Dimension Data and Standard Bank join forces at the 2023 Pro-Am

Dimension Data a leading IT solutions and technology provider is set to host its next level four-day Pro-Am Sunshine Tour and European Challenge Tour event between 08-12 February 2023 in partnership with Official Financial Services Partner Standard Bank. Bringing inclusivity to life, the golfing tournament will focus strongly on the development and performances of amateur and professional women golfers from South Africa and Europe.

Hosted in Fancourt, George, the event brings together Dimension Data’s and Standard Bank’s top business partners and the finest golfing talent, providing players with the opportunity to play like a pro, with professionals, and for decision-makers across Emerging Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and the USA to connect and network in a highly engaging environment.

This year sees some exciting changes, starting with the playing field, as 2023 will be the first time that both the men’s and women’s tournaments will be at the same venue with women playing on the Montagu and Outenigue courses at Fancourt. The event will feature 156 professional men and 156 amateur men and 40 professional ladies and 40 amateur ladies. Nompumelelo Mokou, Managing Director Southern Africa at Dimension Data explains: “This year we are committed to elevating women’s sport as previously ladies were not front and centre of the big event. This is something that we are passionate about addressing in 2023.’’

Unlike previous years, the Dimension Data Ladies’ Pro-Am will receive the same level of television exposure on SuperSport – the channel will be showing the event live over the four days for both the ladies’ and men’s fields. This shift is not only to ensure that the ladies’ event gains the same status as the men’s event, but to create more opportunities within the sport for women and make it more sustainable, giving more women the opportunity to take up the sport on a professional level.

Standard Bank are the perfect partner as they share the same commitment to promoting ladies golf as Dimension Data. Both companies are invested in growing the sport, creating more opportunities for women, and celebrating women’s talent.

Sanah Gumede, Head of Wealth and Investment, Standard Bank South Africa, says: “We are an avid supporter of human endeavour across spheres of life and are deeply passionate about Africa’s growth and the realisation of the potential of her people. We are driven to play an active role in removing barriers to progress. With a long track record of supporting sports in this country, we are privileged to have this opportunity to partner with the Pro-Am. It is a unique format and a prestigious event with Fancourt providing a particular challenge and demanding the very best of the player’s skill. We are also very excited to play a part in driving the Pro-Am into this new chapter – a chapter that drives the imperative of active parity between genders in courses played, media coverage and pay.”

Some key facts about the event:

• SuperSport will broadcast the four-day live broadcast from 08-12 February 2023.
• Ladies will play the Montagu and Outeniqua courses with the male players.
• Further elevation of the event is underway to become a Ladies European Tour co-sanctioned event as of 2024.
• Sustainable change remains the focus with meaningful contributions to Birdies for Rhino and together with Standard Bank, supporting local initiatives through our Partner Programme.

“The Pro-Am is a platform for making connections, building partnerships and exploring opportunities that drive sustainable change. This premier golf event allows us to showcase the strength of our partnership and value of our technology solutions to existing and potential clients,” adds Mokou.

Dimension Data will continue to blend its passion for sport and the development of a more diverse playing field. In 2022, Dimension Data’s parent company NTT extended its technology sponsorship of the Tour de France, to become the Official Technology Partner to Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. This means that NTT will now support the A.S.O. at four of its female events, including Paris-Roubaix Femmes avec Zwift, Flèche Wallonne Femmes, and Liège-Bastogne-Liège Femmes.

_{About Dimension data}

_{Dimension Data is a leading IT infrastructure and services company, operating across Middle East and Africa. Dimension Data is 100% owned by the NTT group, a global technology and business solutions provider. Together NTT and Dimension Data  believe in contributing to society through our business operations by applying technology for good.}

_{At Dimension Data we deliver a secure and connected future that empowers our people, clients and communities. We lay the foundation for organizations’ edge-to-cloud networking ecosystem, simplify the complexity of their workloads across multicloud environments, and innovate at the edge of their IT environments, where networks, cloud and applications converge. We offer tailored infrastructure and ensure consistent best practices in design and operations across all of our secure, scalable and customizable data centers. On the journey towards a software-defined future, we support organizations with platform-delivered infrastructure services.}

_{Established in 1983, in South Africa, Dimension Data employs over 8000 employees across 15 countries. Our services and solutions serve clients across all industries including some of the biggest brands listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, Nairobi Securities Exchange, and the Dubai Financial Market.} 

_{For more information please visit our website}

_{About Standard Bank Group} 

_{Standard Bank Group is the largest African bank by assets, operating in 20 African countries and 5 global financial centres. Headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, we are listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, with share code SBK, and the Namibian Stock Exchange, share code SNB.}

_{Standard Bank has a 161-year history in South Africa and started building a franchise outside southern Africa in the early 1990s.}

_{Our strategic position, which enables us to connect Africa to other select emerging markets as well as pools of capital in developed markets, and our balanced portfolio of businesses, provide significant opportunities for growth.}

_{The group has over 46 000 employees excluding Liberty, more than 1 143 branches and over 6 600 ATMs on the African continent, which enable it to deliver a complete range of services across personal and business banking, corporate and investment banking and wealth management.} 

_{Standard Bank Group Limited (SBG or group) headline earnings for the twelve months to 31 December 2021 (FY21) were R25.0 billion, Return on equity (ROE) was 13.5%. Standard Bank’s market capitalisation as of 31 December 2021 was R228 billion (USD14 billion).}

_{The group’s largest shareholder is the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), the world’s largest bank, with a 20.1% shareholding. In addition, Standard Bank Group and ICBC share a strategic partnership that facilitates trade and deal flow between Africa, China and select emerging markets.}

_{For further information, go to http://www.standardbank.com}