Steenberg Golf Club

The verdict

Steenberg is one of the most complete golf experiences in the Cape. Peter Matkovich routed it across the historic Steenberg estate in the Constantia Valley, weaving the holes through four distinct environments, wetlands, parkland, fynbos and the open Cape Flats, all framed by the dramatic backdrop of the Constantiaberg mountains. It is beautiful, well conditioned and full of strategic interest without ever being unfair.

What lifts it for the travelling golfer is the setting. This is the heart of South Africa's oldest wine region, so the course sits among celebrated cellars and restaurants, with the estate's own wines and the bustle of Cape Town minutes away. As a round that combines genuinely good golf with world class food, wine and scenery, Steenberg is close to the perfect Cape Town day, and an easy highlight of any Western Cape itinerary.

The holes worth the trip

Matkovich gave Steenberg real variety by moving the round through four different landscapes. The opening and closing stretches run through manicured parkland, the middle holes thread between wetlands and reed beds alive with birdlife, and others open out across fynbos and the Cape Flats with the mountains always on the horizon. It keeps the golf fresh from the first tee to the last.

The water and wetlands provide much of the strategic teeth, demanding committed carries and careful club selection rather than brute strength, which makes the course a fair but searching test for every handicap. The greens are well built and true, and the conditioning is consistently among the best in the Cape.

The signature is the long par three 14th, which plays to the largest green on the African continent, a putting surface so big that the difference between the front and back pins is a full club and a different hole entirely. It is the kind of distinctive, memorable challenge that sums up a course well worth building a Cape Town round around.

Where to stay nearby

Steenberg has its own celebrated hotel and winery on the estate, which makes for a seamless golf, food and wine stay just minutes from the first tee. Beyond the estate, the Constantia Valley and central Cape Town offer some of the finest lodging and dining in the country, all within easy reach of the course.

For a wider trip the Cape rewards a multi course itinerary, pairing Steenberg with the leading winelands courses around Stellenbosch and Paarl and, for the adventurous, the spectacular layouts of the Garden Route. We can build the lodging, tee times and transfers around whichever balance of golf and wine country you prefer.

Looking for a base? See our recommended hotels and resorts near Steenberg Golf Club.