My Review of the Mauritius Gymkhana Club (Pics Intensive)

Here I go again.

Ok folks, my first weekend here, for those who started the golf like me many moons ago, you will remember Seletar Base Golf course in SG. This course is very much like that one

(1) Course Layout
This is the oldest course in Mauritius. Refer to their home page for to understand their history http://www.mgc.intnet.mu/golf.htm. It is only a PAR 68 course, consisting of 6 par3s, 2 par5s, and 10 par4s. Being an ex-British military base, they started as a 9-hole layout and now expanded to 18-holes. You need to cross a 2-way public road to get to the other side of the course extension.

(2) Course Difficulty
VERY Flat course. Slope rating as stated on the score card says 124.7
Relatively difficult for me because the greens are of varying speed, made up of varying type of grass from 1 hole to the next. Speed judgement is a nightmare for me! FW often criss-cross with other holes, shared fw is the order of the day. The hole layout is not very clear, local knowledge is a must otherwise, you will not know which way to go. Hitting off cow-grass / bermuda mix is also tough for me. As such it is difficult for me in that respect. Length is not an issue when most par4 do not go beyond 350m, average only about 300m. Hitting driver may not be necessary on all holes, but if you want, you could on those straight forward holes.

(3) Course Condition - this is my assessment, so take it with a pinch of salt
(a) Tee Box - 6/10 (mix of cow grass and bermuda grass, some patches botak one)
(b) Bunker - 7/10 (Credit is given where credit is due, bunkers are good)
(c) Fairway - 6/10 (mix of cow grass and bermuda grass - as far as FW is concern, not very 'fair' in my view...)


(d) Putting Green - 5 to 7 /10 (really depends, some are not so good, some are pretty good)



My Zen putter seeing some action on one of the better greens!

(4) Caddies & Club House & changing room
Visitors, I would highly recommend you hire one. In addition to creating jobs for the caddies (there are about 30 of them registered with the club, at any one time, half a dozen of them will be hanging around), they also help you overtake if other flights are slow. People are quite relaxed about it. Plus it makes walking much more relaxed when someone else is carrying your bag. Caddy tip is Mauritian Rupee (MRP) 200 per round as advised by the registration counter. This is around S$8ish.

My looper for the day!

Changing room is very basic. They will give you a locker with hot showers. There is a bar of soap but I dare not use. Not sure what that bar of soap seen before! Btw, bring your own towel... Luckily I was prepared


Club house is humble looking and its history is all for show here with lots of plagues and trophies. It adds to the charm of the whole club.


(5) Summary
I thoroughly enjoyed the round despite the less than ideal condition, enough for me to play another 18 holes. Being able to consecutively shoot in mid-80s is quite morale boosting too (short course!). Actually, I played as 1-ball flight and got thru 18 holes in 2 hours. So I decided to go for another 18 holes. First 18 holes including lunch and a drink is Mauritian Rupee (MRP) 2,600. This is about S$110. Additional 18 holes is only MRP 250. This is about S$10 ish. No brainer for me to average down... hahaha.

If you are in town and couldn't get a game in any of the more high-end golf course, give this a try. After all, you will be golfing on Mauritius' oldest course, it is where it began!

Note: I know the website suggests it is only MRP 1,500 and MRP 125 for first and second 18 hole game respectively. But I suspect it is not updated. I book my game online via Mauritius Attractions and paid in Eur equivalent of MRP 2,600. But the Golf Manager, Sashi said just call them when you arrive, and he will reserve a time slot for you.

Hope you enjoy the pics and review.

Thanks for sharing....

Bro, enjoy your work trip in Mauritius.