A PAR-3 STUNNER
AT SERENGETI ESTATES

WHISTLING THORN MUST RANK
AMONG THE BEST OF ITS KIND IN THE WORLD.

Published by : Stuart McLean - 26 February 2020

Serengeti Estates in Ekurhuleni has created one of the best Par-3 courses in the world with its recent transformation of the original Jack Nicklaus design on the property. Nicklaus produced 27 holes at Serengeti, and the new estate owners converted the third nine, Whistling Thorn, into a spectacular 18-hole Par-3 layout, opened in 2019.

Designer Dino de Abreu used the same routing and all the original green sites, while adding in 9 new greens. The quality of the conditioning is remarkable. Most golfers will need a full set of golf clubs, and a golf cart, to play it. It’s not one of those mashie courses where you grab a few short irons, a lob wedge and a putter.

Stacy Bregman and Serengeti Estates owner David Nagle
Stacy Bregman and Serengeti Estates owner David Nagle share a fist pump during the Serengeti Par-3 Challenge.

It’s the first of its kind in South Africa, where Par-3 courses of any description are rare (other than mashie designs), and there are few of this quality with 18 proper par-3 holes of varying lengths anywhere on the planet. Mainly due to lack of space, the historic trend among Par-3 layouts is to restrict them to 9 holes, or an unusual number, such as the 13-hole Par-3 layout at Bandon Dunes resort in Oregon.

Simbithi Eco Estate on the KZN North Coast has something similar to Whistling Thorn; however, its 18 holes by Peter Matkovich comprise 13 par 3s, four par 4s and one par 5 for a par of 60. Leopard Creek has a fabulous Par-3 Course, but it is 9 holes and measures 1236 metres (average 137 a hole).

Serengeti Golf Estate
Attractive water hazards and white bunker sand are a feature of the layout.

From the pro tees Whistling Thorn is a stern championship test at 3366 metres, an average of 187 metres per hole. Two holes are more like short par 4s, the third at 280 metres and ninth at 284, and the shortest is the 115-metre 14th. The Course Rating off the pro tees is 60.8, almost seven strokes over par, indicating just how severe it is.

There are five tee markers to create enjoyable options for all, and most male golfers will prefer the middle blue tees, at 2618 metres (average 145 a hole). The Course Rating is 55.0. The front green markers are 2005 metres, with six holes under 100 metres.

The Sunshine Ladies Tour professionals played from the middle tees in the 36-hole Canon Serengeti Par-3 Challenge on February 22-23, and they found it a challenge. “Oh my goodness, it was tough out there,” said Nicole Garcia, who took individual honours with 54 and 53 for a one-under total, five shots clear of Brittney-Fay Berger (55-57) for her third career tour win. “This is a proper test of shot-making and short-game skills.”

At Serengeti Estates, Whistling Thorn must rank among the best of its kind in the world.

Kim Williams said the tour pros has been hugely impressed. “Most of us played the championship course in the Serengeti Team Championship last year, but the Par-3 is new. It’s easily the toughest course we’ve faced this season. It really helps sharpen our short games,” she added. “It has all the elements of what a good Par-3 course should have – elevated greens with lots of slopes, loads of bunker protection, and it is tough to up-and-down from gorse-like grass around the greens.”

The visitor green fee for the Whistling Thorn Course is R600, which includes the use of the magnificent Serengeti practice facility before the round.

Article Search
Search for news articles
Top 100 Course News, Blog
and Feature
Recent news articles
1 Bosch Hoek Golf & Lodge Near… Read more
Joe Knox is not a golf pro… Read more
Louis Oosthuizen’s display at Leopard Creek is… Read more
Homeowners at the Oubaai golf estate in… Read more
The weekend of the SA Open at… Read more
Fancourt have built a new halfway house… Read more
This year is the 25th anniversary of… Read more
An attractive 9-hole course on the remote… Read more
Peter Matkovich has kept himself active as… Read more
Marco Simone was the first purpose-built golf… Read more
More than half of South Africa’s courses… Read more
On a quiet Central Drakensberg road between… Read more
Listed below are all 414 courses affiliated… Read more
Gary Player Country Club will forever be… Read more
The new millennium has seen a remarkable… Read more
Pretoria Country Club has been rated on… Read more
The US Open at Los Angeles Country… Read more
South African Open host Blair Atholl, ranked… Read more
Of all the great tournament venues that… Read more
Augusta National has Amen Corner to describe… Read more
The closure of Beachwood CC in Durban… Read more
Former Sunshine Tour commissioner Arnold Mentz has… Read more
Durban Country Club will be closing their… Read more
Casey Jarvis has become the second youngest… Read more
In South Africa, the Halfway House stop… Read more
Amanzimtoti Country Club was devastated by flooding… Read more
The Garden Route is a popular destination… Read more
Pearl Valley has been judged as having… Read more
Zwartkop Country Club, the 18-hole course owned… Read more
Does any other sport offer as many… Read more
Silver Lakes has asked to be removed… Read more
Mount Edgecombe Country Club is hosting two… Read more
KZN estate Cotswold Downs, at No 52… Read more
There was a change of the guard… Read more
Houghton and Hermanus are two clubs at… Read more
Woodhill continues its phenomenal rise up the… Read more
Having a river flowing through your course… Read more
Atlantic Beach is one of those courses… Read more
Katberg, Orkney and Emfuleni are this year’s… Read more
An exciting project in Mpumalanga is the… Read more
We’re seeing five key changes to the… Read more
The Eastern Cape has been included as… Read more
The Alfred Dunhill Championship is one of… Read more
Royal Johannesburg’s newly renovated West Course was… Read more
Durban Country Club’s iconic short par-4 18th… Read more
Composite courses could become fashionable locally in… Read more
Blair Atholl is an exciting new addition… Read more
Veteran East London Golf Club member Denis Jones… Read more
How would you react if you learned… Read more
Blair Atholl has the longest stretch of… Read more
Amanzimtoti Country Club suffered the most devastation… Read more
Durban Country Club will next year be… Read more
Bryanston Country Club head teaching professional Leigh-Jane… Read more
Work has started on the refurbishment of… Read more
Golf Digest magazine in the United States… Read more
The Sunshine Tour visited 17 of SA’s… Read more
TOP 20 GREENS 1 Fancourt Links, 2… Read more
No 1-ranked Fancourt Links claimed more honours… Read more
Links courses were the big winners in… Read more
Gauteng is endowed with wonderful golf courses,… Read more
Today’s announcement of 20 courses ranked between… Read more
Anyone who has played at Plettenberg Bay… Read more
Woodhill is one of 17 courses in… Read more
Four courses – Reading, Eagle Canyon, Centurion… Read more
Two new entrants to the Top 100… Read more
Such has been the huge amount of… Read more
The new year ushered in great excitement… Read more
The 2022 Top 100 Course Rankings will… Read more
It was 30 years ago this January-February… Read more
Christiaan Burke, this year’s scoring sensation in… Read more
In recent years golfers have experienced more… Read more
Ian Leach, a doyen of golf club… Read more
They do not count as criteria when… Read more
Following the oddest year in major championship… Read more
From Plettenberg Bay in the east to… Read more
Veteran Western Province golfer Greg Woodbridge gave… Read more
In a high-profile appointment, Meyer du Toit,… Read more
Fancourt in the Garden Route is acknowledged… Read more
After an innovative, lengthy and suspenseful week… Read more
Golfers in the greater Gauteng region are… Read more
South Africa’s collection of bushveld courses are… Read more
Big positional swings are a feature of… Read more
Three of the new entrants into the… Read more
My 61-day Road Trip visiting 70 courses… Read more
Cash prizes for holes-in-one are being offered… Read more
The design of the standard golf cart… Read more
Zimbali Lakes has been an anticipated golf… Read more
Highland Gate was a popular venue for… Read more
It’s not fashionable today but there was… Read more
The Humewood links in Port Elizabeth has… Read more
A countdown has begun to the announcement… Read more
Irene Country Club elected its first female… Read more
The Top 100 Courses website has a… Read more
I’m on a road trip around South Africa aiming to complete visiting… Read more
The PGA of South Africa announced its… Read more
Pinnacle Point have done it again and… Read more
Gary Player Country Club will become the… Read more
St Francis Links has introduced a great… Read more
Big changes are taking place at South… Read more
Colin Nel at the weekend became the… Read more
ENVIRONMENTAL AWARD FOR ST FRANCIS LINKS During… Read more
The golfing members at Irene Country Club… Read more
While golf has happily resumed, with most… Read more
One of South Africa’s iconic golf courses,… Read more
GolfRSA today received the green light for… Read more
Golf courses around South Africa serve as… Read more
The golf industry will need to adapt… Read more
GolfRSA is making every effort to ensure… Read more
South African golf courses today are increasingly… Read more
PGA professional John Dickson spends most of… Read more
One of the stated 10 keys to… Read more
The national lockdown over the coronavirus has… Read more
David Melman is the Golf Manager at… Read more
Golf clubs have been issued with lengthy… Read more
There are a handful of golf courses… Read more
When the idea of a Top 100… Read more
Silver Lakes Golf & Wildlife Estate in Pretoria has been named one… Read more
Golf participation in South Africa would appear to be increasing, with Handicap… Read more
Serengeti Estates in Ekurhuleni has created one… Read more
Intimidating and challenging closing holes help create… Read more
Umhlali Country Club in Ballito on the… Read more
Erinvale Country Estate & Golf Club is… Read more
The Links at Fancourt and Leopard Creek… Read more
It’s a magical scoring barrier everywhere in… Read more
Royal Johannesburg & Kensington will make history… Read more
FIND A TOP 100 COURSE