World Cup success

The Els-Goosen pair won the World Cup of Golf for South Africa in 2001, but more recently it was another South African pair that did the trick. Rory Sabbatini and Trevor Immelman won at Kiawah Island in 2003 to give the country two victories in the last three times the competition has been held. The $700 000 they each pocketed couldn't have hurt, either.
In 2003, Tim Clark also showed the strength of South African golf with a third-place finish in the US PGA. Later in the year he joined Els and Goosen in the International Team for the . In a wonderful contest and a great advertisement for the game, he helped the Internationals to a memorable tie against the USA at Fancourt near George.
Trevor Immelman stunned the golf world in 2008 when, just four months after having a tumour removed, he captured the US Masters title in convincing fashion. It was a stunning turnaround of his fortunes and it meant he had emulated his hero, Gary Player.
A very healthy local tour, known as the Sunshine Tour, that also co-hosts a few events with the European PGA, ensures that South Africa continues to produce the golfing goods. Over the years it has attracted some of the world's top golfers, often early on in their careers.
South Africa has the weather, it has the courses, and it has the talented players too.