SAGDB
FEAST
of opportunity
The annual SAGDB players’ tour of Scotland is a game-changing experience
BY CLINTON VAN DER BERG
If you ask Eric Ncube or Vuyisani Makama to sum up Scotland in a word, they’ll likely say, ‘Wet.’ If they’re allowed a second, it’ll be, ‘Windswept’. But give them a few paragraphs and a warm mug, and you’ll hear a story so rich it could tee off a thousand dreams.
Thanks to a collaboration between the South African Golf Development Board (SAGDB), the Alfred Dunhill Links Foundation and Scottish Golf, in early July, two talented 18-year-olds from Gauteng traded Joburg sunshine for grey skies, kilts and links-style golf on a trip that stretched far beyond distance. It was a journey of growth, grit and soggy socks – one they’ll never forget.
Makama, a member of the GolfRSA National Squad, and Ncube are both graduates of the Balderstone Junior Academy (Class of 2024). They’ve come through a high-performance system designed not just to develop swings but also to shape futures. Their trip to Scotland, a fixture on the SAGDB calendar since 2016, offered more than access. It opened doors.
Legendary courses like Muirfield, the Old Course at St Andrews, Gullane and Hags Castle in Glasgow weren’t just venues, they were classrooms.
A STEP UP
Lyle Pedro reflects on the 2022 SAGDB | Scotland trip he undertook with fellow SAGDB member Milton Mhlanga and manager Peter Little, and how it added to his aspirations of pursuing a pro career.
‘Conditions were atrocious, but every drop taught me something’ – Eric Ncube
‘We forgot our umbrellas. Foolishly,’ Ncube laughs, reflecting on a rain-drenched round at Eden. ‘Conditions were atrocious, but every drop taught me something.’
Playing out of Wanderers Golf Club, Ncube’s ambition is clear: to earn his PGA Diploma over the next two years, then go pro. And if his recent 69 on the challenging East Course at Royal Johannesburg, which earned him the coveted Balderstone Medal, is anything to go by, he’s on track. That medal wasn’t just a scorecard triumph; it was a statement. The Scottish lessons of low ball flight, strategic placement and course management had stuck.
‘I learned to keep things consistent,’ he says. ‘The wind in Scotland doesn’t play; it bullies. High shots? Forget it. You need control, discipline and creativity.’
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Ncube credits his long-time friend and fellow traveller, Makama, for helping him weather the worst. ‘We’ve been through wars together,’ he says fondly. That’s included everything from shared taxis to brutal qualifying rounds. But it also brought them to blazers at Muirfield and strategy briefings at the Scottish Open.
Makama – the first black golfer to win the Country Club Johannesburg Club Championship three years running (2023–2025) – took lots of notes, and it showed when he secured a runner-up finish in the Border Stroke Play Championship at a windswept East London Golf Club at the end of July.
‘First prize is being great at golf,’ he says. ‘Second is earning the PGA Diploma. Either way, I’m hungry.’
And Scotland fed that hunger, albeit with unexpected portions. ‘Scotland is very wet,’ he chuckles. ‘You don’t just play the course – you battle it.’
From Glasgow’s inland wetlands to the unforgiving links, the pair got a crash course in more than just weather. Strategy and tradition run deep. One standout moment? Being invited by a resident colonel – an honorary member and military veteran – to play a casual foursomes round, complete with old-school etiquette and dashes of Scottish humour.
‘You finish your round and throw on a blazer for lunch. It’s surreal,’ says Makama.
Off-course, they soaked up the Scottish Open like fans on a pilgrimage. Ncube watched his idol Scottie Scheffler up close, alongside stars like Collin Morikawa. Makama tuned into the caddie-player banter and studied how decisions were shaped on the fly. For two teenagers used to playing from the rough – figuratively and literally – it was pure gold.
The trip was facilitated by Scottish Golf, who extended the kind of warm welcome that defies the cold climate. It’s a partnership with history; the annual match-up between South Africa and Scotland, played in singles and foursomes, stretches back over a decade.
And while Ncube and Makama left their own footprints on Scottish turf, they followed in others’. Last year, Devon Valentine flew the SAGDB flag high across the Highlands with Mitch Phigeland. Valentine’s trip, also part of the development board’s annual Scottish Tour, was a game-changer. Since then, he’s broken into the GolfRSA top 10 and become something of a poster child for possibility.
‘The opportunity was a dream come true... That trip opened my eyes’
– Devon Valentine
‘The opportunity was a dream come true,’ he says. ‘It showed me what’s possible, and how far behind we are. You’ve got to work harder, every day. That trip opened my eyes.’
Playing out of Humewood, he recalls shadowing pros like Ludvig Åberg, Rory McIlroy, and Scheffler during The Open. ‘Seeing them close-up? It makes the dream tangible.’
And that’s exactly the point. The SAGDB doesn’t just offer chances, it ignites ambition. These aren’t just trips. They’re tours of transformation, where the takeaway isn’t trophies, but belief.
For South African youngsters from underserved communities, seeing that they not only compete but belong, is powerful.
As Makama puts it: ‘All I know is I’m hungry.’
This generation of golfers won’t just eat – they’ll feast. On opportunity, on resilience and on the chance to write their own stories.
GOLFRSA/SUPPLIED
