A FOREST WALK Vryheid Country Club in Northern KZN is a new entry at No 7 in the rankings, an attractive championship design within a pine forest. This is the 8th/17th green.
WHERE ARE THE 50 BEST NINE-HOLERS? Nearly half the 50 courses are in various regions of the Cape. Ten in the Western Cape, five in the Northern Cape, and four each in the Eastern & Southern Cape. This is a vast area of land though. Springbok and Hartswater are both in the Northern Cape, but 800 kilometres apart by road. Mpumalanga have 10 courses in the rankings (5 Lowveld & 5 Highveld), and KwaZulu-Natal nine, while another eight are shared between Gauteng, North West and Limpopo. The furthest course north is Thabazimbi (Limpopo), and from there it’s 1 550 kilometres to the furthest south, at Bredasdorp. Mpumalanga 10: Kambaku, Kruger Park Lodge, Malelane, Volksrust, Bankenveld, Skukuza, Pilgrims Rest, Kriel, Lydenburg, Standerton Western Cape 10: Metropolitan, Boschenmeer, Kleinmond, Swellendam, Helderberg Village, Hex River Valley, Ceres, Bredasdorp, Vredendal, Malmesbury KwaZulu-Natal 9: Bosch Hoek, Noodsberg, Vryheid, Greytown, Estcourt, Cathedral Peak, Mooi River, Kilbarchan, Amphitheatre Eastern & Southern Cape 8: Fancourt, Fynbos, Graaff-Reinet, Cradock, Riversdale, Stilbaai, Heidelberg, Walmer Northern Cape 5: Springbok, Hartswater, Lime Acres, Jan Kemp, Black Mountain Limpopo 4: Thabazimbi, Marble Hall, Chrome, Groblersdal Gauteng/North West 4: Mooinooi, Cullinan, Zwartkop, Sandy Lane
RANKING CRITERIA
CLUBHOUSE: A building open most days of the week, with a welcoming 19th, and basic facilities. AESTHETICS: The scenic values of the courses must add to the pleasure of the round. DESIGN VARIETY: How varied are the holes in differing lengths, configurations, hazards, undulations, and green shapes. INNOVATION: Creation of alternate greens, variety of tees from different angles, double pins, different pars for same holes. CHALLENGE: Does the course have length, hazards, rough, tight fairways, sloping greens? CONDITION: The quality of the fairways, tees, bunkers, and greens relative to the club’s resources. 10 points are awarded for each criteria.
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GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA 111
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2026
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