Gary Player Invitational

Blue Chip recently was fortunate to be invited to the exclusive Zimbali Coastal Resort outside Durban for the prestigious Gary Player Invitational golf tournament, which raised more than R2 million for charity.

The format of each tournament involves partnering professionals from the Regular Tour and Champions Tour with business leaders, celebrities or sports stars in a pro-am competition. At their heart, the tournaments have the act of giving back to those less fortunate; and throughout its history, the Gary Player Invitational series has raised more than R250m for its beneficiaries worldwide.

An exclusive 2012 Masters package with Gary Player went for R210 000 at the black-tie auction, while a trip accompanying Player to the 2012 Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St Annes – where he won in 1974 – was auctioned for R110 000.

“Golf has shown itself to be the leader among all sports when it comes to raising funds for charity,” said Marc Player, chief executive officer of Black Knight International. “But it has been the unwavering support of the world’s top golfers and the presence of celebrities of the stage, screen and other sports who have given freely of their time, which has been central to the success of the Gary Player Invitational in South Africa.

“Most of them share our dedication and commitment to create a sustainable society and our desire to give back to the less fortunate in the community. We are indeed privileged to be able to bring all these personalities together to keep this dream alive for a 12th consecutive time,” he added.

The great Gary Player told Blue Chip exclusively about the inspiration behind the event: “This has been going for a long time now,” he said. He reminisced, “I’m eight years of age, my mother is dead, my father is working on a gold mine 10 000 feet under ground, while my brother went to war at 17, and my sister was at boarding school. So I’d come home and had a lonely life, yearning for the love of a parent in a poor area. I said to myself: if I ever excel in life, I’ll try and improve the lives of other people. So that’s where the inspiration came from.

“The main theme behind these tournaments – which take place around the world – is education; but in China last week, we had an event and raised a lot of money for Aids orphans, which may be a surprise to us. South Africans are a wonderful breed of people, and they’re doing a lot to help underprivileged kids,” insists the nine-time Major winner.

The success of the event was vastly aided by the iconic standing of Gary Player, who attracted the who’s-who of world sports to the gala dinner and generous auction: Lucas Radebe, Ian Woosnam, Kapil Dev (who plays off a three handicap), Shaun Pollock, Jesper Parnevik and Paul Collingwood, among many others.

The going was rather less sensational on the course for team Blue Chip, following some mighty drives down the middle – the unforgiving Zimbali rough took no prisoners. Paired in the media four-ball with Golf Digest editor Stuart Mclean, Anton Snyman of SABC News fame, together with a chain-smoking member of SABC Radio, first prize was never threatened as Snyman sailed no less than 15 balls into the cheap seats, while I overestimated my abilities – resulting in eight lost balls by the 16th!

Zimbali is indeed a beast, but a charming beast at that.

The architecture of the resort is tasteful, with subtle Bali-style finishes and no expenses spared. This is no five-star resort – it is closer to six! Each unit contains all the mod-cons you would expect, and plenty more; with ample entertainment areas and swimming pools. The view from almost anywhere on the resort is spectacular, while units below the hotel have direct access to a private beach.

It is made all the more attractive by its proximity to the new King Shaka International Airport. You do not feel as if you are anywhere near the city of Durban as you wind through country roads to the exclusive entrance of the resort. The service is friendly and prompt, something that is sorely lacking at other establishments.

Blue Chip looks forward to next year’s event that may be held at Player’s latest design just up the road from Zimbali.

Gregory Simpson