MY OTHER LOVE

ROLENE

STRAUSS

This former Miss South Africa and Miss World-winner, who swapped the pressures of pageantry for her passion project, golf, is also balancing taking care of her three sons and two businesses 

BY GRANT SHUB​​​​​​​ 

Rolene Strauss, who owns two businesses and runs a foundation, has the game of golf coursing through her familial veins. Spurred on by her mother, Theresa, who is a handy golfer, Strauss was encouraged to pick up her own set of clubs from a young age rather than steer the golf cart.


Strauss credits her mother for not buying into gender stereotypes and, as a consequence, she has never regarded golf as a man's game. Her father and brother have also encouraged her progress, and she has rubbed shoulders with the likes of icons Gary Player and Lee-Anne Pace.


With August being Women's Month, Strauss' message to her fellow women is that they are so much stronger than they think. 'I grew up with my mom playing golf and it's so important to have women who you really look up to playing golf,' she says from her Val De Vie base.


'For young girls in South Africa to have a role model like Ashleigh Buhai to look up to, it's almost like living vicariously through someone and it makes it so much easier for the next generation to love golf.'

'There are very few places I have felt under-estimated as a woman, but one of them is on the golf course.'

Having registered an index of 21 in 2023, it's improved to 16.8. For the last three months, Strauss has been having weekly golf lessons at Pearl Valley Golf Estate and her middle son, who is six, has for the moment replaced her husband as her golfing buddy. In the infancy of her relationship with now husband, D'Neil, the pair were invited to play with her golf-mad father in Bloemfontein. 


'My dad said we were going to go golfing but I told him D'Niel had never played golf in his life,' says Strauss. 'My dad lent him some of his clubs and we were on the 6th tee when D'Neil hit his driver. The head of the driver broke off and it went further than the ball,' says Strauss, recalling the amusing icebreaker that kick-started a love story which has produced a trio of sons.


Having been a member of Pearl Valley Golf Estate, Strauss has recently moved to Boschenmeer Golf and Country Estate. 'I feel so sorry for Pearl Valley having my six-year-old play there,' Strauss says with a smile. Other than nine-hole misadventures with her son, Strauss plays most often when taking up invitations at Pro-Ams. She most recently attended the 2025 Investec SA Open in Stellenbosch as an ambassador. On an international front, Strauss says that she has been privileged to play the TPC Sawgrass course this year and last year during visits to America with her husband.

In a previous lifetime, Strauss was crowned Miss South Africa in 2014 and also named Miss World the same year. She says her success in the pageantry world opened up countless doors for her. The now 34-year-old travelled to around 20 different countries owing to her title and commitments.


When it comes to standing on stage in front of a panel of judges versus teeing off at a Pro-Am event, Strauss says that the latter is far more nerve-wracking. 'There are very few places I have felt under-estimated as a woman, but one of them is on the golf course,' says Strauss, who recently had the opportunity to play the Extreme 19th at the Legend Golf and Safari Resort.


With SuperSport's cameras recording and spectators watching intently, the pressure to drive the ball 361 metres to get to the green was unlike anything Strauss has encountered before. 'I have never been as nervous and my heart hasn't pounded like it did then even on the Miss SA or Miss World stage,' she says. 'When I spoke, I knew what was going to come out of my mouth and what I was going to do when I walked, but I don't always know what's going to happen when I hit the golf ball.'

In terms of her favourite club, Strauss says that it's a toss-up between her 7-iron and her new driver. 'My new Titleist driver is incredible but it's either my best friend or my worst enemy,' she notes. 'I can hit a very good, far drive but, when playing from the ladies tee, if I hit a far drive and it's not straight, it's usually gone.' As far as her short game is concerned, Strauss has moved from a L.A.B. putter to a Titleist one and she has found the transition smoother than she ever expected.


Strauss, who is the owner of RS Sunglasses, which is a premium eyewear brand, says that the range is designed by women for women. 'My mom plays golf twice a week and she has sold so many RS Sunglasses because people just love hers.'


Having dovetailed at the Legend Golf and Safari Resort in Limpopo, the mother / daughter duo plan on playing together at the Winelands Golf Tournament in October. 'My mom is very excited about how golf has become a priority for me,' she concludes.

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