[category]
[title]
We stepped through the gates of Royal Johannesburg & Kensington Golf Club for the Mediamark Sporting Invitational and discovered a side of Joburg few of us get to experience.
There are places in Johannesburg that can make you briefly forget you’re in Johannesburg.
Royal Johannesburg & Kensington Golf Club is one of them.
invitation to the Mediamark Sporting Invitational was what got us through the gates. The gathering brought clients, partners and colleagues together for a day of golf, padel and connection, away from the usual business setting.
But the invitation carried a greater purpose too.
The event supported Compass, an Early Childhood Development Centre linked to a safe haven supporting women as they rebuild their lives after abuse. It was an important part of the day, and not simply a charitable footnote added to the end of it.
At a time when gender-based violence remains an urgent reality in South Africa, that purpose gave the day meaning beyond the beautiful surroundings and friendly competition.
And the surroundings really are something.
A glimpse behind the gates
Once inside, the city seems to disappear somewhere behind you.
Fairways roll into the distance beneath enormous mature trees. Golf carts wait outside white, slate-roofed buildings. Beautifully kept gardens frame the clubhouse and, on a blue-sky Joburg day, the whole place can feel like you’ve somehow stepped into the pages of a travel magazine.
And then you start noticing the details.
Rolex timepieces appear throughout the course – not one statement clock, but a recurring presence across the grounds.
Golf bags line up outside the clubhouse. Plaques beneath your feet commemorate names and moments from the club’s sporting history. Inside, deep leather armchairs, tartan accents, dark wood and cabinets filled with silverware hint at just how much history these rooms have witnessed.
Royal Johannesburg’s heritage stretches back to 1890. In 2026, that’s 136 years.
And it shows.
Not in a dusty, frozen-in-time way, but in the furnishings, the trophies, the memorabilia and the sense that generations of golfers have walked these same corridors and fairways.
Old-world character meets modern Joburg
Perhaps the most interesting thing about the club is how comfortably all that heritage sits alongside the present.
For a club established in 1890, there are some decidedly modern touches. Dedicated electric vehicle charging points mean members and guests can plug in while they’re out on the course, while a short distance from the fairways, players rally behind the glass walls of contemporary padel courts.
It’s an interesting juxtaposition: more than a century of golfing tradition alongside the way Johannesburg lives now.
There are relaxed clubhouse spaces where golfers can settle in after a round, alongside a more elevated dining experience elsewhere on the property. At The Patio, clubhouse dining opens onto views of the greens, making lingering over lunch dangerously easy.
It’s polished without feeling sterile. Historic without feeling trapped in another era.
And, somehow, distinctly Johannesburg while making you feel as though you’ve travelled much further.
You could quite happily spend an afternoon here without ever picking up a golf club.
Although, on this particular day, sport was very much on the agenda.
Golf on one side, padel on the other
Golfers began arriving from 10.30 am, before heading out across the course for an afternoon of friendly competition. Padel registration followed at 12.00 pm, bringing a very different energy to the day.
While the golfers had sprawling fairways to contend with, the padel crowd took part in a clinic, with coaching, first attempts, rallies and increasingly competitive points playing out on court.
It gave us two completely different ways of experiencing the club.
Golf brought the tradition: carts moving between holes, teams spread across the course and the measured rhythm of a sport that has been part of this place for generations.
Padel brought the noise.
There was learning, laughing, cheering and the inevitable moment when a supposedly friendly rally suddenly became very serious.
But the Sporting Invitational wasn’t really designed around choosing one over the other.
The brief was simple: play, connect, network and give back.
Beyond the scorecard
And the “give back” mattered.
Supporting Compass meant the connections and competition of the day were also contributing to a space connected to women rebuilding their lives after abuse. It brought the event’s Beyond the Scorecard theme into sharper focus: what happened off the course mattered as much as what happened on it.
As the games wrapped up, the afternoon gave way to a Glenfiddich whisky tasting, followed by dinner and prize-giving, celebrating the day’s winners and bringing the Sporting Invitational to a close.
A different side of Joburg
After spending the day moving between fairways, padel courts, clubhouse terraces and dining spaces, it was difficult not to leave feeling as though we’d discovered another side of Johannesburg.
We often experience Joburg through its restaurants, nightlife, rooftops, markets and the constant movement that gives the city its energy. But behind the gates of Royal Johannesburg & Kensington Golf Club is another version of Jozi entirely.
One with 136 years of history beneath its feet, enormous trees shading immaculate fairways, Rolex timepieces dotted across the course and old-world clubhouse interiors sitting comfortably alongside padel courts and EV charging stations.
it’s quiet, manicured and almost transportive – the kind of place that briefly makes you question whether you’re still in Johannesburg at all.
The Mediamark Sporting Invitational may have been what got us through the gates, but what we found inside was a side of the city we don’t often get to experience.
A great day of sport, an extraordinary setting and, most importantly, a purpose that went beyond the scorecard – plus a rare glimpse inside one of Johannesburg’s most exclusive golf clubs.
Follow Time Out Johannesburg on Facebook, TikTok and Instagram! While you're at it, sign up for our newsletter to receive even more of the best of your city.
TIME OUT JOHANNESBURG RECOMMENDS:
📍 The best things to do in Johannesburg
🏨 The best hotels in Johannesburg
🍽 The best restaurants in Johannesburg
🛏️ Where to stay in Johannesburg
📢 Latest news from Johannesburg