Staff WriterSouth African senior golf is getting the shake-up it’s long deserved with the launch of the Sunshine Legends Tour, a fresh chapter complete with a slick new brand identity, revamped leadership, and a headline partnership with Srixon. It’s a move that promises to celebrate the game’s history while building something sustainable for the future.
The Sunshine Legends Tour has made its intentions clear: to create a thriving circuit for the country’s senior professionals, while collaborating closely with Europe’s Legends Tour on future tournament tie-ups that could put South Africa’s veterans back on the global stage.
Among its early headline acts, the South African Senior Open hosted by James Kingston will take pride of place at Plettenberg Golf Club from 10–12 December 2025.
Hot on its heels is the inaugural Winelands Classic, a 72-hole pro-am tournament set across Robertson and Worcester in early November. Two dates, one unmistakable message: senior golf in South Africa is very much alive and swinging.
Ian Smith, Commissioner of the Sunshine Legends Tour, says this is just the beginning. “The Sunshine Legends Tour is about legacy and heritage. It’s about celebrating the golfers who were all household names in this country, and who through their incredible achievements created the stories golf fans still tell to this day, and which is a valuable part of the history of South African golf.
It’s a proud moment for us to launch this new era in the senior game, and we’re thankful to Srixon South Africa for being our partner in this.
“Our Board is hard at work on a 2026 schedule that will also showcase a wide range of new sponsors and Tour partners.”
Srixon’s Managing Director, Louise Cooper, is equally enthusiastic about the partnership that’s setting the scene for a new chapter. “We are absolutely excited to team up with the new era of Board members and create some magic for the Sunshine Legends Tour,” said Cooper.
Thomas Abt, Commissioner of the Sunshine Tour, called it a landmark moment. “We wish the Sunshine Legends Tour all of the best as it starts its own journey to becoming a fully independent and sustainable Tour, and led by a passionate Board that has the interests of senior professional golf at heart and wants to see this area of the game flourish.”
And if anyone knows a thing or two about flourishing careers, it’s James Kingston. A 22-time tournament winner, Kingston belongs to the rare club of players to have lifted both the South African Open and the South African Senior Open trophies.
“I feel very proud, together with so many of my fellow professionals, to have contributed to the growth of South African golf through our careers. I turned professional in 1989, which is a lifetime ago.
I won my first tournament in Polokwane and my first-place cheque was R4 000. It was one of the greatest moments of my career to win the South African Open in 2007 against some of the best players in the world, and then to also win the South African Senior Open was just as special.
“The Sunshine Legends Tour will hopefully be a worthy platform to pay tribute to all of the wonderful careers that have helped to shape South African golf and allow our senior professionals to play more regularly and compete in proper tournaments,” he said.
As host of the South African Senior Open, Kingston is determined to spotlight both the players and the community.
“Plettenberg Bay Golf Club is really one of those hidden gems of South African golf and one of the most beautiful courses on the Garden Route. I think that’s why I wanted to get involved in this.
It’s about building something special that can also mean something for the local community in Plettenberg Bay.”
With fresh branding, heavyweight backing, and a calendar designed to showcase both legends and local talent, the Sunshine Legends Tour is setting out to honour the past while carving a new path forward.
Senior golf in South Africa isn’t fading quietly—it’s stepping onto the tee box with intent.
