Mayor opens revamped Soweto Country Club ahead of 2017 Joburg Open
23 February 2017
Johannesburg Executive Mayor Cllr Herman Mashaba officially opened the Soweto Country Club on Wednesday February 22 ahead of the 11th-edition of the Johannesburg Open, which tees-off at the Royal Kensington and the Johannesburg Country Club golf courses today (Thursday February 23).
The opening was followed by coaching clinics at the same venue. The Soweto Country Club – situated in Pimville, the oldest township in Soweto – now boasts tiled bathrooms and toilets, a TV lounge with tables and chairs, a kitchen and golfers’ storerooms.
In his address, Mayor Mashaba said his administration was committed to promoting all sporting codes throughout the city, particularly in disadvantaged areas.
“My administration is pro-poor and pro-socioeconomic development. We will go to the lengths and breadth of the city to promote development,” Mashaba said.
An avid golfer himself, he said sport was the most important tool for development.
“Sport is a discipline. It teaches you development. It teaches you growth. It is, therefore, important to nurture sporting talents of all forms. It is important to help in the development of talents. As they say, a sporting nation is a winning nation,” Mashaba said.
Speaking at the same event, struggle veteran Andrew Mlangeni said golf was what sustained him and his comrades during their incarceration on Robben Island.
“I was a caddie from around 1937 when I was a teenage boy in Johannesburg and in the Free State town of Bethlehem. In no time I threw the caddie’s bag away and started playing golf. It taught me discipline and patience and focus. That is probably why our struggle for freedom took long. We had discipline and patience,” chuckled Mlangeni.
The 91-year-old Mlangeni said he was a member of the Soweto Country Club, which he joined when he was released from prison in 1990.
“I wish to thank the Mayor of Johannesburg, Cllr Herman Mashaba, for gracing this occasion. And a special thank-you to Selwyn Nathan of the Sunshine Tour for this wonderful building. This facility today is world-class compared to what it was in the 1990s,” Mlangeni said.
Clifford Ndou, a product of the club, concurred as he reminisced about his days as a regular at the venue.
“When I was a caddie, the clubhouse was almost like a shack. Today I’m an accomplished Sunshine Tour professional golfer and a PGA qualified professional. If a shack was able to produce a golfer in me, then this five-star facility should be able to produce more Cliffords,” Ndou said.
The coaching clinics were attended by youngsters from nearby schools and communities. Among the professional golfers who conducted the clinics were Haydn Porteous, Graeme Storm, Thomas Aiken, Eugin Marugi, Makhetha Mazibuko, Thanda Mavundla, Sipho Bujela, Musiwalo Nethunzwi and John Perry. They had a good time imparting their vast golfing knowledge and skills to the youngsters.