Mqondisi Dube
24 November 2008
Selebi-Phikwe — The name Johannes Moilwa is not likely to elicit an immediate reaction from most people. But in local golf circles, he has won several accolades for his meteoric rise in the game.
Moilwa has defied the odds to rise to the top of the game. Because of grinding poverty in his family, he did not receive much education. His fairy tale story reads like that of Lee Trevino, a caddie-turned-golfer from Texas in the United States, who grew up in a poor family.
Trevino was raised by his mother, a domestic hand and his grandfather, a gravedigger. His father was never part of his life. Trevino's family stayed in a four-roomed house without electricity and he was forced to quit school after the seventh grade.
He took up employment as a groundskeeper and worked as a caddie on the side. He was eight by the time. Trevino would regularly play a few holes at the end of the day. He transformed into a brilliant golfer, described by many commentators as having an unusual swing.
The story of Trevino has striking similarities to that of Moilwa who was born in Kanye 35 years ago. Moilwa moved to Selebi-Phikwe in 1985, when he was just 12. Growing up in a poor family, he was forced to drop his studies after the fourth grade to scrounge for odd jobs. In 1986, he got his first 'job' as a caddie to one Dennis Smith.
"My mother was struggling to raise us and my father had passed away. It was not easy to make ends meet," recalls Moilwa.
His first pay in the Botswana Central Open was P1.50, then considered a decent amount. Moilwa managed to buy sugar, a paraffin lamp and supper for the family. He vividly remembers that Smith was not amused by his caddying skills on the day he started. "He was annoyed and told me that I should not be his caddie again. But I told him that I was doing it because I came from a poor family."
Moilwa said Smith told him that he could have paid P3 if he was a good caddie. Though Smith did not want Moilwa as his caddie, he had no alternative but to stick with him. After the tournament, Smith dedicated sometime to teach Moilwa how to become a good caddie. In two weeks, he mastered the techniques of the trade. He became a caddie for Allan Langson after Smith told him to look for another player as his caddie had returned.
With Langson, Moilwa's earnings jumped to P6.
The two worked together until 1989 when Langson left. The caddie's life changed completely with the arrival of a certain Mike O'Hire. Instead of the P7.50 paid for a round, O'Hire gave Moilwa P8. But there were troublesome caddies who usually took away his earnings.
"I always asked O'Hire to give me a lift home and then he will pay me on the way to avoid the big guys taking away my earnings," Moilwa said. In the mornings, he worked as a caddy to the women who gave him menial jobs, clothes and at times took him for Christmas shopping.
After 18 years of caddying, Moilwa dropped a bombshell when he told O'Hire that he wanted to start playing golf. Naturally, O'Hire was shell-shocked but reluctantly gave him the green light. Moilwa practised golf during his spare time using improvised equipment.
After announcing his intention to start playing golf, the O'Hire family gave him clubs. "I remember O'Hire challenged me to a match and said if I beat him, he would give me P500. I shot 37 on nine holes and that was the best score in the club," he recalls. Moilwa said O'Hire took the score to the club and it was immediately agreed that he should be sponsored to play.
In 2005, then little known Moilwa came second in the BP-sponsored Central Open. A year later, he won the club championship beating seasoned campaigners, Oganeditse Marata and Shane Granger (senior) by three strokes.
This marked his arrival on the big stage.
He has since posted some swashbuckling performances that have seen him retain the club title for three consecutive seasons. In the same year, he came second in the Barclays Open behind O'Neil Mokgosi. He cemented his growing reputation by winning the BP Central Open. He retained the club championship title last year and came third in the BP Central Open.
This year, he won the club championship and the Central Open ahead of Marata, Granger and Moola Keabetswe from Lobatse.Moilwa has managed to thrive at a club teeming with talented players such as young sensation, Leroy Pearmain, Marata, Granger, Gabriel Tjitjo and Palalani Moitlhobogi.
He pays glowing tribute to O'Hire for the role he played in transforming him into a professional golfer. The O'Hire family still provides him with golf equipment and pays for his travel and accommodation expenses. Moilwa now works at BCL mine in Selebi-Phikwe.
He told those who view golf as an exclusive sport that they are wrong. "Golf is not for the rich. I am not rich but I am a top golfer. I am prepared to assist anyone who wants to learn golf as a way of paying back," Moilwa said.
The story of Moilwa has some resemblance to other highly successful caddies-turned-golfers like India's Prasad Chowrasia, Mardan Mamat, Ali Sher and Feroz Ali.
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