South African women’s golf enters an important week when its future and present stars will be on display, as the next generation of the local women’s game competes in the Sanlam South African Women’s Amateur Stroke Play Championship at Pretoria Country, ending on Tuesday, after which the South African Women’s Open continues its resurgence as the country’s oldest women’s professional tournament when it tees off later this week in KwaZulu-Natal.
As the game seeks to regain its former glory, this a meeting of two major events that hope to showcase the depth and future potential of women’s golf in this country.
In November last year, the Women’s Professional Golf Association (WPGA) elected a new board with a clear mandate to consolidate and revive women’s professional golf in this country.
“The WPGA views its role in providing a competitive platform for our golfers as one of its prime responsibilities, and key to this is attracting corporate and government sponsorship into the women’s professional game,” said new chairman Margie Whitehouse.
But part of this new focus will be finding a better way to take the country’s leading amateurs and give them the opportunities to develop their professional careers.
“The standard of golf on the South African women’s amateur circuit is incredibly high and this growing wave of talent is desperately in need of a competitive local platform to gain experience in preparation of joining the international professional ranks.
“If the top amateur tournaments are anything to go by, there is a wave of talent waiting in the wings and more coming through the junior ranks. We need investment in the future of our rising stars,” said Whitehouse.
“We need to provide these players with a competitive platform to bridge the gap between amateur and professional golf. And we need to give non-travelling professionals the chance to make a living in South Africa.”
Longtime South African professional Mandy Adamson is fully supportive of the new focus. “We have had a drought in this country for the last few years, and I think the girls have done a great job taking their games elsewhere.
“But there is so much depth in women’s golf in our country, and there is a very strong contingent of young golfers coming,” said Adamson. “There has to be a platform for that talent to be nurtured and developed. They are starting out their careers and they deserve to have a chance to develop their careers.”
(With editing by gsport)
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