by SFT | Jun 11, 2024 | Sport
One of our best lady golfers at St Francis Links, Lynn Slogrove, played in the SA Senior Women’s Championships at East London (West Bank and East London golf courses).
She shot an 84 gross at West Bank GC and 89 at East London GC.
Her 173 was the 9th best gross in the A Division and 10th place overall out of 170 players! Wow!
To crown this great performance, she received a prize for the best Stableford score of 34 in the 70+ years category at West Bank on Day 1.
To read the full story, go here: LINKS NEWS
by SFT | Apr 29, 2024 | Sport, St Francis
The next Time (Wine) and Dine are coming up next week, and we encourage all members to join us for a fun and informative evening here at the Club on Thursday, 2 May 2024. We thank Leopards Leap, who will join us at a wine tasting!
Both the Board and management have worked closely to assess and realign strategy, structures, roles and responsibilities. It has been a brilliant process, and we are confident about an exciting future!
Director Mark Johnson will share the Board’s vision and plans, and Jeff will provide an update on all estate and club functions and activities.
Our management team will also be on hand to network and provide info. Please don’t hesitate to ask and interact with us.
Please RSVP and attend the talk and dinner. We’d love to meet the new owners and welcome the kids!
Full Santa Says newsletter here
by SFT | Apr 22, 2024 | Sport, St Francis
By Richard Arderne
As is well known, the amazingly successful Balies Beach party on 2 January raised R500,000 for local charities
The St Francis Cycling Club received R50,000 of this for our 25km MTB trail, on top of the R20,000 received from Balies Beach last year.
Thank you Balies Beach, especially Giancarlo Lanfranchi and Warren Adler!
We also recently received R20,000 from the St Francis Bay Property Owner’s Association.
Without these donations, we would be struggling to maintain and extend our wonderful MTB trail, which starts and ends at the Coimbra Cycle Shop.
We took the decision to have two full-time employees working on the track, managed by Tyrone Kindness, with Greg West kindly providing oversight.
Please join our club, only R400 pp pa(minimum!):
St Francis Cycling Club, Standard Bank 186519508
An update on the St Francis MTB trail
by Greg West:
We faced challenges over the last six months. The rains that thankfully came last year, resulted in some of the “thatch farm” trails being flooded. Tyrone and his team had to do a last-minute diversion, just before the December holidays and we all agree that the new route is even better!
It was sandy in parts but we are busy with re-surfacing the entire trail.
In addition, the October storms decimated the trails near Bruces & the Otters Landing trails.
These two weather-related disasters resulted in us having to spend our resources on repair work, rather than making new trails.
Trail Building
Because of the sandy nature of the soil in our area, pretty well every bit of trail requires a hard surface to be laid. This makes trail-building costly. The further one gets from an established road, the more expensive it becomes to get the material to that site.
We have been lucky to have had generous donations from club members as well as those that ride the trails regularly.
The material which is proving to be most effective is the light coloured “crusher run”, which compacts well and experience has shown lasts really well. However, it costs us R650 per cube to get it here and then it still has to be barrowed to the trail, laid and compacted. Each cube only does about 20m of trail so one can see the financial implications.
Tyrone has been busy with the existing thatch farm section and should soon complete that re-surfacing.
Then we plan to build some new trails. It has been challenging finding suitable areas in which to build these new trails. Most surrounding land owners are reluctant to allow permanent access so the plan is to extend in the thatch farm area as well as a couple of other local areas where we will not have access issues.
Thanks to all who have contributed. The route is taking shape and has been getting some high praise from the pro’s, including Mandi Augustyn!
Some background info:
The St Francis Cycling Club, established around 2012, went through a fairly quiet couple of years prior to 2019 as far as track maintenance and construction is concerned.
Richard Arderne took over as treasurer in late 2019, and we have raised (and spent) around R700,000 through club membership fees and donations, over the past four years. The trail has been extended so that it is now circular (by way of the Thatch Farm (between the sewerage works and St Francis Drive) … rather than a “there and back” which means that (most) cyclists now travel in an only clockwise direction. The trail is now longer (about 25km) and more interesting, and also can now safely take more cycling traffic.
A milestone last year was the re-instating of an annual low season MTB race, in addition to the one held over the peak Xmas season. There was a St Francis MTB Challenge from the Links, held with over 400 cyclists pa for three years, from 2009 to 2011, but heavy winter rain interrupted the subsequent races, and the event was discontinued. It is good for our town that the St Francis College MTB Race was held (in conjunction with the club) in November last year, with over 200 cyclists. We hope this event grows in the coming years. There is now talk of two day race in 2026.
The club has weekly Thursday evening rides around the 25km route, and many longer rides are arranged over weekends. The club is supported by the local Coimbra cycle shop.
by SFT | Apr 2, 2024 | Sport, St Francis
The Black Knight plays our Jack Nicklaus Masterpiece – Gary Player visits Links!
Gary Jim Player was born in Johannesburg on 1st November 1935.
The first non-American to complete the career grand slam at the age of 29 – he is seen as one of the best golfers to have ever played the sport and one of South Africa’s best-ever sportsmen!
Gary brings this amazing aura, with the ability to interact with people and connect with them. We have a few images that showcase this beautifully at The Links – he’s always taking the time to ask them who they are and what they do.
Full Story Here
See also: Jordan Gumberg Wins The SDC Golf Championships – St Francis Links
by SFT | Mar 21, 2024 | Kouga Municipality, Sport, St Francis
Growing Together
– Kouga Municipality is gearing up for the thrilling culmination of the annual Kouga Mayor’s Cup tournament, poised to captivate the region this coming April – a standout event on the municipality’s sporting calendar.
Following the triumph of 2023, this year’s Mayor’s Cup is set to grow together as the sporting codes get set
Bowls. running, skateboarding
With a total prize pool of R350,000, 19 sporting codes will compete in the 2024 Mayor’s Cup.
“The tournament will, furthermore, once again witness the finest netball, rugby, rugby, soccer, cricket, golf, and tennis talents in the region compete for top honours,” said Kouga Executive Mayor Hattingh Bornman. “Additionally, bowls, running, darts, chess, and skateboarding will add to the excitement.”
Fishing, rugby, gymnastics
Fishing, touch rugby, and gymnastics concluded their final matches earlier this month.
The matches will take place at different venues across the region to allow as many community members as possible the opportunity to participate and support the programme.
Reflecting on the success of previous years, where themes such as “Shaping the Future” in 2022 and “Breaking Barriers” in 2023 fostered unity and excellence in the Kouga region, confidence is high for collective efforts towards a common cause,” said Bornman.
“The focus of this year’s Mayoral Cup is to establish a benchmark for the growth of this prestigious event in the Kouga region. The primary objective is to encourage individuals from all walks of life in Kouga to actively participate in various competitive sporting activities, fostering pride and social cohesion in the community.
Sports as catalyst
“The Mayoral Cup is not just about winning trophies; it is about nurturing a culture where sports become a catalyst for personal growth, community development, and lifelong connections.”
Bornman extends his gratitude to all sports associations and clubs for their partnership in presenting the Kouga Mayor’s Cup – contributing to the tournament’s expansion.
“Let us showcase the remarkable sporting talent Kouga has to offer,” he said.
For more information, contact Kouga Sports Coordinator Elvina Felix at 067 108 5895. Alternatively, send an email to elvina@kouga.gov.za.
Programme:
Rugby: 06 April 2024 at the Kruisfontein Sports Field, Humansdorp
Chess: 12 & 13 April at the Newton Hall, Jeffreys Bay
Boxing: 13 April at JBay Comprehensive, Jeffreys Bay
Basketball: 13 April 2024 at the Jeffreys Bay Main Beach Basketball Court, Jeffreys Bay Volleyball: 14 April 2024 at Jeffreys Bay Main Beach, Jeffreys Bay
Golf: 19 April at St Francis Bay Golf Club, St Francis Bay
Cricket: 20 April at Mentorskraal, Jeffreys Bay
Fun Run: 20 April at Jeffreys Bay Main Beach, Jeffreys Bay
Soccer: 20 April at Jeffreys Bay
Netball: 27 April at Hankey Secondary School, Hankey
Tennis: 27 April at the St Francis Bay Tennis Club, St Francis Bay
8 Ball Pool: 27 April at Jolly Dolphin/Sovereign, Havanna, Jeffreys Bay
Skateboarding: 27 April at Jeffreys Bay Main Beach, Jeffreys Bay
Darts: 27 April at Jeffreys Bay
Bowling: 27 April at the Jeffreys Bay Bowling Club, Jeffreys Bay
Coding: 27 April at Humansdorp
by SFT | Mar 18, 2024 | Sport, Surfing Today, Surfing/Action Sports, World Surf League Updates
2024 MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal -JBay residents Jordy Smith and Matt McGillivray get joint 17th.
PENICHE, LEIRIA, PORTUGAL – MARCH 11: Matthew McGillivray of South Africa surfs in Heat 6 of the Round of 32 at the MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal on March 11, 2024 at Peniche, Leiria, Portugal. (Photo by Damien Poullenot/World Surf League)
PRAIA DE SUPERTUBOS, Peniche / Portugal (Saturday, March 16, 2024) –Today, Griffin Colapinto (USA) and Johanne Defay (FRA) have won the MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal presented by Corona, Stop No. 3 on the 2024 World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT), over Ethan Ewing (AUS) and Tyler Wright (AUS) respectively in the finals, held in four-to-six foot surf in an exciting fifth day of action in Portugal.
Competition resumed at dawn with the men’s Quarters and women’s Semis before taking a break over the lowest part of the tide. The event was called back ON with the building swell on the incoming tide and the day culminated with the event finals held before capacity-crowds at the iconic praia de Supertubos.
Colapinto Finds Super Tubes, Wins Second Supertubos Title
“It was weird, I started off strong and then Ethan and I were just trading off mistakes back and forth,” Colapinto said. “Then I found that first barrel and when I went for the turn I almost fell, was on both my knees and somehow made it back to my feet, and that switched the momentum. And then I got down the beach for that 9 and finished it off with a barrel.”
Griffin Colapinto (USA) had a brilliant start in the Final, finding two good scores right away while Ethan Ewing (AUS) was scouring the lineup for opportunities. The Australian fought back midway through with two backhand turns on a meaty left and came right back in the fight. Colapinto then found a great barrel on a rare right and packed a solid closeout turn to post an excellent 8.27 (out of a possible 10) and solidify his lead.
The Californian put the final nail in his opponent’s coffin with an insane barrel on his backhand this time for a near-perfect 9.67 and his second win at Supertubos, his career-fourth.
“It was really nice watching Crosby surf his heats. I was so invested in what he was doing that I felt like I was surfing twice as many heats,” Colapinto added. “I had a hip surgery in the off season and it took me almost three months to get back in the water. I put so much effort in and I thought it would pay off right away but in Hawaii I got two 9th. Sometimes you just have to trust it, now I have a win so I’m psyched.”
The 2022 winner in Peniche, Colapinto was unstoppable on finals day, taking out Joan Duru (FRA) and Gabriel Medina (BRA) on his way to the Final before putting on a barrel riding clinic for the win. Last year’s World No.3 has now taken over the rankings and will wear yellow heading to Australia, having secured his spot among the best for the back half of the season.
PENICHE, LEIRIA, PORTUGAL – MARCH 11: Jordy Smith of South Africa surfs in Heat 3 of the Round of 32 at the MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal on March 11, 2024 at Peniche, Leiria, Portugal. (Photo by Damien Poullenot/World Surf League)
Defay’s Backhand Comes Clutch for Win No.6 and First in Europe
“It’s overwhelming,” Defay said. “Waves changed and the swell arrived for sure, I think we both had similar strategies and maybe we both had boards a little bit small for these waves. I focused on the lefts obviously and was looking for two turns but in the end one was enough.”
Waves got scarce in the women’s Final and tested the nerves of two of the most experienced surfers in the field. Johanne Defay (FRA) was first to put a couple of decent scores on the board, applying pressure on her opponent Tyler Wright (AUS) as time slowly dripped away.
Both surfers focused on the lefts and at that game the French surfer from Reunion Island had the upper hand, applying her polished backhand turns in the right sections like she has done countless times to win big events. As time continued to slip away, the Australian was unable to find an open wall to work her magic and Defay claimed the win.
This marks Defay’s sixth career CT win, her first on European soil, and moved her into second place on the rankings ahead of the Australian leg. It also signals her official return to 100% form after a difficult season last year, plagued by an injury early on.
“Last year was fun and weird at the same time,” Defay added. “I really enjoyed my time at home even if I was injured, it was kind of a break that I deserved too. Coming back to contests it was hard to find my feet again and my fire but I worked hard and just wanted to show my injury didn’t take me out completely.”
Prior to today, Defay had never made it past the Quarters at Supertubos, but as lefts started pumping in the middle of the beach, the powerful regular foot reveled and dominated once again. With a solid start in Hawaii and back-to-back Quarterfinals, Defay’s win today puts her right on the heels of World No.1 Molly Picklum (AUS) in the rankings.
Ewing Claims Runner-Up, Ties Florence in Rankings No.2 Spot
Last year’s runner-up in the world, Ethan Ewing (AUS) posted his best result to date in Portugal but couldn’t quite convert all the way for a third CT win. He still showcased some of the event’s finest surfing to dispatch two ferocious goofies, Italo Ferreira (BRA) and Ramzi Boukhiam (MAR) on his way to the Final.
“It was super cool to surf the Final with Griffin, we’re really good friends,” Ewing said. “We haven’t had that many man-on-man heats together but they’re always super fun. When I came to Portugal I was really unhappy with my surfing but just to kind of pull through that and the cold water and the long travel was great.”
The Australian has also officially made the Mid-season Cut with this result and before heading home to Australia. Ewing and Colapinto had previously eliminated Crosby Colapinto (USA) and Gabriel Medina (BRA) respectively in their Semifinal matchups.
Two-Time World Champion Wright Back to Winning Form
After her worst season start since qualifying full time in 2011, two-time World Champion Tyler Wright (AUS) has put two third-round exits in her rearview mirror and found her pace in Portugal to reach the Final.
“It’s amazing, I feel like this has been a really key point for my year,” Wright stated. “It’s taken me a while to figure out some of the different changes that I’ve had going on. I’m really excited to be in Portugal, honestly, this is me and my wife’s favorite event all year, so thank you Portugal for having us, I really enjoyed myself.”
Open about health issues and the changes she has made to continue to progress in her career and life, Wright has definitely found her form again and will be a threat as she heads to Bells Beach where she is the back-to-back defending event winner.
Defay and Wright had previously eliminated Lakey Peterson (USA) and Tatiana Weston-Webb (BRA) respectively in their Semifinal matchups.
Medina’s Rampage Halted in Semis, World Champion is Back
After an Opening Round poor performance, three-time World Champion Gabriel Medina (BRA) found his groove again and started to build momentum at an event he’s extremely familiar with and has the full support of the local crowds. The Brazilian went on an absolute rampage through the rounds, posting 16.60, 17.16 and 18.00 heat totals (out of a possible 20) on his way to the Semis.
Despite a last-minute good effort, Medina came up just short against Colapinto in their Semis bout but this result has propelled him into 15th place on the rankings with a ton of momentum and confidence.
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