The Els Club Copperleaf

Overview: The Els Club Copperleaf has an 18-hole championship course in Centurion, designed by Ernie Els across Highveld grassland, wetlands and open parkland. At about 7,315 metres from the championship tees and par 72, it has the scale of a modern tournament layout, but the design also depends on the natural movement of the land. Broad fairways, strategic bunkering and water corridors create a course that rewards a clear plan from the tee through to the large, carefully positioned greens.

History: Copperleaf opened in 2007 as the first Els Club in South Africa, combining Ernie Els’s course-design identity with a large residential estate. The project was built around wetlands and the existing Highveld landscape rather than treating the site as a blank canvas. Copperleaf later hosted the Tshwane Open on the European Tour in 2013 and 2014, giving the course an early place in professional golf.

Did You Know? The wetlands are central to Copperleaf’s identity and help distinguish it from a dry, purely sculpted estate course. They create habitat and visual separation between holes, while also influencing which side of the fairway gives a safe route into the next shot.