Company History
In 1973 Peter Matkovich and family moved to South Africa from Rhodesia (Zimbabwe), and settled at Circle Golf Club, Pinetown. Soon thereafter they moved to Umhlali Country Club where he fulfilled the role of club professional, playing professional and course superintendent. Playing all three roles was fairly normal for the times, unlike today. Umhlali was then only a 9-hole course and the club was set to add another 9 to complete Umhlali as a full 18-hole course. With extensive experience gained from playing the tour locally and abroad, Peter took on the job of designing and building the new holes and at the same time redesigning many of the existing holes. The new course opened in 1975 and was Peter's first foray into golf course design and construction, an experience that was to open many doors in the future.
A few years later Peter was appointed course architect of Worcester Golf Course. Peter's grounding, as a player and course superintendent, and his passion for the game were natural ingredients in his evolution to a course architect and designer. However in an economic climate that saw many courses closing, Peter found it very difficult to grow wings and fledge his growing desire to design and build courses.
In the early '90s long time friend and leading golf professional, Dale Hayes, teamed up with Peter to help promote the business. Dale had played very successfully in Europe and America and was quickly becoming a well-known and respected personality in South Africa, both on and off the course. With Dale's communication and marketing skills and Peter's design and construction skills they were an ideal association and thus formed Matkovich & Hayes.
Peter's first appointment was San Lameer in 1990 so he began gathering a team to do the job and at the same time was laying the foundation of the company. Those staff stayed with Peter for many years together the company was ready to do business. In the ten years to follow, Matkovich & Hayes built close on ten courses that cemented them as one of the leading design and construction companies in South Africa today.
In May 2006 WBHO Construction bought a controlling stake in Matkovich & Hayes. Both companies saw areas where they could benefit from each other and it further strengthened Matkovich & Hayes' position in the market. Although Matkovich & Hayes now falls under the wing of WBHO, Peter is still based in Ballito where he has his design offices. Dale Hayes remains a great friend and someone Peter consults for his valuable observations. Since the early '90s the team has become a tight-knit family and a multi-disciplinary group, bound together by loyalty, with trusted associates that design and build world class golf courses locally and internationally.
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Aerial view of Umhlali Country Club