HEARTBEAT

Recreation & Leisure

Nov 2024
Step outside and make the most of our incredible facilities

Golf Academy at The Club – update

In our last newsletter, we shared exciting news about the upcoming launch of our Golf Academy at The Club. We are thrilled to let you know that we have officially broken ground on the academy building, and are already at roof height! Located on the far side of the driving range, this state-of-the-art facility promises to be one of the best in Gauteng, featuring cutting-edge technology for a tailored, holistic coaching experience.

We will keep you posted on our progress and will post an alert about the opening date in the new year.

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New awning at The Clubhouse – more space, more views all year round

The new fixed louvre awning on the Terrace at the Clubhouse is currently being installed and will be ready for use over the festive season. This addition creates a lovely shaded space overlooking the 18th hole during the summer months, and provides extra space during winter when the blinds are extended and the area will be heated. Over weekends, this space will double up as an exclusive seating area for our golf members.

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The Bunker Project

The bunker revamp project is in full swing, with the first nine holes completed. We are now set to begin the second nine and hope to complete it early in the new year.

Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to improve the course! 

New facilities

We’re busy finalising the basketball courts: the half court located beyond the braai pods in the Lagoon precinct is completed and already open for play. The second, a full size court situated below the soccer fields will be completed by early December. No bookings required, just pitch and play!

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Our new lawn bowls facility, located next to the Farmhouse, is set for completion by Q2 2025.

We’re also introducing pickleball to our range of racquet sports. Pickleball is an exciting paddle sport that combines elements of tennis, badminton, and ping-pong. To accommodate this, we have converted our third tennis court into four pickleball courts, located adjacent to The Clubhouse, and these will be ready for use from December. Court bookings will be on the Playtomic App as per Padel bookings. Corne from the Steyn City Gym is managing this new facility including purchase/rental of bats and balls.

For more information, contact [email protected] or pop into the gym and speak to one of the staff members.

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Stay tuned for updates as we work towards bringing these recreational additions to life!

Jul 2024
Last month, we revealed some big news that is sure to take your downtime to the next level. Now, we have even more exciting news.

Coming to The Club

We’re always working to improve our offering – whether that’s for guests or members of The Club at Steyn City. With this in mind, we’re embarking on a project to refurbish all 75 bunkers on our golf course over a two-year period. We’re replacing all old sand, overhauling drainage and stabilising the base of all bunkers and bunker faces, while also reinstating the original grass lines. This will make an enormous difference to bunkers that are no longer looking their best after years of constant cutting and edging, leaving soil substructures exposed as grass lines move higher. This should also lessen the instances of loose stones in bunkers.  

On the greens

Back in 2020, we decided to replace all cool-season grass on the fairways and rough with Kikuyu. Cool-season grass remains fresh and lush during our dry winters but struggles in our harsh summers, requiring excessive watering and becoming susceptible to disease. This contradicts our sustainability goals, as it increases our need for irrigation and chemicals. Although our decision to introduce Kikuyu was not made lightly, we believe it was the right choice.

In the meantime, you’ll probably have noticed lighter green patches on our greens as with most of Gauteng’s golf courses during these winter months. Those patches are POA grass, which dies off as it gets warmer. Sadly, there is little we can do to prevent this, although our greenkeeping staff is working closely with our external agronomy consultant to monitor the situation.

Golf Academy

We’re excited to announce the launch of our Golf Academy at The Club. This new facility will be located on the far side of the driving range, and we aim to have this completed by the end of the year. Although an understated structure, it promises to be one of the best in the country, fitted with cutting edge tech to offer each client a tailored, holistic coaching experience. Features include three enclosed hitting bays, a golf simulator, top of the range cameras, GCQuad ball tracking units, a pressure plate, K-Vest technology and analysis software to help analyse your swing. A warm-up area, basic gym equipment, a workshop/club fitting centre and restrooms are also included. The Academy will offer individual lessons for players at all levels, from beginner to professional, lesson packages, a junior programme, group lessons and clinics, playing lessons, club fitting, club gapping and repairs. Three full time coaches will be appointed, including Neal Hauptfleisch, who currently works as a part- time coach. Golf Operations Manager, Tumo Motaung, will continue to offer lessons for existing clients.

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Clubhouse enhancements

Construction of extensions to The Clubhouse kitchen will kick off soon. The renovation will provide additional space and much needed equipment for the chefs and kitchen staff of ‘19 by Michael’ to operate more efficiently, so that you can enjoy speedier service and a greater variety of delicious dishes.

We’re also looking forward to installing a new awning alongside The Clubhouse in the next few months. This fantastic addition to the terrace area comes with an automated louvre system, automatic blinds, heating and lighting and will create an exceptional area to enjoy a beverage or snack after a golf round or at your leisure. The large Clubhouse doors will also be repaired, allowing us to create an indoor/outdoor feeling throughout.

The Lagoon precinct

Our lagoon lining is currently undergoing underwater chemical cleaning with a specialised solution. We will assess the effectiveness of this process over the next few weeks. The solution does not affect water quality – this much-loved facility remains as safe as ever.

Meanwhile, Richard Mitchell, head of the Steyn City Management Association, has been working with technology and innovation leaders Desert Wolf to develop a cleaner that will make cleaning the lagoon a more efficient process. The final production model is in progress after extensive testing and evaluation of the engineering prototype.

Another improvement you are certain to notice is the creation of a new shaded area by the Lagoon turnstile. This will protect our staff during our sizzling summers. Additionally,  we are planning to install fixed shade structures over the braai pods for greater coverage.

You can now enjoy the special ambience of The Family Table restaurant all year round, even on chilly, rainy days, thanks to the installation of new glass facades that make the seating area even more comfortable, protecting you from the elements.

Our youngest residents will be excited to see the upgrades to the children’s play area adjacent to The Family Table, which now includes a kiddies scooter track.

With spring just around the corner, we’re looking forward to spending loads of sunny days with The Family Table team. Look out for details of the exciting Spring Festival planned for the end of September, in our next newsletter.

Padel courts

Did you know that there are over 300 registered residents playing on our courts with a total 1,584 matches played sinch launching. We’d love to have more of our residents participate in this fast growing sport.

New to the game? Ask one of our coaches to help you get to grips with the rules of the game and sharpen your racquet skills. Please contact the Padel pro shop to register and book lessons.

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New play nodes

We’re staying true to our aim of getting your children outdoors with the establishment of two new play nodes in The Village. These provide new space for children to explore our beautiful parkland, in addition to the Dino Park, Pirate Ship, Skate Park and other play nodes already dotted around. You’ll notice the new equipment we have selected especially for these spaces: after much consideration, we chose to install jungle gyms that are made from recycled materials which require much less frequent maintenance than traditional equipment. These also make for safer play; firstly, because they absorb less heat and are therefore less harsh on tender skin, and secondly because they do not give splinters – making for a more enjoyable playtime experience!

New basketball courts coming soon!

You can now look forward to another way to spend your downtime and get fit: our new basketball court will soon be under construction below the soccer field, along Douw Steyn Drive. It will be ready for play by summer, while a second facility (a half court) is planned for the Lagoon precinct, if we are able to find a suitable space.

A warm Steyn City welcome to Temba Bavuma

We’re pleased to welcome Temba Bavuma, captain of South Africa’s national Test and ODI cricket teams, to Steyn City.

Through our partnership, Temba, his wife Phila and baby son Hlela will be joining our community as they take up residence at City Centre and membership at The Club at Steyn City. While Temba’s skills on the cricket pitch are well known, you may not be aware that he is also a single figure golfer.

We’re especially pleased to be able to work with the Temba Bavuma Foundation, which Temba established to leverage sport and education to create opportunities for underprivileged youth. The Club will play host to the Foundation’s annual golf day in September, while Steyn City School is collaborating with Temba to provide educational support for beneficiaries and bolster the Foundation’s cricket development programmes.

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Dylan Naidoo: Doing us proud in Europe

All eyes are on our touring professional ambassador, Dylan Naidoo, who continues to make us proud on the Sunshine Tour. Dylan is set to take on the golf courses of Europe for the remainder of the Challenge Tour Season. In the recently concluded 2023/2024 Sunshine Tour order of merit, Dylan placed sixteenth overall. While he has yet to start his season in the new campaign on the Sunshine Tour, his focus remains on Europe. We wish him well.

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Mountainbiking – everyone’s favorite new hobby?

If the stats for the third leg of the Gauteng High Schools MTB Series 2024 are anything to go by, mountainbiking is having a moment. Over 1 000 entrants participated in this year’s event, which was hosted at Steyn City during July – a whopping 20% increase on last year’s challenge. In the words of race organiser Sven Pederson of Cycle Lab,“I didn’t think we could improve on last year and yet it was bigger and better. A big thank you for an incredible edition of the Cycle Lab School Series at Steyn City.” It was wonderful to see a large number of residents and learners from Steyn City School enjoying the track. If you haven’t yet tried out this fantastic facility, we urge you to do so soon!
May 2024
From golf to cycling, horse-riding and swimming, Steyn City has all your hobbies covered with a stunning array of facilities – and it keeps getting better. For example, our Club at Steyn has moved up three notches to 14th position on the latest Golf Digest rankings of South Africa’s Top 100 golf courses.

The Club at Steyn City climbs three notches to 14th position in Golf Digest rankings

Fresh off the press, the May-June edition of Golf Digest features the return of the Golf Digest rankings: South Africa’s Top 100 golf courses for 2024. We’re thrilled to announce that our club has climbed three spots in the rankings, now sitting at No. 14 with a score of 78.6 points. This advancement underscores our commitment to excellence, and we’re setting our sights on breaking into the top 10.

Swinging success – our golf membership on the rise!

At the end of 2023, we introduced a new two-tier golf membership, making it possible to sign up for a Gold Membership, which allows members to play at their own convenience with a maximum of 20 rounds per year, or choose a Platinum Membership, where they can enjoy unlimited rounds, as well as a range of family membership options.

It’s been wonderful to see the response to this new membership model,  which has seen a substantial increase in new members of The Club at Steyn City. Given that Steyn City is all about encouraging family time, it’s heartening to see that the family packages have also been warmly welcomed, with many members signing up their spouses to enjoy time on the fairways together.

Going all out on the greens

More good news for The Club at Steyn City: Dylan Naidoo, who was appointed as our first-ever golf touring ambassador in December, is proudly waving the Steyn City flag high. He recently finished in 16th position in the Sunshine Tour’s final Order of Merit. With this finish, he has secured his full Sunshine Tour card for next year and will gain entry into the DP World Tour co-sanctioned events, such as the SA Open.

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He’ll soon be heading to Europe to participate in the European Challenge Tour, the feeder to the DP World Tour. He has gained invites to at least eight events that he’ll be competing in over the next few months. Competition is fierce on this tour, as only the top 20 players qualify for playing rights on the DP World Tour in the next season. Currently, he is ranked 27th on the Challenge Tour. Dylan, we’re rooting for you!

Keep an eye on our track

For all the fans of our off-road mountain bike track, we hope you’re enjoying the latest addition, Mineshaft – a figure of-eight loop located in Phase 2 beyond the polo field adjacent to Pasture Lane. This new segment is also ideal for the 2024 Cycle Lab MTB School Series.

Traditionally exclusive to high schools, the series will now feature new events designed specifically for primary schools. The aim is to involve younger children in this exhilarating sport.

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