Out of the rough, soaring like eagles: The Mitchells Plain Golf Club story

The commute to the site where the Mitchells Plain Golf Club (MPGC) hones its future stars is a fascinating voyage. A tar road is swiftly usurped by gravel and then, within a minute or two, passes through a driving school until you see several open fields. These could be mistaken for abandoned land because of the dry grass, puddles and piles of stones.

Although co-chairperson Jehad Kasu would not go so far as to call the fields beautiful, he and founder Richard Smith saw the beauty they could cultivate on this barren land for their community when they set up their driving range there. 

Famously known as a golf club without a course, the MPGC attracted public interest after its participation in sports broadcaster SuperSport’s Real World Champions mini-series. Tyra Booysen is one of the young players who had a starring role in the club’s episode as a beneficiary of its formation and growth.

“I think that golf opens my eyes more to see that things are possible and that there are many things outside of Mitchells Plain that you can do. You don’t just have to stay here,” Tyra says with a smile and great sense of optimism.

The possibilities life has to offer have suddenly broadened for the 16-year-old golf protege. With an ambition to improve her handicap into the single digits from 11.1, Tyra is steely in her determination. 

The challenge of making it out of Mitchells Plain thrills the young Ariana Grande-loving teen — especially because of her unique profile. The occurrence of a golf club in this community is as rare as successful and well-known women in the sport, two legacies she is ready to rewrite. 

“I’d like more girls to play golf. When I play in competitions, it’s mainly boys I’m playing with and, sometimes, I wish I played with girls. I think more girls should try it,” she says.

Tyra has become the face of golf for her family, friends and her community but this would not have been possible without the work of people like Kasu and Smith, who were born and raised in Mitchells Plain themselves. 

Kasu’s love of the sport was also fortuitous. Having picked up a set of golf clubs from a well-off uncle as a 13-year-old boy, he went on to, by his own admission, hit a stream of terrible shots — except for one. 

“Of all the balls that I hit, I hit one shot perfectly and I was hooked. Till today, that’s the feeling that I play golf for. Even if you have 18 holes of bad golf — but, if you have one good shot there, it’s worth it.” 

Such are the circumstances of people from Mitchells Plain, Kasu wouldn’t get back on a golf course for another 10 years. Golf clubs are commonly used as weapons in his community. His love affair would continue to brew from a distance, due to inaccessibility and the lack of an organisation like the one he founded. 

“The easier you make access to the sport, especially for people who are not expected to gravitate towards the sport, like people of colour who have been raised to not even think of golf as a pastime — let alone a professional sport — the better. If you don’t bring the game to them, they are never going to find it.”

To this day, most people of colours’ interest in golf traces back to watching the burgeoning talent that was Tiger Woods metamorphose into a juggernaut of the game. Whereas the Millennials had Woods, Gen Zs are seemingly starved of such a role model. 

“That’s something the young kids we work with still battle with. They still feel out of place, especially when we go to very high-end golf estates,” Kasu reflects. 

“Even if that child is great with talent, they already feel inferior just getting there. So, how do you then have a competitive spirit from that point on? We try to make them understand that this place is as much theirs as it is anyone else’s. Even with your inferior equipment, you’re still as good as any player out there.”

Although distinguishing, the description “a golf club without a course” needs to change if there is to be significant progress. This makes the MPGC’s partnership with Rondebosch Golf Club (RGC) pivotal in the interim. With the more established club offering their facilities, a mutually beneficial relationship has come to fruition. 

“It’s incumbent on RGC to fulfil their lease terms with the city to involve and encourage community participation at grassroots level,” according to the club’s captain, Raj Lochan. 

“We have various initiatives around this and like to encourage communities to explore these opportunities with RGC. We see MPGC as a feeder to our youth programme and bolstering our membership to grow golf as a sport.”

One golfer with the potential to filter into RGC youth programme is 14-year-old Yaseen Jardine. Having been molded and mentored by Kasu and Richards since the tender age of seven, his ambitions are understandably lofty — but first there are problems to overcome. 

“I find that the biggest challenge for me is not being able to practise more or play more tournaments,” Yaseen reflects. “I just want to practise more and win more tournaments.” 

His words reinforce the need for greater investment in the infrastructures around the MPGC. Though complex in application, the solution is there for all to see — should the government get involved and help, according to Smith. 

“It’s very simple … there is a lot of vacant land. If we can get that, we can get sponsors to help develop that land. Something so kids can come and practise. We can also make it a safe hub for kids — so, maybe like an internet cafe. It’s not just about golf; it’s about skills development.” 

After positive talks with the Western Cape ministry of sport, arts and culture, there is hope for temporary leasing of land and the inclusion of a potential nine-hole golf course in a multi-purpose sporting facility in development in Mitchells Plain.

Kasu and Smith’s commitment to the growth of the young golfers beyond the greens has far-reaching positive effects on the kids’ family life. Good students give parents a greater sense of assurance when they are considering whether to allow their children to take up sports and extra-mural activities. 

With that said, the support system around these MPGC starlets is critical. Parents are at the core of their development, navigating many challenges to make their children’s dreams a reality. 

“To be honest, it’s tough mentally, physically and, most of all, financially,” admits Tyra’s father Ashley Booysen. “I would love to see more kids coming from Mitchells Plain Golf Club excelling just as much as Tyra but, as you know, golf is a very expensive sport and some of the parents don’t always have the means.” 

The levels of commitment of the MPGC must be reflected by the young players and their parents for it to truly be a springboard to endless possibilities. The Booysen household and extended family have become golf-obsessed because Tyra’s improvement has not only opened opportunities for her and her family to travel and have new experiences, but added a positive element to life. 

“When I walk with Tyra on the golf course, it really brings peace over me, which is something I really need over time,” says Ashley, revealing a venerable vulnerability.

It comes as no surprise that this outlook has seeped into Tyra’s mind, especially in a sport famed for the mental prowess required of its players — something that evokes a great sense of pride in Tyra’s mother, Rushanda Booysen.  

“Yes, there are barriers, but I believe you shouldn’t let that get in your way and she has that mentality. She works with what she has and never compares herself. We don’t look at the barriers but the bigger picture.” 

Tyra hopes more opportunities come her way through golf, particularly the chance to study overseas. The ethos of mentorship within MPGC is sure to carry her far. 

“When I was in high school, someone believed in me. So, I think about all the other kids who are way more talented than I was in many spheres of life who are not in an environment that is conducive,” Kasu says about what drives him to keep growing the MPGC. “So, because someone believed in me, I want to believe in someone else.”

If that wasn’t good enough a reason, Tyra’s father recites the Mitchells Plain police’s motto that “a child in sport is a child out of court”.