“The best way to experience Ebotse Golf and Country Estate is from the water,” developer and director Vince Cockbain said as I gingerly stepped onto the boat from the jetty. And he was right. The 40-hectare Rynfield Dam is the heart of this green enclave on the East Rand. Once a derelict abandoned quarry site, the area is in the most natural state it has been in for more than 50 years. The developers spent more than than R60 million on rehabilitating the old mining site, moving more than two million cubic metres of soil, filling up an old quarry pit, rehabilitating a second quarry pit, removing 800 000 square metres of alien vegetation and replacing it with indigenous grasses and trees, rehabilitating degraded wetlands, creating additional new wetlands, and rehabilitating two dams, as well as removing five massive kaolin dumps totalling 1 450 000 cubic metres.
This initiative laid a solid foundation for replanting the estate with flora that would have grown here naturally in the past. With all the fuss made of the game-rich lowveld and the Cape Floral Kingdom, people have forgotten the beauty and uniqueness of the highveld grasslands. So it’s refreshing to see a genuine attempt to re-establish the indigenous vegetation of this important and rapidly vanishing biome that, along with the adjacent wetlands, has allowed the reintroduction of frogs, otters, birds and even small mammals like duiker and springbok.
But it’s not just about plants and animals. It’s also about people. Ebotse is a genuine lifestyle estate that offers birdwatching, a range of aquatic activities like boating, waterskiing and wakeboarding, paddling and tag-and-release fishing, as well as walking, jogging and cycling trails.
And, of course, the Matkovich & Hayes-designed 6372-metre, par 72-rated links-style golf course is a huge drawcard. It’s referred to as Peter Matkovich’s “little secret”, since many people don’t know about this spectacular course. For Peter, Ebotse was a wonderful opportunity to create an environmentally sensitive and balanced golf course, combining links, lakeside and parkland. The choice of a links-style course pays homage to the origins of golf. The word “links” in Scotland referred to coastal dune land that was not suitable for farming. As the game of golf developed, courses were built on this otherwise useless land, and links courses are still regarded as the classics. Of course, there are no coastal dunes at Ebotse, but the rolling terrain is similar, so a links-style course was born, with the two dams doing stand-in duty for the Atlantic of old Scotland.
Recently appointed CEO of Ebotse Links, Hein Papenfus, points out that Ebotse Links jumped from number 38 to the current ranking (awarded by Golf Digest South Africa), of 32 in 2016. Despite the high ranking and wonderful existing facilities, Ebotse is always looking to improve. As part of this drive the clubhouse will be expanded to include a separate dining and bar area, so homeowners can enjoy a family meal, while the bar area can cater for a festive crowd. A wide wrap-a-round veranda will be added to the existing structure, making it intimate enough for a quick drink, but spacious enough for a late afternoon wedding overlooking the natural beauty of Ebotse Golf and Country Estate.
This beautiful course with seven holes on water, built to US PGA specifications, hosted the 2013 Nomads National Tournament. The event, the largest amateur tournament in the southern hemisphere, was the 48th Nomads National Tournament and took place over six days, attracting about 450 entries. During the tournament, an average of 240 participants took to the course each day, including teams from New Zealand, Australia, Botswana and Swaziland.
Complementing the clubhouse are the golf pro shop, putting green and unique driving range with floating greens. But what really makes the Ebotse Links stand out is the magnificent condition of the course. Hardus Maritz is the head golf course superintendent: “We have many challenges at Ebotse, soil being the biggest, When I joined Ebotse, my short-term goal was to get all our short-cut area in great condition. We are now focusing on our semi-rough and out-of-play areas, to further improve our inland links course.”
But really, Ebotse Golf and Country Estate is all about the space, scenery and quality of life. It’s about living in a place where you feel happy to let your kids just wander around on their bikes, exploring with their friends, and where you can enjoy sundowners next to the water on the picturesque jetty, or picnic with the family under the trees listening to birdsong. Property sales over the years testify that the Ebotse lifestyle offering is a success story – R 1.5 billion worth of property sales to be exact. The recent sale of two spectacular homes for R 9.5 million and R 15 million confirms the exceptional value being created on the estate, with homeowners investing in palatial residences in an environment that is both natural and secure. To date, a combined sum of R 3 billion has been invested in the estate by developers and homeowners. Property investors have also found exceptional rental demand for the sectional title units, providing an immediate and very healthy return on investment.
Beyond its security, privacy and unique tranquillity, Ebotse Golf and Country Estate is differentiated in the local property market by being one of the most progressively run and managed estates. There is strict adherence to standards within the estate, and the residents of Ebotse all value community co-operation. The estate’s financial stability and management are exceptional, not only meeting current needs, but also building up reserves to ensure that future requirements can be met and standards sustained.
One of the hallmarks of the estate is community spirit, which is achieved through successful and regular communication by the homeowners’ association, headed up by the gracious Lauren Haynes as chairman. The day-to-day running of the estate’s affairs is managed by estate manager Stephan Vorster and his team, who take responsibility for all the systems and controls that ensure Ebotse’s enviable record as one of the safest and most secure places to live in South Africa.
