This week on Thursday a very early tee off, 05h30 at the Royal Durban golf club.
History tells us that in 1892 a golf course was formed on the current site. On the 8th April 1932, the Durban golf club was granted permission to add the ‘prefix’ Royal by his majesty King George V. The other ‘Royal’ courses in South Africa is the oldest course in the country Royal Cape, opened in 1885 and Royal Johannesburg 1890.
There are just 64 golf clubs in the world with the bona fide right to a ‘royal’ title, bestowed by a member of the United Kingdom royal family. Of these 34 are in the UK, 26 throughout the Commonwealth and 4 others (2 in Ireland, 1 in the Czech republic and the other in Germany).
Royal Durban is also one of the few courses, situated within a horse racing track, being Greyville race course, home to South Africa’s favourite July Handicap