What make the golf estates so popular?

There has been a tremendous surge in the amount of golfing estates in South Africa and it’s completely understandable. The quality of life for the residents is fantastic. Estates are generally entirely fenced off for complete privacy and have a vast network of paved pathways through the estate to amble through the beautiful setting. The idea is a brilliant win-win situation in which the residents get wide open beautifully maintained views from their home and golfers get a subsidized golf course. They offer an unbeatable country lifestyle in a family orientated environment. But the calm and quiet of a country lifestyle along with the beautifully landscaped gardens attracts not only an elite list of homeowners, it also attracts bird life and wild animals to the estate.

There are truly a great number of Golfing estates and Leisure estates in the country but we would just like to make mention of a few of them. Boschenmeer Estate is one of the most well-known golf estates. It lies on the banks of the Berg River amongst elaborately designed water features, with a clear view of the Paarl Franschhoek mountain range. The golf estate is 140 hectare but will only use 30 hectare for low-density building. Which means that the majority of the site will be natural and spacious. Another Golf estate in Pretoria is the highly sought after Silver Lakes Estate. Apart from its elite residential and golfing community, Silver Lakes was one of the first golf estates to adopt a policy of planting only indigenous trees and in that way being water wise and caring for the natural environment. In fact they have even attempted to restore the natural bush veld in the land in and around the golf estate in order to accommodate the wildlife. There are many Water Fowl, Kingfisher, Heron, and Plover in the area and even rarer species like the African Spoonbill, Purple Gallinule and the Fish Eagle. They even built new lakes and enlarged existing lakes to create a natural ecosystem in the area. Some of the residents have taken up angling and formed a club since the bass that occupy the lakes are thriving.

Another great golf estate is Dainfern Estate where the lifestyle as with most golf estates is the main attraction. The meandering river that makes its way through the 300 hectare golf estate enhances the natural beauty and attracts an abundance of wildlife. That is why Nature conservation is high on the list of priorities for this exclusive golf estate. All homeowners have automatic access to the Gary Player designed golf course that has already played host to several Amateur and Professional Tournaments. They also get access to the restaurant, members bar, 4 tennis courts, 2 squash courts, 2 swimming pools, volley ball court and the multi purpose oval that plays host to the rugby, soccer and cricket matches. The estate’s Nature Trust has formed in order to ensure that the indigenous high veld theme is maintained.

After seeing the quality of life and security that these developments have to offer it’s a wonder why they hadn’t boomed sooner. Perhaps it is a result of the boom that South Africa is currently experiencing that has allowed for these luxury housing sites to develop or perhaps it’s simply the attraction of the rich and powerful to the golf course. Whatever the reason, those who can afford to live in luxury would definitely do so at a golfing estate. The country type lifestyle is reminiscent of days gone by when the children would play in the park together and the parent’s could go for an evening stroll through the neighbourhood. The strangest thing is also that people have a sense of duty in the golf estates. They look out for each other as a community. And perhaps more than anything this is one of the most important elements of the lifestyle is the re-emergence of a sense of community that golf estates offer.