World-class Golf Lands in Mauritius

Robin Swithinbank visits the tiny island to play a stunning contemporary links with a lofty aim: to be ranked among the world's top 100 courses.

FRANKLY, UNTIL I visited the place, I could not have told you that the dodo was native to the island of Mauritius. I suppose I had it down for Africa, somewhere Madagascar-ish, but there’s every chance that’s a post-rationalisation.

In any case, I would have been wrong. Being a flightless bird, the plodding dodo never made it beyond the borders of the tiny Indian Ocean island and was swiftly ushered out of existence by Dutch settlers in the 17th century. And yet, for such a limited creature, the dodo has done well for itself in terms of name recognition—everyone knows the dodo. Which is why I feel Mauritius’s Heritage Golf Club should name its new course after the bird. There’s a good chance these links will still be talked about in 100 years’ time.