MIND / TOP 100 COURSES M
King of the Tips golf day.
I t’s the longest golf course in South Africa by some distance, but now Blair Atholl in Gauteng is aiming to become the longest in the world. “The club is seriously considering this move, with the approval of Gary Player, our course designer, as a marketing tool to bring international exposure to Blair Atholl Golf & Equestrian Estate,” says Director of Golf and PGA Master Professional Paul Marks. The world’s longest par 72 course, recognised by Guinness World Records, is at 3 100 metres in the remote Chinese Himalayas. Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (Yunnan Province), opened in 2001, is said to be 7 816 metres. At that altitude it’s also the world’s second highest course, meaning the golf ball is going to travel even further than it does on the highveld. It has possibly the world’s longest par 5, measured at 650 metres. Planet Golf website describes it as being “poorly conceived, with some crazy holes, and just one redeeming feature, its location.” Blair Atholl’s longest hole from the black tees is the 594-metre 13th, and the course plays 7 527 metres from these tees. It includes the Blair Mile, three consecutive par 4s from No 14 to 16 which measure a cumulative 1 509 metres and are thought to be the world’s longest trio of 4s. “We have the space on our property to build new tees on most holes and gain the extra distance necessary to Blair Atholl Chases a Chinese Dragon Gary Player would like to have world’s longest golf course.
medal competition from the tips, and Marks sets the course up using pin positions from the final round of the SA Open, which makes the layout doubly hard. “It’s 18 holes medal, but for those who lose golf balls, or rack up high numbers on a hole, and have a ‘No Return,’ there is a backup Stableford section. The highest score we’ve had returned on the day is 127. What a trooper!” The club also has an annual King of the Tips individual Stableford day for members, one of the club’s ‘majors,’ where the winner receives a tartan jacket along with the trophy. The women members play from the silver tees at 6 478 metres. Blair Atholl is hosting the Sunshine Ladies Tour for the first time in March, the R1-million Platinum Ladies Open. The women professionals will be using the club’s bronze tees at a more playable 5 823 metres. ENJOY EXTRA SHOTS If your handicap index is 7.0, you will have a course handicap of 15 from the black tees at Blair Atholl. There are seven holes over 500 metres in length from the tips, and the five par 3s measure 189-222-215-213-180. Gives your fairway metals and hybrids a good workout.
surpass Jade Dragon,” says Marks. “Gary’s former designer Phil Jacobs has been out with me on our course, and recommended where we could stretch holes. He’s also been looking at design improvements on Gary’s behalf. On a recent visit, Gary produced sketches of possible changes he would like to see.” Blair Atholl, No 4 in the 2024 Golf Digest Top 100 rankings, is the longest course to have hosted a DP World Tour tournament, the 2022 and 2023 SA Opens, won respectively by Thriston Lawrence and Dean Burmester. Burmester’s winning score of 11-under- par 277 was among the highest on the DP World Tour in the 2023/24 season. “Blair Atholl is often perceived as a private club off limits to visitors unless they are guests of members,” says Marks. “That is not the case. We welcome visitors and have a certain number of tee times available for them every week, not only Tuesday to Thursday, but on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Visitors can book online.” The visitor green fee has increased to R2 000, which includes a shared golf cart and halfway house. That venue on the banks of the Crocodile River is rated No 1 in South Africa. Golfers love to challenge themselves from Blair Atholl’s back tees, and every November for the past five years there’s been a tournament called “The Battle of the Blair Beast,” open to the first 88 players who wish to participate. It’s a
22 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2025
Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator