It was soon after the completion of Gary Player Country Club at Sun City that hotel mogul Sol Kerzner identified a perfect property on the eastern seaboard for another golf course and, typical of the ‘Sun King’, he was determined that this would be another show-stopper. Not a golfer himself, Kerzner was advised at the time that one of the most fashionable, if sometimes controversial, course architects was Robert Trent Jones Jr, and it was the American who was commissioned to design what would soon become one of the most spectacular layouts in the world.
Trent Jones Jr, very much a ‘Renaissance man’ of course architecture, has often made a point of explaining that his job is to merely discover nature’s secrets and reveal them to the golfer, and in four decades of designing courses all over the world, he has never baulked at the prospect of creating some unusual, spectacular and, some might say, outlandish holes.
A graduate of Yale who later attended law school at Stanford, Trent Jones Jr joined his famous father’s firm of architects before founding his own company, which soon became extremely successful.
During an interview with Compleat Golfer some 15 years ago, Trent Jones told us that one of the problems he encountered on the site of the Wild Coast’s course was that he had too much spectacular land with which to work, and that he agonised over the routing. Dramatic changes in elevation and panoramic views of the Indian Ocean and the lagoon offered any number of possibilities, but the areas he eventually chose for the positioning of tees and greens cannot be faulted.
This golf course was way ahead its time and during its almost 30-year existence, it has never dated. Even the regular visitor can never tire of playing here; there are just so many good holes, great views and, of course, the ever-present danger of that loose shot landing a player in a lot of trouble. The design will immediately expose a golfer’s weaknesses, and played in either windy or calm conditions, this is a proper test of golf.
The prevailing winds can turn this short, six-par-three layout into a monster, and it bears unquestionable testimony to the fact that length is not a prerequisite for championship credentials. Even on a windless day, this course is no pussycat, and a misclub here or a mishit there can suddenly ruin the hope of a respectable score.
Although the official course record is 62, held by Brett Liddle, there were a few players who recorded 9-under-par 61s when the placing rule was in effect, one of them being Mark McNulty and another Fred Beaver, the popular professional who has run the golf operations here since the opening of the course in May 1983.
Like any great layout, no golfer can expect to fully appreciate the interesting quirks and true character of this course first time around, and indeed it would take many rounds in different conditions to claim to know how best to approach this intriguing challenge. The relatively simple task of pulling the right club can bamboozle the best, even when the wind isn’t up. But as many golfers have discovered, the more you play this course, the more you love it. More than a few top golfers, among them Hugh Baiocchi, rate this course as their favourite, and it is easy to see why.
The opening hole seems a relatively benign start, requiring a tee shot played steeply downhill to a plateau. But from there, the approach is partially blind, and missing this green can mean a big number. It’s a very unusual hole, but get used to this – there is nothing ordinary about any of the holes here.
It is impossible to talk of this course without mention of its six par threes. The first of these is the 4th, a little hole, beautifully bunkered, that measures a mere 110 metres at full stretch. At first glance it requires nothing more than a simple wedge, but this hole has bedevilled the best, and hitting the target can still leave some very tricky putts.
The next short hole is a much scarier prospect, played steeply downhill (176 metres) with trouble left and right. The 8th, where water comes into play on the left, is one of many examples of holes on this course that seem longer than the card suggests, and where the wind can turn a relatively benign hole into a wicked score-spreader.
The back nine is unnecessarily well made, and even if your score up to this point is respectable, it may not remain so for long. The 10th is a straightforward par four played up a hill, but then comes a beast of a par three that, into the wind, can be rather fierce. Somehow the wind that you feel on the tee bears no relation to the effect it will have on your ball. Measuring 188 metres, more than a few good players have hit as much as a 3-wood here.
Walking to the tee, the first-timer is in for a rare treat – the view of the 12th, aptly named ‘Green Mamba’. The tee of this par five is perched high above the fairway and the drive must carry the river far below. A player needs to decide how far left to play, taking on the water but shortening the hole – a classic risk and reward.
Next is probably the most famous of all the par threes, played over a deep ravine with a waterfall to the right – certainly one of the most dramatic one-shotters found anywhere. Again, the wind will dictate just how much club might be necessary to find the generous putting surface – 168 metres doesn’t seem that far, but the ravine has claimed countless balls.
The stroke 1, a 401-metre par four, follows, and another par four that is reasonably straightforward (when played downwind) offers some respite. But then begins a truly brilliant finishing stretch. The par-five 16th, with its multiple lakes, has seen its share of eagles and disasters. Another superb par three follows, and the grand finale is a par four over a huge expanse of water to a sliver of fairway, after which the uphill approach is played in front of the clubhouse.
After putting out, you might rue the overly ambitious shots that may have cost you a bruise to your ego and a few balls. Sipping a post-round drink in the clubhouse, you might again wonder how a course measuring less than 6 000 metres managed to make you look rather silly. One thing is for certain, you will want to come back to this special course. Like most of us, you will discover that when you do return, although you may have found the answers to questions the layout posed the last time, the questions will have changed.
LIKES
■The unique setting, roller-coaster terrain and interesting mix of holes.
■The understated clubhouse with its relaxed atmosphere.
■The lady caddies/ball spotters – enthusiastic and eagle-eyed.
DISLIKES
■The enforced cart rule. There are some big distances between greens and tees, but this course makes for a great walk.
■A long drive from Durban – but well worth it.
Getting there
Drive 5.2 kilometres south of the town of Port Edward in KwaZulu-Natal on the main Bizana Road. Once you have crossed the bridge into the Eastern Cape, you will see the entrance to the Wild Coast Sun on your left.
Course
Par 70 (rated 71), 5 807 metres.
Cynodon fairways, paspalum greens.
Designer
Robert Trent Jones Jr
Head professional/ director of golf
Fred Beaver
Course
Maintenance
Benjamin Leonard
Greenfees
Prime time – R430 (includes cart hire). Specials available from R280.
Contact
Tel: 039 305 9111
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.suninternational.com/wildcoastsun
