I was the head golf professional, and then the director of golf, at Southbroom Golf Club on Kwazulu-Natal’s South Coast from 1983 to 1988, and I loved it.

So, when I was invited by the new owners of the 4-star boutique San Lameer Resort Hotel to come and play some golf, I dropped everything, packed my bags and headed for the airport. Playing some of the eleven golf courses, including Southbroom, that make up what is now being marketed as the Golf Coast was a bit of a nostalgic retrospective for me, and a chance to see what had changed in the past twenty or so years. And also a chance to rediscover the area afresh.

It was the first time I had used the new King Shaka International Airport, and I just loved the drive along the KZN coastline. All the highway and road markings were clearly visible, there was a noticeable lack of litter and potholes, and I saw more traffic officers on roadside duty in one week than I have seen in two years living in the Hartbeespoort area. And, of course, the scenery is spectacular.

The first thing I noticed when I arrived at San Lameer was that, despite the ongoing drought, it was as lush as ever. I chatted to new General Manager Franco Duncker and assistant GM Nicci Lotriet, who pointed out that they were doing major refurbishment and ongoing maintenance, explaining that the hotel had been very run down on handover. It’s quite a challenge to get the necessary work done while minimising inconvenience, and offering guests the level of service they expect. So far they’ve finished most of the rooms, as well as the public areas. I particularly liked the new look of the integrated pool, Promenade Deck and Bar, and the Lagoon Grill. With lots of inside and outside seating and uninterrupted views down the river towards the sea, it provides an excellent social hub where guests can discuss their best drives and puts, and holes-in-one.

I was a bit concerned that the challenging economic climate – and the extremely challenging physical climate of the drought, may have had a negative effect on the Golf Coast, but I was pleasantly surprised. I didn’t get a chance to spend time at all the courses – which is not a problem as it gives me an excellent excuse for another visit – but I was impressed by what I did see. Most of the golf clubs and their related facilities had either maintained – or improved on – their original quality levels.

I was delighted that very little had changed at the Wild Coast – as there is no need to fix something that isn’t broken – and that it seems to have managed to survive the drought. I enjoyed catching up with Fred Beaver – after thirty years at this iconic resort, he’s an institution in his own right – and reminiscing about the early days when par was measured against how few golf balls you lost during a round!

There have also been some major improvements in the facilities at my old stomping ground, Southbroom, but the original layout is still very much in evidence. There were also lots of changes at San Lameer with a splendid new seven million-rand clubhouse and a much-improved golf course. It’s much more playable than when I last went around it just after it opened in 1992. In fact at that time the fairways were narrow strips of grass where single file was the order of the day, and the rough was – well, rough. If you were having an off day with your driver you might have thought that you had wandered onto a set of the movie Apocalypse Now!

But they’ve tamed the bush quite a bit – as have many of the other South Coast courses. The skinny fairways bordered by impenetrable bush have been softened into widened fairways and broad semi-rough areas that segue into thick bush. These changes make the courses much more playable, but no less challenging, for the average golfer (many of whom can’t hit a cow’s behind with a banjo from only three feet away). And of course when the layout does need to host a major event, the semi-rough areas can be grown up, and allowed to encroach onto the generous fairways to present more of a challenge to top class players.

I played more golf in a week than I have for many years so, while I loved every minute of it, I was relieved to get back to San Lameer Hotel each day for a relaxing sun-downer and dinner before retiring to a really, really comfy bed. While chilling on the newly completed deck with a cold refreshing drink, I chatted to the other guests, some of whom were locals – either on a quick golf or beach break, or on a conference – and quite a few of whom were international tourists, both groups and individuals.

This bodes well for the tourism industry both at a local South Coast level and nationally. It’s not surprising, really. While golf is a major attraction, there is so much more including fabulous beaches, fishing, surfing, diving, some good game, bird watching and awesome adventure activities like white water rafting and abseiling. And San Lameer – like many of the resorts on this coast – has direct beach access and a range of sport and leisure facilities like tennis, squash (two air-conditioned courts), action cricket, bowling and volleyball.

I can’t imagine why I stayed away for over twenty years, but I assure you, it will be a much shorter gap before I return – and maybe I’ll stay for two weeks next time.

We will cover the South Coast golf courses in more detail in the April and May digital issues Estate Living Publication.