While fans often bash the on-course mistakes of golfers, the course itself, for an upcoming DP World Tour event, recently became the center of criticism.

Before the 115th Investec South African Open Championship, which is set to be played at Stellenbosch Golf Club from February 26 to March 1, 2026, the DP World Tour shared a video of the course on its official Instagram account.

The video focused on the rough of the course, which took aback a plethora of fans. The length and density of the grass on it were enough to swallow a golf ball completely and make it almost invisible. The DP World Tour warned the Investec SA Open Championship contestants in the caption, mentioning, "Beware of the thick rough #InvestecSAOpen"

The deep rough at Stellenbosch is made of kikuyu and veld grass. That mix is very thick and sticky. It can grab the golf club, stop the ball from spinning properly, and make it really hard to hit the ball cleanly.

Even the course manager has said that normal grass-cutting machines struggle to cut it. They need stronger rotary blade machines just to keep the grass under control.

Several fans weren't happy with the idea of a rough with such dense vegetation. One of them mentioned, “No Tour event has it like that. That’s bad turf management, truthfully. The superintendent gets the blame there.”

Another said, “That’s not rough, that’s a bush.” while a third one warned, “Kikuyu grass? They’re in for a tough week.”

Well, the overgrown rough might cause players to focus more on distance, but that may not be enough to perform well on the Stellenbosch Golf course.

The DP World Tour Course Demands More Than Just Distance Management

Stellenbosch last held the South African Open in 1999. Now it is back on the DP World Tour, updated for modern play. The course measures 7,213 yards and plays as a par 70, designed to reward accurate shots over raw power.

Making a course this tough isn’t new in professional golf. Hard setups often punish shots that go off line, so players need accuracy more than power. The rule is simple. Miss the fairway, and you pay the price. But here, the grass is really thick, so golfers have to change their strategy from the very first hole.

The setup already tells a story. Players might rethink their tee shots, aiming for position instead of distance. Getting out of trouble is harder. Every shot matters more, and precision is key.

Patrick Reed enters the week as the clear favorite, coming off wins at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic and the Qatar Masters earlier in 2026. For him and the rest of the 156-player field, handling Stellenbosch’s thick kikuyu rough could be more important than how far they can hit the ball.

Do you think Stellenbosch’s rough is a fair test, or is it too extreme? Let us know in the comments.

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Written by

Sneha Abraham

Edited by

Souvik Roy