do justice to the history of Royal and to pay homage to the committed people who have played important roles in the evolution of Johannesburg’s first and most prestigious club would require a substantial volume.

But we must accept that through good times and bad, there always seemed to be far-sighted individuals who had the wellbeing of the club at heart, and while moving with the times, have been able to retain the special feel of the place.

The East course

The East course will probably always be considered to be the ‘Big Brother’ – the better championship test, but the shorter West layout is just as enjoyable to play, and the combined 36 holes represent a true golfing treat.

Over the decades, what was originally a treeless, undulating expanse of Highveld savannah has been transformed into magnificent golfing parkland.

In recent times, the courses have become a glowing example of astute management and environmental consciousness, and Royal can claim to be the first Audubon-certified golf course in South Africa.

Course manager Malcolm Bromley and his team have set the highest standards of conditioning, and the policy of the club has been to constantly seek ways to improve. Many golfers unfamiliar with the courses will have seen them on television, and it must be agreed that they are both pristine.

The clubhouse has been revamped at considerable cost, and again, although modern and airy, it still manages to retain the feel of a real golf club.

The East course is well known for its 10th and 11th holes, a pair of par fours that measure a combined length of 931 metres – thought to be a world record.

The West course

Although shorter by almost 500 metres, the West may not require power hitting, but with championship pin positions it is no pushover.

It would be unfair to single out any specific holes as being particularly good on either course – none can be accused of being weak, and a golfer playing either course will know that they are experiencing the best Johannesburg has to offer.

Picture 1

The beautiful par-three 5th is a favourite of many players. Measuring 162 metres, and with a lake guarding the green, most elect to aim at the middle of the putting surface, gratefully take two putts and head for the next tee.

Picture 2: BOE Dream 18

The long par-four 11th doglegs to the right and is one of the finest holes on the course. It measures 457 metres, and requires two well-struck shots to find the green.

Picture 3

The 347-metre par-four 11th may lack length, but an accurate tee shot is needed to avoid the water on the right of the landing area. More water at the front and left of the green demands an accurate approach.

Picture 4: The clubhouse

The 6th is the signature hole of the East’s outward nine. A 530-metre par five, the longer drive is threatened by a bunker left and water right.

LIKES

• The trees that line the fairways – a mixture of exotic and indigenous species that frame the holes beautifully.
• The year-round conditioning – hard to beat.
• The new veranda area that overlooks the courses.

... AND DISLIKES

• Perhaps more could be done to display old photographs and memorabilia. This club is, after all, only predated by Royal Cape (1885), Pietermaritzburg (1886) and Klerksdorp (1889).

FACT FILE

Getting there: From the N3, take Linksfield turn-off towards Orange Grove. Continue for 3.5km along Club St. Turn right into Gemini. Right at T-junction, through a boom and first left.

Courses Both classic parkland, kikuyu tees and fairways, bent greens East Par 72, 6 940m West Par 72, 6 563m

CEO Gary Marais

Director of golf Jaco du Plessis

Club Professional Greg Jacobs

Teaching pro Martin Briede

Course Manager Malcolm Bromley

Contact Club offices 011 640 3021 Pro shop 011 485 4899 www.royaljk.za.com