Langebaan - Western Cape - South Africa

I played Langebaan Country Estate last week twice with my wife on consecutive days on the recommendation of a friend but probably because it is the only course in the immediate vicinity. I am fortunate to have played Gary Player Country Club at Sun City and sadly this course bears little comparison and I doubt whether the great man himself had any bearing on the redesign.

Don't get me wrong, this is not a bad course but I'm not sure it deserves the 6 stars of its previous reviewer 7 years ago ! The very fact that it languishes at the bottom of the Western Cape rankings speaks volumes. There was very little rough to speak of and it was sometimes difficult to distinguish where the rough ended and the fairway began. The fairways were not in great condition and looked like mosaic mud in places (I do realize they have had very little winter rain in the last 3 years) and when we reached the 15th green on our first day we found about a dozen bontebok happily grazing behind it ! Fortunately the green keeper has managed to keep the greens in good, fast condition.

For me though the one thing that lets it down overall is that it is not very memorable or challenging. I would not rush back. I have played many other courses not only in the Western Cape but also in England, Scotland, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, Morocco and Mauritius and most of them are more interesting and offer a greater golfing experience.