Celebrated sport celebrities, eminent artists and generous benefactors have once again opened their hearts to help GolfRSA continue to provide relief for the South African golf industry’s caddies and casual workers most severely impacted by the ongoing Covid-19 lockdown.
‘Our first auction was hugely successful, so we have partnered once again with leading auction house Strauss & Co to offer another incredible line-up of items,’ said GolfRSA CEO Grant Hepburn.
‘This will be our third auction since the inception of the GolfRSA Help Fund in April and once again, all the proceeds will be allocated to the fund.’
The first two rounds of auctions and raffles raised more than R1.6 million for the fund, while staff salary cuts, savings from operational costs from national events, donations from the SAGDB and the GolfRSA National Squad budget and a R1-million donation from an international benefactor have seen the fund able to deliver over R4 million worth of assistance.
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Thanks to the efforts led by GolfRSA, the Ministry of Sports, Arts and Culture allowed golf facilities to re-open on 13 June, but there is still a vast number of caddies and casual workers who remain unemployed, due to the ongoing pandemic.
‘We have been able to assist many of most vulnerable workers within the golf industry and we hope the support for this auction will be just as terrific so we can continue to roll out relief until the end of the year,’ Hepburn said.
‘We have simply been blown away by the generosity from all our benefactors that has helped us to keep the fund sustainable and once again, we have received incredible items to list. The third auction is aimed at a vast audience with a diverse list of 24 items that include remarkable golf experiences, extraordinary collector’s pieces, prized art and sport memorabilia and other exciting experiences.
‘We hope this one will also enjoy strong support so we can sustain the GolfRSA Help Fund until such time as all caddies can re-join the work force.’
Among the items featured are celebrity golf experiences with lead singer of Afrikaans rock group Die Heuwels Fantasties, Pierre Greeff, top South African golfers Eric van Rooyen, Ashleigh Buhai and Nicole Garcia, World Hall of Fame cricketer Jacques Kallis and a game at The River Club, followed by an exclusive wine tasting with TV personality Dan Nicholl – host of the Dan Nicholl Show and Dan Really Likes Wines.
Celebrated South African artists Richard Scott and Susan Woolf both donated limited edition works, while the auction also offers art lovers an opportunity to bid on a wonderful piece by rising talent Jemma Gold or the chance to own a Harold Riley original, commemorating Louis Oosthuizen’s victory in the 150th Open Championship at St Andrews in 2010.
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Steyn City, Bryanston Country Club, the Wild Coast Sun and Sun City (both courses) have donated rounds of golf and two lucky bidders can win a coveted spot each in the 2021 Dimension Data Pro-Am and Ladies Dimension Data Pro-Am.
Philanthropist Gaynor Rupert donated a wonder Karoo experience, where the lucky bidder will walk away with a luxury three-night stay for four people at the five-star Drostdy Boutique Hotel in Graaff-Reinet. Also included in this amazing offer is an executive chef tasting menu dinner (paired with fine wines), golf at Graaff-Reinet Golf Club, champagne tasting at the world-famous Valley of Desolation, a game drive, a Karoo Sushi luncheon at Herding Academy and a 90-minute Soul of the Karoo spa treatment.
Among the sports memorabilia on offer is the official Springbok Opus book, signed by all three World Cup winning captains Francois Pienaar (1995), John Smit (2007) and Siya Kolisi (2019), while South African rugby player Schalk Brits donated the shorts and socks he wore in the 2019 World Cup Finals in Japan.
For cricket lovers, there is the signed cricket bat used by David Warner in the 1st Innings of the 2019 4th Ashes test at Old Trafford and a full set of South African cricket coach and former cricketer Jacques Kallis’ personal Kolkata Knight Riders practice kit from the Indian Premier League.
Golf fans can bid on a framed 100-year-old Hickory-shafted Cleek Golf Club and coin.
There is also a unique golf and fishing combo on offer with cricketing legend Barry Richards at both Simola Golf and Country Estate and Pezula Golf Estate and a half-day fishing experience for three people through the Knysna Heads.
One lucky bidder can land a helicopter trip for four people around Cape Peninsula, followed by an exclusive meal at the celebrated Den Anker Restaurant at the V&A Waterfront.
The lucky bidder will get 36 bottles of Blind Tiger award-winning Gin and we are throwing in a 30-year-old Ballantine’s Whisky and a one of a kind art piece – a 1.5 litre Magnum painted by international artist Richard Scott to sweeten the pot.
The auction ends at 20h00 on Monday 7 Sep 2020. View the 24 items on offer via the link below:
https://www.straussart.co.za/
