Occasionally in life, you meet someone who appears to be driven not by money, but by the desire to be the best person they can be.

Jonathan Menteath, is one such person.

Born in Durban, South Africa, Menteath grew-up playing golf at the Durban Country Club as he recalls: “I was fortunate enough to become a junior member there through my grandfather, who was a member of the club for 50 years.”

By the age of 15, he was playing off scratch, and his talent was spotted by his provincial team pitting him against the likes of Charl Schwartzel and Thomas Aiken. In his final year at school, with aspirations to make it on Tour, Menteath moved to a golf academy in Johannesburg to sharpen his game, yet it wasn’t to be.

“As happens sometimes in competitive sport, I got a bit of burnout,” he admits with honesty. “So, I actually stopped playing golf for two years, but still was able to coach, and that’s basically where I got into my work career.”

In 2006, Menteath began his PGA apprenticeship at Zebula Country Club just outside Johannesburg, which at the time was better known as a game reserve than a golf course.

“I was quite ambitious at that stage of my career, and I’ve always taken the stance of not necessarily chasing the money but chasing good places to work, because I knew it would put me in good stead for the rest of my career.

“There were roles that I took early on in my career that were lower-paying roles, but at the right club. And that is how I progressed,” he said.

“I went from Zebula to The River Club. The River Club is known as the CEO’s club in South Africa. So, it was a lower-paying role than some others that I’ve been offered, but I knew it was the right club. For example, the only two members of Augusta in South Africa, are also members of The River Club.

“And from there, I went down to Pinnacle Point in Mossel Bay as the pro shop manager. And then the owner of the business that owned the retail arm at Pinnacle Point asked me to go and, for lack of a better word, stabilise the retail business at Arabella.

“And once that had happened and the director of golf there was retiring, they put me forward as the new director of golf because it was a good succession.”

Menteath spent five happy years at Arabella, before his growing reputation as an up-and-coming club manager put him in pole position for a role he didn’t even know was available. Relatively close to South Africa geographically, Mauritius is a four-hour flight from the mainland, and is a popular destination for many golfers.

“I used to bring our members over for tours to Mauritius,” explains Menteath. “And I guess it was just a case of being in the right place at the right time.”

And that place was The Heritage Golf Club, part of Heritage Resorts, and nestled alongside a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and arguably, one of the world’s most sought-after golf destinations.

“I recall bringing a tour group out, and apparently my name had been thrown around once or twice for the position to replace the manager who had resigned, and they were actively looking. I never knew that I’d been sort of earmarked.

“Whilst I was here, they approached me. And at first, to be honest with you, I didn’t consider it. I didn’t know much about what a golf manager would do in Mauritius. And I thought being at a top five golf course in South Africa was a fairly decent position, which it was.

“But when they explained the role to me and what it would entail, it was a nice progression and a good opportunity from our family life as well.”

Moving a young family onto a small island in the Indian Ocean had its challenges, but his philosophy was to embrace the change which would be for the betterment of his career as well as his family life.

“I think the key was learning to be humble enough to adopt the culture and the ways of the new country,” he said.

“I think often, I guess, as leaders or GMs of golf clubs, it might be natural to sort of impose your way or how you’ve done things in a different country, and they don’t necessarily work.

“For me, I first had to learn about the culture, adopt the culture, go through the teething phase of getting used to things, and then seeing how best I could manage within that culture. And that’s kind of the philosophy that I’ve adopted for the last seven years of being here.

“You do need to realise that when you go and get your permits or whatever you’re going to get, that it might take a little bit longer. But in a way, it’s got a calming effect because you realise that not everything in life needs to be fast paced.

“And from that point of view, it’s been quite nice just to reflect a bit more on, I guess, what’s really important in life.”

And Menteath should know a thing or two about obtaining permits, as in 2023, the second course at The Heritage – La Réserve Golf Links – will officially open for play. The original Le Château course opened in 2005 and is a DP World Tour venue.

Designed by Peter Matkovich, the course features an 18-hole championship course with generous fairways that sweep down to the ocean.

Currently under construction, La Réserve will be the first and only contemporary links in the Indian Ocean, offering far-reaching views over tropical bays, sandy beaches and the ocean.

Once again designed by Peter Matkovich, but this time in association with Louis Oosthuizen as Menteath explains: “Louis came out in 2017 and played the tournament, had a look at the site, gave his thoughts to Peter, and then they’ve actually formed a company called Matko57.

“Louis’s company is Louis57 – the 57 comes from when he shot 57 in the tournament – so they’ve put those two together. I suspect that Louis will get into more course design as his career progresses.

“We’ve got a very good close relationship,” states Menteath. “And there’s certainly been a lot of tweaks from the initial design which has changed quite drastically.

“And that, I think, is one of Peter’s strengths in that he has the philosophy of listening to the land. He doesn’t use a computer. He doesn’t plug the design in and that’s the design and it stays. As he’s building, he goes along, so he’s more of an artist than a technical designer.”

Designed as a ‘Scottish-stye’ links course, with walking preferred, the site starts from an elevated level and cascades down towards the ocean and the site of the new clubhouse, due to start construction shortly.

“The best way to describe it is almost a ski slope style course, where you’d have to be lifted to the top.

“We will have a dedicated car path, not part of the golf course, just the path to get to the first tee. So, we’ll put you on a buggy, drive you up to the first tee, which will take about ten minutes, and then once you’re on the first tee, the adventure begins.

“You can walk the course, which we’ll promote.”

Aged just 38, Menteath has plenty to occupy him in Mauritius over the next couple of years, but as his reputation continues to soar, no doubt a new adventure will again present itself when he least expects it.