MIND / JOURNEYS M
‘Royal is now a field of dreams’ After 11 years as CEO, Chris Bentley is leaving Royal Johannesburg to work at a private club overseas. He leaves a strong legacy at one of South Africa’s oldest clubs which is in a very different place from when he arrived. By Chris Bentley with Stuart McLean
I had been director of golf at Serengeti estate and was just 27 when appointed in 2013 as the youngest general manager in the history of Royal. My timing could not have been worse. The club was operationally in turmoil, members were unhappy, and there had been a sudden change of committee as a result. The club was flush with capital reserves, yet the funds were untouch- able, and Royal was losing millions. When I told my father of the situation, and how concerned I was – the members also weren’t too support- ive of my appointment – he advised me to take this as an opportunity. So I start- ed looking at my job more holistically. Royal Johannesburg & Kensington, as it was then known, had been the premier golf club in Gauteng for many years, with two distinguished courses, but had been overtaken by Country Club Jo- hannesburg and Bryanston CC as more desirable clubs to join, particularly be- cause of their location in the northern suburbs. It was perceived that Royal was in the wrong place in the city. That might have been the case 10 years ago, but Royal today is comparable to the movie Field of Dreams, and its famous quote, “If you build it, they will come.” Through a tremendous team effort it has evolved into a family-orientated venue with a wellness and fitness club, award-winning restaurant, and I believe is now ahead of the game. During my tenure the club received 11 international awards, and I was named PGA Professional of the Year in 2021. I’m comfortable in saying that Royal is the “Home of Golf” in South Africa. The offices of the PGA and Club Managers Association are on the premises. The club is making an annual gross profit of R8-million on a turnover of R64-million. None of our members would have operated their own businesses the way the club used to be run until 2015. There were 12 different commit- tees. The constitution was restructured to better reflect the modern commer- cial world of golf club operations. We formed a board of nine members and
8 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA
MARCH/APRIL 2024
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