Dear Members,

Water everywhere this February is proving to be a difficult month at the club. Loadshedding is causing damage countrywide and here comes the lovely rains. As I am busy writing this newsletter we are going through another thunderstorm with rain.

On a positive note, the course has only been closed for 1 day due to being unplayable. We have kept the course open for walkers during this period, rounds are slightly down however I believe we are very lucky to be open. Unfortunately, we have not been able to send golf carts on the course. This is a big loss in revenue and an inconvenience to members that would like to use their carts.

Again, I must emphasize that we are fortunate to be open, many courses in the Gauteng area are not so fortunate. As soon as the course is dry enough, we will open it up for carts and trust me, I will be the happiest person at the club when it happens.

The water table is so high now that the course is not draining anymore. We have standing water all over the course and the signs of grass dying is starting to show. Etienne and the Golf Data team are doing their very best to mow the course and this is proving to be a big challenge. Unfortunately, the course will have some battle scars for weeks to come.

Goodbye to our Head Chef

Imagine Sangoma - It is with mixed emotions that I notify everyone that our popular and beloved Head Chef is leaving us…  The old saying goes “ The grass is always greener on the other side”.  In this case our grass is green and wet, however Chef Imagine has made the decision to relocate to New Zealand as he has accepted a position to work at a top-class restaurant there.

In this instance, I also believe the grass is greener on the other side.     Imagine is a man of few words. When he talks it is with respect and empathy.  Chef Imagine started working at Kyalami Country Club towards the end of 2020, brought in by former GM Hans Jonck. During his time at KCC, Imagine has elevated the quality and consistence of the food offering to a level that has never seen at the club before.

THANK YOU. We are sad to lose a valuable employee, however we are excited to see him taking on a new challenge. Imagine is from Zimbabwe, and with all the uncertainty there is regarding work permits for Zimbabweans in our country I am certain he is making the correct decision for his family.

Imagine, everyone will miss you and you have all our support. Good luck for this exciting time for you and your family.

If anyone should like to get into contact with Imagine here is his personal email address imaginesangoma@gmail.com

Course Maintenance – Mondays In an effort to improve the quality and presentation of the course we have made a decision to close the course one Monday a month.  This will give the maintenance team the opportunity to perform necessary maintenance practices on the greens and to target other areas of concern on the course.  We are confident that the results will provide better playing surfaces and this will benefit everyone.

Dusting on Monday

After sweeping the greens are better than before are ready for the next day.

Price Increase from 1 March

Please be advised that there will be a price increase on selected food and beverage items from 1 March 2023. We have endeavored to keep the increase to a minimum and we appreciate your support as always.

Valentines, Quiz Night, Night Run, Conferences and Weddings

  We are fortunate to be able to host more that just Golf. The loss in revenue this month is supplemented by extra income from our clubhouse.

A key element to our success will be events… and… as amazing it is to see our events being supported I can not help to wonder why our members do not support the events.  Come on Members, this is your club, please support us.

If we can not fill a room with members we need to fill it with visitors… I would prefer a room full of members and their guest. That is what is Club is about.

Blue Skies, what an absolute treat and long may it continue.

It has been a trying time of late with the wet weather and we thank members for their understanding during difficult times. Things are looking up and we take our hats off to Ettienne and his team for their efforts in keeping the course playable.

March is the month of Championship Golf and our Club Championships are scheduled for the 18th and 19th of March.

Please see this LINK to enter if you haven’t already done so.

The rain played havoc with our first Major of the major of the year and a new date for the founders will be the 1st of April replacing the monthly alliance

From the Shed.

Hello and a warm greeting to all our members from a wet and soaked Kyalami Country Club. I have never experienced such a wet golf course as I am experiencing now. To date we have had 248mm as at 21/02/2023, with a lot more on the way. This amount of rain is having an effect on our cutting regime and also the quality of cut is not as expected.

There are some areas where it is simply to wet for the mowers to get in and cut. Where we can cut it is not ideal. Unfortunately we are not able to allow golf carts on the course as this will cause extra damage to the course in general. Having the maintenance as a top priority it cannot be said that if we can cut we can allow carts, We have to continue with cutting.

The greens have come back beautifully and are looking exceptionally good and will be good for club champs. Dusting will be a regular two week practice and is so beneficial for the greens. Dusting is crucial as it improves speed and gives a true roll on the surface as well as minimising the build-up of thatch. I look forward to seeing you on the fairways and as always thank you for your compliments on the course .

On behalf of the Ladies Section we hosted a small farewell for our wonderful Chef Imagine. The ladies  gave him a farewell gift. His response to Sam, our Captain, “Good evening KCC Ladies. Thank you so very much for special gift. I really appreciate your best wishes. Thank you very much may God Bless you all. Imagine”