364, and the par 3s on the back nine play 193, 195 (to a green guarded right by a water hazard) and 187. Wildlife on course includes a herd of zebra. 34 PILGRIMS REST Near Pilgrims Rest, Mpumalanga Lowveld UP 5 • SCORE 39.3/60 Clubhouse 7 / Aesthetics 7.5 / Conditioning 5.3 / Design Variety 7 / Innovation 6 / Challenge 6.5 Possibly the oldest course in the Lowveld, at the foot of Robbers Pass, an altitude of 1352 metres. Holes are attractively laid out in a narrow tree- lined valley alongside a stream and rocky hillside. Surprisingly long at 6 347 metres – the sixth at 569 metres is one of the longer 5s in SA. The round ends with a par 3. The immediate area is where SA’s first gold rush took place in 1873, prospectors recovering alluvial gold from the gravel of riverbeds. The original name of the club was TGME ROBBERS PASS Historic Pilgrims Rest GC, with its 100-year-old clubhouse (below), lies at the foot of Robbers Pass in Mpumalanga, and ranks 34th.
(Transvaal Gold Mining Estates). The small stone-walled clubhouse, still in good condition, is thought to be 100 years old. 35 HARTSWATER Hartswater, Northern Cape NEW ENTRY • SCORE 39.3/60 Clubhouse 6.3 / Aesthetics 7 / Conditioning 5.5 / Design Variety 6.5 / Innovation 7 / Challenge 7 Testing bushveld layout in an agricultural town which is the centre of the Vaal-Harts irrigation scheme. Home to a huge pecan nut industry – SA is world’s third largest producer. A canal connecting the two rivers lies beyond the golf course. An hour’s drive north of Kimberley. First four holes (both par 3s among them) are close to clubhouse, then follow five exceptional holes lined with magnificent trees, including kameeldoring. It’s 20km from another Top 50 nine-holer at Jan Kempdorp.
36 CERES Ceres, Western Cape
DOWN 7 • SCORE 39/60 Clubhouse 8 / Aesthetics 6 / Conditioning 7 / Design Variety 6 / Innovation 6 / Challenge 6 As you crest Mitchell’s Pass into this picturesque town, the parkland course lies below the road. It is now part of a residential estate, and some holes
120 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2026
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