The year 1903 is recognised as the official birth of the South African Open Championship. It was first played for in 1893 but was really only a series of exhibition matches between very few professionals. But in 1903 the championship was contested over 36 holes in Port Elizabeth.
On 5 June 2008 Humewood Golf Club was dealt a bitter blow  when it was announced that SA Airways had pulled the plug on their sponsorship of the country‘s biggest golf tournament, the SA Open.
Following the huge success of the South African Open at Humewood in 2006, which saw record crowds line the fairways of the links, SAA announced that it would bring the championship back to Humewood in 2010.

But now that SAA has withdrawn from its association after six years, it seems Humewood‘s chances of hosting the tournament are very slim.

The 2010 SA Open is taking place at Durban Country Club in Durban.

Bring your golf clubs along on your next visit to Port Elizabeth and enjoy a superb round of golf on our amazing Humewood “Links” course.

For Port Elizabeth accommodation: Homeleigh Halt Guest House in Walmer, situated 14 km’s from the golf course, invites you to “be our guest.”

Nelson Mandela Bay (NMB)”Port Elizabeth” is proud to host 8 games during the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

12 June – 13:30  Korea Republic vs Greece
15 June – 16:00  Côte d’Ivoire vs Portugal
18 June – 13:30 Germany vs Serbia
21 June – 16:00 Chile vs Switzerland
23 June – 16:00 Slovenia vs England
26 June – 16:00 Round of 16: Team 1A vs Team 2B
02 July – 16:00 Quarter-finals    
10 July – 20:30 Play-off for third place     

Accommodation: Nelson Mandela Bay “Port Elizabeth” at Homeleigh Halt Guest House/Bed & Breakfast.

The practice match, scheduled to start at 11:00 forms part of the Korea Republic’s Training camp in South Africa which will also see them playing against Zambia at the Rand Stadium on Saturday 9 January 2010 and against Platinum Stars at the Royal Bofokeng Stadium on Tuesday,12 January 2010.
 
Having qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Korea Republic is using this training camp as an opportunity to get acquainted with local conditions ahead of the World Cup kick-off. As one of the teams drawn to play at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, this will also put them in good stead come the World Cup.
 
The team will land at our Airport on Wednesday, 13 January 2010 at 14:30.

Football/soccer lovers in general (Bay United Fans!) are encouraged to go to the Airport and welcome our visitors. Supporters are also encouraged to write friendly welcoming messages on placards and posters for the Koreans.

Korean Greetings:

Entrance to the match is free and  soccer lovers from all over the Bay are encouraged to bring their flags and vuvuzelas to the stadium to create a jovial and festive atmosphere.
Schools can also make arrangements for their soccer teams to go watch the game.
 
VIVA 2010!

KOREAN GREETINGS – meeting personally
Initial Meetings

When being introduced to a Korean person for the first time, it is custom to shake their hand and bow at the same time. The right hand is always used to shake with, while the left hand either helps the right hand or touches the right arm near the elbow. Instead of pumping the hand of the person one is meeting, most just clasp hands momentarily while bowing slightly at the waist.

Verbal greeting while this is being done: An-yung-ha-say-oh (literally “It goes peacefully”).

Among Koreans, it is very important that the left hand help in the hand shake by touching the right hand or the elbow. Using two hands when shaking hands, giving a glass of water or receiving something from another person shows respect. But don’t worry if you forget about doing this…Koreans understand that foreigners are not familiar with this concept.

KOREAN PHRASES
Meeting People
Nice to meet you = BAN-GAP SUP-NEE-DA
You’re welcome : gwaench’ansumnida
My name is : che irumun imnida
I come from : ch’onun e so watsumnida
Transport
I want to get off here : yogiyae naeryojuseyo
I want to go to : e kago shipsumnida
Take me to my hotel : hotel-lo gap-see-da
Accomodation
May I see the room?: pang’ul polsu issoyo?
Do you have anything cheaper?: tossan kot sun opsumnigga?
Please give me my key: yolse jom juseyo
Where is the bathroom : byun-soh uh-dee-yip-nee-ga
Food
Restaurant: shikdang
I’m vegetarian: ch’aeshik juwi imnida
The menu, please: menyurul poyo juseyo
The bill please: kyesanso juseyo
In a shop
How much does it cost?: olmayeyo?
That’s too expensive: nomu pissayo
Can I have a discount?: chim ssage juseyo

Some handy Korean Phrases to cut out and keep.

June 12: Korea Republic v Greece, Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth

Group C

June 23: England v Slovenia, Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth

Group D

June 18: Germany v Serbia, Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth

Group G

June 15: Ivory Coast v Portugal, Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth

Group H

June 21: Spain v Honduras, Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth

South Africa’s Academy Award winner Charlize Theron will be the guest presenter assisting FIFA Secretary General Jérôme Valcke during the Final Draw for the 2010 FIFA World Cup at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) on Friday, 4 December 2009.

 They will be joined on stage by a star-studded line-up of sports celebrities, including football star David Beckham (England), one of only a few players to score in at least three consecutive FIFA World Cups, Haile Gebrselassie (Ethiopia), two-time Olympic gold medallist and nine-time athletics world champion, Makhaya Ntini, the first black player in the South African cricket team,  John Smit, the captain of rugby world champions South Africa and Bafana Bafana player Matthew Booth.

Jacob Zuma, President of the Republic of South Africa, and FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter will welcome the audience at the beginning of the 90-minute live show.

Guests on the day will include Issa Hayatou, Chairman of the Organising Committee for the FIFA World CupTM, Nobel Peace Prize winners Frederik W. de Klerk and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, as well as former football icons Franz Beckenbauer, Michel Platini, Eusebio and Roger Milla.

The majority of the 32 coaches of the qualified teams are expected to be present at the draw.

Former South African President and Nobel Peace Prize winner Nelson Mandela, one of the architects of the first African World Cup, will address the audience by video message

In one corner are those who hate the vuvuzela, and expect it to blight the World Cup.  Poster-boy for the anti-vuvuzela movement is Spanish midfielder Xabi Alonso, who believes the instrument does nothing for the atmosphere and should be banned. He is supported by numerous mostly European fans who have been venting on online forums across the internet:

These things make among the more annoying noises on the planet. There’s no room for rhythm or beat or anything like it, it’s just the same nails-on-the-chalkboard monotone honk, over and over from all sides with absolutely no regard for what’s going on in the game or with other people using the same instrument. Maybe South Africans find that appealing. Nobody else does and it absolutely does detract from the viewing or game experience.

In the other corner are the majority of South Africans, and anyone else who may feel a bit annoyed by the arrogance of a call to ban the instrument. For the moment Sepp Blatter seems to be in this camp, but enough international pressure may force him to reconsider.

To be fair, the vuvuzela is an extremely abrasive sound, especially if you haven’t grown up knowing it as the sound of soccer. For this reason, most South Africans would probably be happy to make some compromises regarding their use of the vuvuzela, if engaged in a respectful manner. But vitriol and demands from vuvuzela-haters is unlikely to result in a satisfactory result.

Lets hope whatever FIFA decides, regarding the fate of the vuvuzela, that it does so with an eye on compromise. It may be that many foreigners are showing a precious, parochial streak towards this issue, but if they are really that unhappy about it, it may be wise to humour them. It would be disappointing for the World Cup to be ruined by their sulking.

Then again, maybe an encounter with a few thousand vuvuzelas will force the world, and soccer, to actually adopt some of the ideals of “ tolerance, respect, etc. “ that it constantly preaches.

With just over one year to the kickoff of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, this past weekend saw four major teams qualifying for the tournament, as well as the opening of South Africa’s first newly-built stadium for the event.

From the Asian zone Japan, Korea Republic and Australia became the first teams to qualify for Africa’s first World Cup next year, while the Netherlands became the first European team to qualify.

The Organising Committee’s CEO Dr Danny Jordaan was delighted at the calibre of the teams that qualified for the tournament this weekend.

The Netherlands, Japan, Korea Republic and Australia are big teams  on and off the field. Their qualification will begin to shape the great atmosphere we envisage for the event. The Dutch, clearly from a football point of view, have some of the most exciting players in the world. And off the field, Dutch fans “ dressed in their sea of orange ” are synonymous with bringing their special energy to any major event in the world. We’re looking forward to welcoming these exciting teams and their supporters, said Jordaan.

To cap a landmark weekend for the 2010 FIFA World Cup Organising Committee South Africa, the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in the country’s Eastern Cape Province became the first newly-built stadium to be officially opened for the tournament -  a year ahead of the tournament.

For us the newly-built 2010 FIFA World Cup stadium is a huge boost. With the four stadiums about to host the FIFA Confederations Cup ready, this brings to five the number of 2010 FIFA World Cup stadiums now complete a year to go to the event. And all the other five new arenas are also shaping up nicely to be ready well ahead of  the event”, said Dr Jordaan, who attended the stadium’s opening which was  attended by 25 000 residents of the city.