Secret Harbour

The original nine holes at Secret Harbour (“The “Links”) were unveiled in 1995 and they were joined four years later by a new front nine circuit called “The Dunes.” Laid out by Graham Marsh, the 18-hole Secret Harbour course was inaugurated with an exhibition game involving its designer, Lee Trevino and Gary Player. The facility later changed its name to Secrets and then switched its moniker back to Secret Harbour Golf Links.

Despite course marketing which talks of holes that “lie breathtakingly against the panoramic setting of the vast Indian Ocean,” the reality is that only glimpses of a rather elusive body of water can be seen through housing developments that flank either side of many fairways – not that the residential aspects of the estate seriously impinge on the course, far from it.

The loveliest hole on what's been described as an “undulating dunescape of a front nine” is the short par three 8th where an aquatic element is brought into play for the first time in the round. The green lies adjacent to a lake and the tee shot must carry all the way to a green surrounded by pot bunkers and thick grass.

On a more gently rolling back nine, the par four 5th is a real beast. The fairway is tough to find from the tee as it’s divided in the middle by an island of scrub so placement of the drive is crucial. The putting surface is surrounded by deep pot bunkers with water to the left and behind so a four on the card here is a great score.