Royal Johannesburg
Being back in Johannesburg will always mean I try and find time to play my home course, Royal Johannesburg Golf. It always feels like coming home. When the halfway staff tell you they’ve missed you, you should come more often, and the front desk and proshop are always on point and are ready to assist with anything. The grounds staff going out of their way to ĺook for my daughters lost phone on the course and actually finding it. One of my favourite things about this course is also just how my kids absolutely love it too. Any excuse for them to tag along is always a good day out on the course.
WEST SIDE
The beautiful and scenic West Course is most definitely a good place to start. With my fourball not quite getting it together on the last minute. I ended up going out alone. I managed to get my good friend Precious, who doesn’t play at all to tag along for great company. We have spent many hours on the course watching tournaments together, but after this ride along, she’s ready to start playing. The beauty of the West did the job. One down, a few more to go. If I could get all my friends to play, my job would be done.
It was such a gorgeous day out. The weather was stunning, the course pristine as usual, and the game was not too bad after coming back from a diabolic episode at Fancourt. There is nothing like the home course to show you love. I realised how I miss playing alone. Something I used to do quite often. Maybe I should get back to basics, and the game will come back to me…
EAST SIDE
On this day, I said East on a Wednesday, and the response was “any day for the beast.” With my daughter and her partner Duncan, we set out to try and tame the ever so gorgeous beast that is the East Course. Something we know we can never do, but we try anyway because the feeling you get when you’re putting for par on that stroke 1 can never be duplicated.
East will take your breath away every single time. Regardless of how your day is going, it just never gets old. It can play really long when you’re having a bad day, and yet the beauty of it still keeps your emotions in check. You keep hoping the next hole will be better. On a good day, when your game is on fire,well now, that will make you want to come back the next day only to find it in beast mode. This is why we love it so much. The number of people who tell me how it is on their top 5 on the bucket list is evident enough.
I had a horrible day with my driver and a better day with the short game, which saved me. The highlight was watching Maxine hit some beautiful shots on the 2nd 9 and her remembering that she has a mean swing, even on the East side.
With my boys being in a far, far away land, it was such a treat going out to play with my daughter. Her hectic schedule doesn’t allow for us to have a lot of time on the golf course. So, when the opportunity presented itself, I couldn’t let it pass. After all, she is my day golf buddy. As a teenager, she would come to the range and weekend lessons with me. We’d make it out to the course when she wasn’t at a sports meet somewhere.
Like me, she spent all her school years being the athlete and making every team possible. So her golf game came naturally. Even without playing at all, I can still see a glimpse of the girl who has the potential to beat me on a good day. I can only hope that she does too, because that would mean she’d be playing more.
One of these days I will get this team in one fourball. Every golfing parents dream. Now, wouldn’t that be something.
Catch you on the fairways.
Felicity Shiba
This Girl's Golf Diary 