Diamonds Leisure Beach & Golf Resort formerly Leisure Lodge Hotel Resort was opened in 1972 and acquired shortly afterwards by Dr. Wilhelm Meister. He was the man with the vision to build an 18-hole golf course which started in 1992. The design and building were done under the supervision of golf course designer, Thomas Fjastad (Tommy). The primary obstacle in the building of the golf course was the huge amount of coral covering the site, and a further 100 acres of land had to be purchased in the nearby Shimba hills with the sole purpose of supplying topsoil for the course. Sadly, Dr. Meister left to play higher courses on 30th June, 1993, and never got to see his dream complete. The lake at our signature hole 15, a challenging par 3, was named in his honor, Lake Wilhelm.
The current back nine holes were built in 1993, with the front nine being completed around 1998. The late George Barbour helped in the construction by providing his tractor for some of the work. 1998 was also the same year that the first ever tournament was held, the Diani Beach Masters. This was a two-day competition where both professionals and amateurs met the challenge of this amazing course.
By January 1997 the club had enrolled 31 members. The first Golf Captain was Paul Krijnen with Sylvia Kampa as the Lady Captain.
The Golf Club celebrated its 10th anniversary on 30th August 2003, with a tree planting ceremony by Rajni Kantaria. (The Kantaria family are the current owners of the resort).
The first ever Hole in One was at hole 5, a par 3, and was achieved by Luc Collette on 24th October, 1998. He was 13 years old. A very proud moment!
Diamonds Leisure Golf Club has also hosted the prestigious Africa Zone VI Tournament which included South Africa, Namibia, Kenya, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Mozambique and Mauritius. This event was held in 2002 and was attended by committee members of the Royal and Ancient.
From the junior section of the club emerged Hiten Kumar who became the 2002 Kenya Junior Champion at the age of 15 with a one handicap. He also won the Diani Beach Masters at the age of 12! He is currently the Vice Captain of the Club.
