Going for Golf

Mauritius - If paradise is half as nice

Constance Belle Mare Plage

Is it a coincidence that the likes of Graeme McDowell, Rory McIlroy, Martin Kaymer and, most notably, Lee Westwood have raced up the rankings since the Race to Dubai was conceived three seasons ago?

Both the main Tour and the seniors have the concept of an end-of-season climax in the shape of a Tour Championship. The main riches are of course tied into the Race to Dubai, but the guys on the over-50s are still very competitive even if it is harder to attract sponsors to reward their final hurrahs in the sun in the current world economic situation.

Ironically, the Mauritius Open, which became a fixture on the Seniors Tour in 2009, has been staged at Constance Belle Mare Plage since the Legend course – designed by South African Hugh Baiocchi – opened back in 1994. It has been the last stop on the seniors’ calendar for the past two years, having previously been an unofficial end-of-year event in European Tour terms, with the likes of current world-number-one Westwood, and Ryder Cup heroes McDowell and Ian Poulter visiting down the years.

After a week at the Constance Belle Mare Plage resort watching scores of amateurs enjoying the three-round Air Mauritius International and playing in the two-round pro-am that preceded the main MCB Mauritius Open, it’s easy to see why it’s popular. While not the longest by any stretch, the course is tight off the tee and can be demanding on second shots with breezes often whipping across the many water features that criss-cross the Legend.

From the moment you arrive on the island’s international airport around an hour’s drive from the resort on the east coast, you cannot escape the large posters bearing the words ‘Welcome to Paradise’. Measuring 40 miles by 28 miles and set in the Indian Ocean more than 1,000 miles off the South African coast, Mauritius is home to a mixture of a million inhabitants – from India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, China and the Middle East, coupled with the colonial heritage of Dutch, French and, last but not least, the English. They even drive on the left.

Throw in the country’s rugged natural beauty – rocky volcanic outcrops rise up all across the lush landscape – with some of the best beaches in the world and you really have found a tropical paradise. If you can find time to explore the south side of Mauritius, you can take in the Bois Cheri tea plantation and the rum distillery at Chamarel – tasting compulsory at both – while taking in the region’s waterfall.

Constance Belle Mare Plage offers 235 rooms and suites styled in blocks around the resort with 20 self-contained villas. Some rooms open directly on to the mile-long private white sandy beach, which is ringed by a large coral reef that creates a sheltered bay in which guests can enjoy all manner of watersports. The fitness centre also has a sauna, steam room and plunge pool while the resort’s facilities are topped off by the kind of spa you would expect in such a setting.

The 6,584-yard Legend course, which hosted the MCB Open, was constructed on an old deer park, so don’t be surprised to see a herd of Javanese deer roaming around by the par-three third.

With water featuring on 14 of the holes, plenty of dog-legs creating a number of blind shots, and some narrow and tree-lined fairways, this is a course on which you keep the head cover attached firmly to the driver and ensure an ample supply of balls in the golf bag.

The Bermuda grass creates some subtle lines on the greens with the nap taking some getting used to. The designer considers the par-three 17th, overlooking the lagoon, as the signature hole but 2010 MCB Open winner, South African David Frost, considers the 18th – scene of his play-off victory over Kent’s Roger Chapman – as the best.

Water hugs the fairway down the right with the tee shot actually easier for the pro than the amateur. But the reward comes in taking on the second over the water into a shallow green – with sand and water catching anything too bold and long.

The 6,501-yard Links course – a short shuttle ride from the hotel – offers considerably more room off the tee and has more undulating terrain. The par-five second features an offset green behind a large outcrop of volcanic black rocks and a well-positioned tree.

The 10th is also a downhill par-five but the par-four 13th is a much tougher driving hole with a long carry over water to an exposed green. Be prepared to lay up. The strong finish is rounded off by a challenging second into the last with trees and a brook to negotiate on the sharp downhill dog-leg to a long shallow green.

Well, there has to be something to test you in this island paradise.