Oct
2014
I don’t play golf. I think I’ve swung a golf club once in my life, and took out more grass than anything else (the ball did move a few feet, so it wasn’t all in vain). However, there is something about the game that is...indescribably peaceful. Being amongst many, yet finding mental solitude within ourselves. Watching, listening to all of our stressor’s melt seamlessly into the background. It’s something that we all need – a moment of utter tranquillity, to gather ourselves as we prepare to take the plunge back into the raging waters of everyday life.
Certainly, people have different ways achieving inner peace – from the slow and gentle movements of the yoga enthusiast to the high octane, adrenaline rushes of the sprinter. The composure we gain allows us to “reset” ourselves so that we may continue to deal with those unpleasant necessities that modern living requires of us. The one, true constant, is that everyone needs that reset button. And it is golf, as a game, a lifestyle, a passion, that many use to relax, rethink, reset.
Myself? I have several. Swimming is one of them. The silence that is found as one enters the water is pure bliss. However, I absolutely despise it when, after a long, long day at the office, I find myself faced with a pool of green slime and a chlorine concentration so high it would remove all impurities from the water, and most vital organs from a human body (I’m getting to the point). My point? The quality of the facility being used to “de-stress” as it were, is as important as the activity itself. One would serve only to agitate oneself further if one were to attempt, for example, to play billiards upon a skew table. Tangential to the focus of the initial paragraph yet the concept remains constant, seen as we circle back to the point. Imagine, for a moment, attempting to play a round of (stress-removing) golf upon a less-than-adequate course. I myself would probably throw my club into the nearest lake, opting instead for a scotch and soda at the clubhouse, yet those more devoted to the game may struggle on, doing their level best on a sub-standard golfing green.
This needs not be the case, however, as the facilities sought by those who crave the placid seclusion that is inherent of the game, do in fact exist. And closer than you’d think. Woodhill Golf Estate – and I’m just going to leave the name there so you may allow it to sink in, because if you do in fact seek said aforementioned equanimity, it is a name that will become a huge part of your life. Some elaboration needed? Very well, I shall oblige.
Woodhill Estate boasts what must surely be one of the most beautiful golf courses ever to grace African soil. And no I’m not saying that just to entice you to a round of golf upon the pristine greens. With at least five awards to its name, it’s no mystery as to why the Green Jacket Award was bestowed upon the gorgeous grounds, naming it the “best golf course estate” in the country for 2011. And it has gone nowhere but up from there. With the club house overlooking the 18-hole splendour as the focal point of the estate and golf course, one stands to enjoy panoramic views of the magical gardens that abound the area. This once dairy farm has managed to retain in old, pastoral charm, while at the same time flowing seamlessly through time to fit with the more concepts that give that unique tinge to the country club and estate, with houses of epic proportion looking out onto the beauties amongst which they were built.
In need of a little assistance with your game? Perhaps you are struggling to reach that next level of golfing – so close you can touch it, taste, yet it eludes your fingertips, dancing just beyond your reach, tormenting you with every stroke you take. The whole-fully talented young men and women who keep the Pro Shop fighting fit are available at your beck and call, ever ready to help you up your game far and beyond your wildest dreams – hardly surprising, given that you’d be being coached by disciples of the game who have made it golf their life’s work. It won’t be long before your game explodes forward, increasing exponentially in its ability to impress and astound, raw talent running through your veins anew.
Woodhill Golf Course has held such events as the South African PGA Championship, the Ladies PGA Championship and the second South African PGA Championships, and winners have included the likes of Bobby Locke, Gary Player and Ernie Else. This top class facility offers nothing but the best in golf and living. The only thing greater than each of these two separate components is the synergy created by the stunning cooperation between them.
