WORDS KAI COATES | OPENING IMAGE ERIK KNUTSON
Meet a tennis player, big wave surfer, rugby player and golfer who have reached great heights in their sport and are now living in our town
GO BIG OR GO HOME
Our coastal town is a core spot for many professional and up-and-coming surfers. You may have seen a few daring surfers brave our bigger waves, but are you ready to meet someone who rides and competes in the biggest, most dangerous swells? Grant Baker (also fondly known as “Twig”), a three-time Big Wave World Champion, does just that!
Grant was born and bred on the North Coast. With his father being a fisherman and his family spending most of their time on the beach, it was inevitable that he would love getting into the water. He first started out bodyboarding at a young age and then progressed to getting on a surfboard.
Growing up with a crazy bunch of friends who would push each other to go out when the waves were big sparked Grant’s passion for the adrenaline-filled big wave surfing.
From there, he surfed on the South Coast and at Jeffery’s Bay, where he met other surfers who told him that he would enjoy the big waves at Dungeons in Cape Town. It was at Dungeons that he met U.S. surfers who suggested he should visit Mavericks in California. In 2006, he won the Mavericks big wave surfing event! This launched his career, which took him all over the world.
Competitively, Grant has three Big Wave World titles and two Mavericks Big Wave Championship titles. He has also won in Portugal at Nazaré, one of the world’s largest big wave surfing areas, and at other events in Spain, Mexico, Chile and Dungeons. Grant has received ten Biggest Wave Awards, which are awarded to the annual best wave. He also has his Springbok colours for surfing.
As a big wave surfer, the question everyone wants to know is what’s the scariest wave he has surfed, and the answer is at Nazaré in Portugal. “It’s a beach break, so it’s random with no channel. It’s a pretty exciting place to surf, and I go back there every year for a few weeks. Everywhere is kind of intimidating, but the more time you spend at these places and the more familiar you get with the area, the more you can control that fear and concentrate on surfing.”
Nowadays, Grant as been involved in documentaries where he is either a featured athlete on the show or takes other athletes to different parts of the world. Growing up on our coast, he always knew he would settle here. “I love everything about living in Ballito. The long stretches of beach, warm waters, and great surf – it’s an amazing place to raise a family.”
EYE ON THE BALL
Any average Joe knows about Wimbledon in the UK, the oldest tennis tournament in the world. Well, did you know that we have a local former tennis star who played at this tournament?
Meet Kevin Ullyett. Originally from Zimbabwe, his family moved to the Umhlanga area where he attended Atholton Primary School. Like most young boys, he was obsessed with everything about sports, and his sports-loving parents nurtured this passion, specifically in tennis. He was coached by the renowned Peter Waters, who told him to pursue tennis. In high school, Kevin took his talent further. At just 18 years old, he became a pro tennis player.
Kevin was offered a university scholarship in America but declined and continued his tennis career. Between 1990 and 2010, his career accumulated many wins and experiences he will never forget. Just a few of his achievements will leave a lasting impression.
In 2001, Kevin won The US Open in the men’s doubles category. The next year, he won the Australian Open Mixed Doubles, followed by the Australian Open men’s doubles in 2005, and ranked a high of fourth in men’s doubles worldwide! He also made the finals at the famous Wimbledon tennis tournament in 2002 and 2008, which he said was his favourite ground. Over his 20-year career, Kevin achieved a total of 34 tournament wins worldwide. His life revolved and still does revolve around tennis. Throughout Kevin’s career as a professional tennis player, his parents Dayne and Rob, drove and pushed him to excel, for which he is truly grateful.
Recently, Kevin opened Padel Pros with Ryan Venter and launched Eden Padel in Salt Rock, after discovering that the sport was blowing up nationwide. “I have always loved the North Coast. Seeing friends living great lifestyles here, I knew I wanted the same for my family.” After enjoying a holiday here in 2014, Kevin and his family packed up from London, UK and moved to our town. He hasn’t looked back since and loves seeing his children grow up in a fantastic community.
HEAD IN THE GAME
Whether you watch sports or not, as South Africans, it’s difficult not to love a good rugby game. Meet the well-known Jon Paul (JP) Rodger Pieterson. He is a former Sharks and Springbok rugby player who, together with his teams, has brought people in our country together to support South Africa during our rugby games.
JP was born in Stellenbosch and raised in a rugby-loving family. Their weekends revolved around the sport. So, he grew up in the thick of eating, sleeping and breathing rugby!
“We would get up early in the mornings to watch my dad play rugby. He also made sure I watched the games and understood how it is played. I even remember one of my first presents as a kid being a rugby ball.” JP went on to play for the Sharks for 16 years as a professional rugby player.
“Obviously, as a young boy, you dream about playing professional rugby and playing for the Sharks, which was one of my first goals. Then, next was to play for the Springboks.
To become a part of the Springbok team is a big achievement!” During JP’s career, he was a player for the Springboks team that won the Rugby World Cup in Durban in 2007. “This is one of my best memories and by far the greatest career achievement.”
Now, JP is the Sharks Juniors (under 20s) coach and an assisting coach for the Currie Cup Competition. On the coaching side, his most significant achievement is winning the under 20s competition in March 2023, which is a massive achievement for a young coach like himself.
After living in Durban and being overseas for over four years, JP and his family wanted to move further up the coast to our northern shores. They have planted their roots in the Sheffield area and are very happy with their decision to move to our town.
SWING EASY
Ballito has a lot to offer for all types of sports lovers, especially golfers, with quite a few amazing golf courses to enjoy. Meet Warren Abery, a professional golfer.
Warren grew up in a very sporty family. When he was in school, he participated in so many sports that he eventually had to choose only one to pursue further. At age 14, he fell in love with golf. His parents supported him so much and ensured he practised the sport, and it all paid off in the end. Warren excelled reasonably quickly. At 19, he represented Natal. In 1995, he won the South African Amateur Championship, which led him to play for South Africa in 1995/1996 and become a professional golfer in 1997. Warren got to play worldwide, and from 1999 to 2000, he tried to break through as a golfer to get on the global tours. In 2005, he won the South African PGA Championship.
The next year, his dream came true! Warren was privileged to play on the PG European Tour. He played in the British Open and World Golf Championship, as well as in events alongside Tiger Woods when he was in his prime. In 2012, Warren got to play in the European Tour again, and at that time, he had a two-year-old daughter Jess and a newborn boy Bryce back at home with his very supportive wife, Kirsten. Throughout his golfing career, Warren won seven times with 77 top-10 finishes on the Sunshine Tour. “The hardest part was being away from my family,” he shares. In 2013 and 2016, he had his last great years as a regular player on the Sunshine tour before he bagged his clubs to be more present in his kids’ lives, especially at their young age.
Now, Warren (still a professional player with a lifetime membership on the Sunshine Tour) still hits the green. Two years ago, he opened House of Golf with his business partner, Micky Hough. They have created the ultimate golf store for all your golfing needs and more. Recently, Warren’s nephew, Ryan Bradbury, has joined as a business partner. With Warren’s infinite knowledge and experience in the world of golf, they have a store perfect for all types of golfers.