The Garden Route golfscape : a golfing destination in the rough

[摘要] The Garden Route is located along the southern Cape coast of South Africa, between the OuteniquaMountain Range and the coast, stretching from Gourits River in the west to Bloukranz River in theeast. This region is recognised as a holiday destination and the centre of the southern Cape's tourismindustry. It has also gained popularity as a golfing destination set to proliferate in terms of new golfcoursedevelopments (Golf Digest 2004; Gould 2004; Granger 2003).No known complete academic or public record is however available for the study area in which all thegolf development types, namely short courses, public-municipal golf-courses and residential golfestates, are recorded. This leaves a gap in the understanding of the Garden Route as a golfingdestination, as well as opening the floor for public speculation about the status of the Garden Routegolfscape. This situation emphasises the need for a description of the Garden Route golfscape in orderto achieve a better understanding of it and of the Garden Route as an emerging golfing destination.The research aspires to describe the Garden Route golfscape in terms of the geographic spatialdistribution and characteristics of all the golf development types mentioned. It also aims to analysehow the public and developers of golf developments perceive the Garden Route golfscape.The research has shown that amongst the four identified intra-regional golfscapes of the Garden Route,namely the Mossel Bay, George, Knysna and Plettenberg Bay intra-regional golfscapes, the Georgeintra-regional golfscape has been affected the most by golf developments. This intra-regionalgolfscape has the greatest number of existing golf developments, as well as the highest number of newgolf development applications followed by Mossel Bay, Knysna and Plettenberg Bay. It is also clearfrom the research that the press, through publishing factually incorrect and biased information, plays asignificant role in negatively affecting the public's perception about the Garden Route golfscape.The literature, as well as the results of the public opinion poll, identifies residential private golf estatedevelopments as the development type responsible for controversial golf debates. The survey indicatedthat there is less concern and objection to public-municipal golf-courses and short courses. The lack ofpublic support for golf developments is as a result of the fact that the public is not convinced that eitherthe natural environment or tourism, will benefit from the Garden Route developing into an internationalgolfing destination. At the time of research, the Garden Route hosted 22 approved golf developmentsof which nine are short courses, another nine are golf estates and the remaining four are public municipal courses. A total of eight new golf estates are proposed for the Garden Route. There are noproposals for new public-municipal golf-courses or short courses.The research has highlighted that existing challenges associated with Garden Route golf developmentsmust be quantified through future research in order to compare the impacts (economic, social andenvironmental impacts) with that of other land uses in the study area. Results from such futureexercises, combined with future in-depth environmental and human resource audits of the area, willhelp determine the carrying capacity of the study area for golf developments, which will in turncontribute to an even better understanding of the Garden Route golfscape.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University