Dainfern for me is a course with a mix of creatively designed holes and some disappointingly dull ones. The original 18th, now the ninth, was a weak par 4 to finish, and even more so today now the ball goes so much further compared to 30 years ago this February when Ernie Els won the SA Masters here. It was a good decision to switch the nines around and finish with a stronger risk-and-reward par 5 which has a challenging tee shot for club golfers over the river. The par 3s at Dainfern, which all play from elevated tees, are certainly not dull, though, and I like each of them. From the back tees they vary in length from 185 to 199 metres. Possibly the toughest is No 11 adjoining the river, playing to a large green well protected by deep bunkers. A back pin position is brutal. Dainfern was the first estate course in Gauteng and it remains one of the more attractive estates in terms of its leafiness and the houses sensibly set well back from the fairways.
