Come spring, the scenic course, challenging holes and relaxed, welcoming atmosphere at Kilbarchan Golf Club will be but a memory for its members.

Club chairman Ferdie Alberts confirmed last week that Kilbarchan Golf Club, ranked among the 10 best nine-hole courses in South Africa by SA Top 100 Courses back in 2024, is in the process of being sold.

If all goes well, the sale is likely to be finalised by the end of August.

According to Alberts, the decision to sell was taken at the club’s annual general meeting, which took place last month and was attended by 33 of its 53 members.

The club, which is situated roughly 13km from Newcastle on the N11, was praised by SA Top 100 Courses editor Stuart McLean for its attractiveness, the facilities available at the clubhouse, aesthetics and the scenic value of the course, design variety in terms of how varied the holes are in length, configuration, hazards and the shapes of the greens, innovation, challenge and the condition of the fairways, tees, bunkers and greens relative to the club’s resources.

History of Kilbarchan Golf Club

Kilbarchan Golf Club has its humble beginnings in 1960 when a Recreation Club was started to serve the staff at the Kilbarchan Colliery. The colliery began operations in the mid-1950s.

The mine supplied coal to the Eskom lngagane Power Station. The area has strong Scottish connections and the farm Kilbarchan (on which the mine is situated) is named after a village in Ayrshire.

The golf club started in the late 60s and in 1973, the then mine manager, George Edwards, commissioned a design for a nine-hole course by Bob Grimsdell and Brian Wilkes.

The clubhouse was built in 1979 by mine employees, under the leadership of then mine manager Paul Zietsman.

Since 1989, a major change in the supply of coal resulted in the closure of Eskom Ingagane Power Station.

During March 1992, the mine stopped producing coal and all operations were ceased.

The Golf Committee realised that there were no funds coming from the mine anymore and that, if they wanted to continue with the golf club, they had to look at taking over the commitments and the funding of the course.

Golf club chairman Chris le Roux and captain Johan Hugo arranged a meeting with the landlords, Natal Navigation Collieries & Estate Co Ltd (NNC), to discuss a lease contract with them, which was then granted.

Four years later, the club’s members decided to approach NNC to acquire the property and nearly 30 years ago, on December 12, 1996, the property was registered in the name of the club.

Kilbarchan Golf Club was the first club in Northern Natal to have an African League player, Kenneth Mtshali, in their side.

According to Alberts, the layout of the course has remained unchanged over the years. However, the clubhouse had to be rebuilt in 2004 after the original clubhouse was destroyed in a fire in 2003.

“At that stage, the clubhouse had a thatch roof and it was struck by lightning,” said Alberts, explaining what caused the fire.

“The club became the headquarters of golf development in Northern KwaZulu-Natal, where aspirant players from disadvantaged communities received top notch coaching,” Alberts boasted.
Sale to be finalised in the next month

Alberts said the club was listed online through real estate agents Pam Golding and the response was positive.

“Our intention is to sell it lock, stock and barrel. We have accepted an offer on the property and an agreement has been signed. A deposit is due to be paid on July 15 and the balance must be secured by means of guarantees by August 15. We want to hand over the club to its new owners by the end of August,” he said.

Alberts cited financial reasons for why the decision was taken to sell Kilbarchan Golf Club.

According to Alberts, mounting Eskom tariffs and an increase in other costs such as maintenance and salaries compromised the financial viability of the club to the point that it can no longer afford to run.

Monthly expenses at Kilbarchan Golf Club amount to about R60,000. A year’s membership fees covers three months’ expenses and the rest has to be raised through golf competitions and beverage sales.

“The closure of ArcelorMittal and the knock-on effect it has had on other businesses has also affected us,” said Alberts, explaining that club membership had declined from about 90 members in 2024 to just 53 members in 2026.

“Everyone is sad that this is how it has to be. It is truly a sad day for golf development. My former caddie is now one of the best golfers in KZN after going through our golf development programme.”

Newcastle Golf Club keeps the memory of Kilbarchan alive

The Kilbarchan Golf Club committee is in advanced negotiations with Newcastle Golf Club to absorb its members, who now wish to join Newcastle.

According to Alberts, arrangements have also been made with Newcastle Golf Club to display some of Kilbarchan’s memorabilia at its premises, including displays of past winners and chairpersons.

Newcastle Golf Club president Johan Jonker said that, while he is not happy about Kilbarchan Golf Club closing, it does provide a ‘lifeline’ for the club in terms of the Kilbarchan members who will now join Newcastle.

Jonker admitted that, just like Kilbarchan, Newcastle is also buckling under mounting financial pressure due to increased costs and dwindling membership.

Club captain Dick Lemmer explained that the Newcastle Club leases the premises from the local municipality.

The club covers all the associated costs with running the course, including utilities, maintenance, the salaries of 14 members of staff, and even insurance.

“The fact is that there are less people playing golf now than there were before. The struggling economy is also playing a part in reducing the number of feet coming through to the course, and Newcastle does not have enough golfers to support two clubs,” said Lemmer.

“Newcastle Golf Club is actually one of only two 18-hole courses in the entire Northern KZN interior.”
Jonker added that he was mindful of rich history of Kilbarchan Golf Club and the impact it has had in terms of golf development, and that he was proud to display some of that history in Newcastle’s club hall.

“We want to keep the memory of Kilbarchan alive and we will do everything we can to make its members feel comfortable and welcome at Newcastle,” said Jonker.

Impressing the importance of having a golf club in the town, Lemmer pointed to the fact that the facility is frequently used by non-profit organisations, schools, churches and service clubs for fundraising purposes.

Through the golf days that were hosted last year, more than R500,000 was raised for various charities.

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