DEVELOPMENTS | GOLF & LIFESTYLE | LATEST NEWS
Last year, when we took over the helm at Serengeti Estates, we promised that we’d introduce change – and fast.
Even so, many of our residents expressed surprise with the speed at which we launched our new developments. Just when you thought we’d reached full velocity, we proved that we have many more exciting plans. In fact, while February may have been the month of love for some, for us it was the month of action. We reached several milestones: the announcement that we would be hosting a tournament, along with the Serengeti Invitational in March, as well as the redesign of the nine-hole Whistling Thorn course to become a Par 3 Championship style course. We have also launched the second phase of the Clubhouse’s
refurbishment: in just a few weeks, we had a
beautiful new facility ready to host the professionals, residents and visitors to our tournament in grand style.
As part of this revamp, we will be introducing a stunning new tapas and sushi bar, and our new members' bar where residents can enjoy sundowners and snacks with a magnificent view over the golf course. This month, we’d like to introduce you to two people playing a tremendous role in the new look Serengeti: Dino De Abreu is the designer tasked with transforming our current nine-hole golf course into South Africa’s first Par 3 Championship course; while chef extraordinaire (and Jamie Oliver’s buddy) Shane Smit is bringing gourmet style to our beautiful estate. Finally, what an incredible week we enjoyed at Serengeti, starting last Tuesday evening with the Calcutta Auction
and dinner hosted by Dan Nicholl. The
event successfully raised over R1 million for the Serengeti International’s purse, with 10% of all funds going to the Alan Bekker Scholarship.
Congratulations to the winners of our inaugural Serengeti International winners, Team “Iron Will”, comprising team owner, our very own Golf Club CEO Mark Renwick along with amateurs Tim Kloeck and Paul Irons, and professional golfers Darren Fichardt and Oliver Bekker. Fichardt was a double winner, also taking home the title of the Serengeti Tour Championship 2018 on Sunday.
SuperSport provided superb live coverage of the event, creating a showcase of our magnificent golf course as well as highlights of our lifestyle estate, including the Whistling Thorn Apartments and our soon-to-be-launched cluster development, The Signature Residences. A very big thank you to the Sunshine Tour, as well as all our homeowners, our staff, golf course maintenance team and everyone else who worked so hard behind the scenes to ensure the success of this exciting tournament.
ONWARDS AND UPWARDS |
SHANE STIRS UP A STORM
How do you go from Hazyview farm life to cooking with Jamie Oliver? If you’re Shane Smit, by using your passion and determination. It was never Shane’s intention to be a chef. Rather, he planned to study law, and in fact was halfway through his third year at the University of Pretoria when he realised he could no longer ignore his true calling. “I had chosen law because I thought I had to take up a profession, but my heart was never in it – I used to skip class so that I could spend time experimenting with exotic ingredients.
Then, during my third year of studies, I hurt myself playing rugby and had to stay home from class for two weeks. That was when I realised my burning desire to cook.
One day shortly after that I was trying to study labour law, and I realised I had read the same page 11 times. I phoned my mom and told her that I simply had to cook,” Shane recalls. His family was wholly supportive and told him they would work together to make his dream come true – but even they couldn’t imagine where his ambition would take him. Shane had left for London after giving up law and was working the Thames Four Pillars hotel when an acquaintance told him about an opportunity at Jamie Oliver’s first restaurant, which had recently opened its doors. Shane printed out his CV and joined the queue of hundreds of hopefuls. Undaunted by this competition, he remained optimistic – and his positive thinking paid off. A
few days later, the restaurant’s
head chef invited him to an interview. It was a strange encounter, because Shane spoke for two hours about everything except his cooking ability. However, when he was asked to cook in the kitchen as part of a trial, it was his passion that impressed – to the point where he was asked to join the team. It was a gruelling, if immensely rewarding experience: during his first week, he worked for 120 hours. After three promotions, and meeting some of the industry’s most acclaimed leaders, Shane decided to return to South Africa to run his own kitchen. Following his first appointment as a senior sous chef at Summerfields Rose Retreat & Spa, he went on to consult at numerous establishments, later becoming Executive Chef of Mount Edgecombe Country Club. Then, when Jamie Oliver announced that he was establishing the
chain’s
first outlet in South Africa, he was the obvious choice to head Jamie’s Italian. After catering for fifteen thousand diners every month, Shane was ready for another move. After discussions with Chris Bentley, Shane visited Serengeti to meet the developer, David Nagle and check out the site – and that’s when the vision for The Village was born. With just months until the emporium opens its doors, he’s reluctant to reveal what, exactly, residents can expect – but he promises it will be an epicurean adventure. Watch this space!
ONWARDS AND UPWARDS |
HANGING THE TEES!
Meet Dino de Abreu, the man behind the new design of our new championship style Par 3 golf course. Amidst a plethora of exciting developments that have taken place at Serengeti in recent months, the launch of a Par 3 18-hole Championship Golf Course, to replace the existing 9-hole course, stands out as a true game changer. Not only will it make the game more accessible for our time-pressed residents; it will also add significant value to their homes.
The new course is designed by Dino de Abreu, who is responsible for transforming the current layout of the nine-hole course at Whistling Thorn into South Africa’s first championship-style Par 3 golf course.
Dino, who says he has been passionate about golf since childhood, studied architecture at the University of Pretoria, completing his Masters in Landscape Architecture. He had not yet completed his final year of studies before he was headhunted by the DDV Design Group, specialists in golf course design. Dino headed the firm’s design department, designing well-known estate courses such as Jackal Creek, Legend and Eagle Canyon, to name just a few. Dino and his team were responsible for every aspect of the development of these courses, from inception to completion, and the experience he gleaned from these projects has grown his expertise in urban design, estate layout, golf course design and landscaping. After 10 years with the company, Dino
established his own consultancy, working on
projects in countries as varied as China, Nigeria, Kenya and the Middle and Far East.
He describes this as one of the most valuable periods of his career, as he has enriched his knowledge of culture and design and broadened his experience. During this time, he has worked on a variety of undertakings, from environmental and design projects to creating executive golf courses for royalty. Back in South Africa, Dino is particularly excited about the value that will derive from Serengeti’s revamped course. Breaking ground in March 2018, he estimates that the course will take a year to complete. He informs that, although the course will provide an exciting challenge and can be completed in just three hours, it won’t deviate drastically from the current course. Having grown up on the property next door to
Serengeti Estates, Dino feels that his latest project has brought him full circle.
PLANNING STAGE | THE NEW PAR 3 CHAMPIONSHIP 18- HOLE GOLF COURSE
You may be wondering why we’re changing the format of our nine- hole Whistling Thorn course to a Par 3 18-hole course. It’s simple, really: we’ve recognised that many of our time-pressed residents may not be able to spend as much time as they would like on the greens. A Par 3 18-hole course can be completed in just three hours, while still presenting a challenge. In fact, our new course will require that golfers use every club in their bags. There are several other advantages, too: for starters, targeted tees take the place of long fairways, which means that the course can be maintained with less irrigation – a major
plus in terms of environmental sustainability. Add to this the beauty of a design which incorporates natural grasses and vegetation, and it’s easy to see how our new course will add significant value for homeowners. The new course is expected to break ground in March, and should be complete within 12 months.
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