Black 7210 metres, CR77.3/143
Yellow 6867 metres, CR75.3/139
White 6266 metres, CR72.0/132
Blue 5545 metres, CR68.4/124
Red 5047 metres, CR65.4/114
Women’s blue, CR74.3/140
Women’s red, CR70.5/132
R450 weekday
R865 weekend
R450 golf cart
Online green fee bookings are R100 cheaper
Greg Norman 2010
010 500 0300
071 401 3127
www.eyeofafrica.co.za/play-
40 (2023), 38 (2022) & 32 (2021)
This large golf estate south of Johannesburg with a unique Greg Norman course has boomed in popularity in recent years since being launched in 2011. It offers luxury homes, cluster homes and apartments.
What separates Eye of Africa from other Gauteng courses is that it’s in a beautiful and tranquil part of the countryside, away from traffic noise. The houses on this eco-friendly property sit within an attractive isolated valley. It’s a course with generous playing corridors and subtly challenging greens complexes, and played host to the Eye of Africa PGA Championship on the Sunshine Tour from 2016 to 2020.
The greens at Eye of Africa are magnificent both in terms of the thought which went into their design by The Great White Shark, and surfaces which are a dream to putt on. Norman is an outstanding designer who adds flair to his work. He’s not a fan of conformity but creates holes which most golfers think they can par before discovering that he has used the land cleverly to provide a challenge. The fairways at Eye of Africa look wide when viewed from the tee, but most holes have an easier side from which to approach the green. Elevation changes through undulating terrain provide golfers with a good picture of each hole.
With cynodon grass fairways, Eye of Africa is a firm and fast course which adds distance to tee shots, but also has shots running further into well-positioned bunkers that pinch the driving areas and entrances to greens. The greens are A1/A4 bent grass, a unique Greg Norman strain.
The fifth is a stunning long par 3 played downhill, and the back nine has a strong finish, starting at the tricky par 4 14th and concluding with the ultra-long and scenic par 4 18th, which plays 496 metres in the PGA. The par-5s are all testing 3-shot holes, measuring between 551 and 581 metres from the back tees.
One of the best ranges in South Africa, 300 metres long and spacious, with short game areas, which is why Eye of Africa is such an outstanding tournament venue and enjoyed by the professionals. It is open to daily visitors (Tuesday-Sunday).
Four of the five Eye of Africa PGA Championships from 2016 to 2020 were decided in playoffs. Jaco van Zyl (268) beat Dean Burmester in 2016; Erik van Rooyen (272) won in 2017 in a 3-way playoff; in 2019 Louis de Jager (276) beat Trevor Fisher; in 2020 Darren Fichardt (268) beat Matias Calderon from Chile, who had won (271) without a playoff in 2018.
1/ Unusually for South Africa, Eye of Africa is an out-and-back course. You only return to the clubhouse at the 18th. There is a halfway kiosk after nine holes.
2/ Being a championship course which can be stretched to 7 200 metres, Eye of Africa offers five tee options.
3/ Greg Norman has designed two courses in Africa, the other being in Egypt, The Allegria in Cairo.
4/ When Jaco van Zyl won the first Eye of Africa PGA in 2016 he had just one bogey in 72 holes.
5/ Eye of Africa was Golf Digest Best New Course in 2011.
2023 Chris Keeling & Lynette Lennon
2022 & 2021 Kevin Sharp
2020 Kevin Sharp & Carol Mills
2019 Chris Keeling & Robyn Mills
63 by Justin Hicks (USA) in 2017 Eye of Africa PGA Championship.
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