The Nelson Mandela Invitational was a charity

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

tournament which took place annually in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

from 2000 until 2006. It was named in honor of former South African President

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela ( , ; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the first president of South Africa f ...

, and hosted by South Africa's most successful professional golfer

Gary Player Gary James Player (born 1 November 1935) is a South African retired professional golfer who is widely considered to be one of the greatest golfers of all time. During his career, Player won nine major championships on the regular tour and nine ...

. Player and Mandela appeared at the event almost every year to accept proceeds on behalf of the Children's Fund and the Player Foundation who were equal beneficiaries. Just prior to the 2007 edition, the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund withdrew their support citing concerns over Player's involvement with the design of a golf course in Burma. Both Mandela and Desmond Tutu subsequently accepted Gary Player's position and statement on Burma and requested that the event continue, however the Children's Fund CEO refused to do so and thus forfeited on the name and future charitable funds raised through the tournament. The event continued as the Gary Player Invitational until 2013. The field was made up of eight teams of four, each consisting of a senior professional, a regular tour professional, a celebrity and a businessman. The teams competed for the Alliance Medal, in which the best two scores of the four players counted on each hole. A second better-ball competition for the professionals was staged, with the best score of the two counting on each hole.

Winners

Pro-Am Team Tournament (2000–2013)

Gary Player Team Invitational: (4 player team) Nelson Mandela Team Invitational: (4 player team)

Winners

Professional Tournament (2000–2011)

Gary Player Invitational Nelson Mandela Invitational

References

External links

Gary Player Invitational – South Africa
(Past Results) {{Nelson Mandela Golf tournaments in South Africa Unofficial money golf tournaments