South Africans urged to play their part in the recovery of development golf in 2021
17 November 2020
Like any other sport, golf development in South Africa was heavily hit by Covid-19 in 2020. With the South African Open Championship making its return on 3 December, tournament sponsors, Nedbank and the Sunshine Tour, are encouraging the public to play their part in the recovery and growth of development golf in 2021.
As part of the championship this year, players will be wearing South African flag badges and cap clips, which will be available for purchase at ProShop stores around the country, with all proceeds going towards the South African Golf Development Board to help its mission of growing and developing the game in the cities as well as remote areas.
'We are excited to see the SA Open take place at our most iconic golf course in Sun City for the first time. For years, this historic event has been a launchpad for top golfers, leading them to qualify for major events, which help kick-start their careers in the sport,’ said Khensani Nobanda, Group Executive, Marketing and Communications at Nedbank.
'In light of Covid-19 and its impact on society, we have been encouraging South Africans to play their part in the fight against the pandemic. By purchasing the #PlayYourPart badges, we are now urging everyone to pledge their support and help development golf recover and grow in 2021,' she said.
In addition, Nedbank will be donating a modern golfing facility to Mphuphuthe Primary School in the community of Ledig, in North West province. Together with their implementation partner, The Sports Trust, the bank is planning to install golf facilities such as practice nets, grandstand seating and more.
As part of the project, Nedbank and The Sports Trust will also provide a food garden and poultry farming to assist the school with alleviating the plight of hunger 'As we look forward to 2021, this is how we are playing our part in the recovery and development of golf in and around South Africa. Through the multipurpose sports court, we hope to encourage participation in the community of Ledig and help create future homegrown champions,’ Nobanda added.
'These additional facilities will continue to enhance education through sport for the youth in this community, and we are proud to partner with Nedbank to implement the second phase of this project,' said Anita Mathews, Executive Director of The Sports Trust.
With the country still under lockdown, the championship will be played on an empty golf course as fans will not be allowed to attend physically. Nedbank will, therefore, be adding Fanmode to the action. A first-of-its-kind for golf in South Africa, Fanmode is a digital platform allowing fans to share their live reactions to the golf from home by celebrating, cheering and waving the #PlayYourPart flag.
Even though fans will miss the iconic Sun City grandstands, Fanmode allows them to still cheer on their favourite South African players by sharing their real-time sentiment and energy directly to the big screens on the golf course, as well as social media platforms via their smartphones. Fans will also be able to see their reactions on TV during the tournament.
