Le Golf de Saly

Le Golf de Saly is an 18-hole course in Saly, in Senegal's Thiès Region, designed by Belgian architect Vic Bernstein, who took on the project drawn by the challenge and exoticism of the setting. The design process demanded an approach unlike anything used in temperate climates. Not one of the 48 existing trees on the site could be removed, and the layout had to work with the land's natural contours rather than against them. Torrential storms posed a constant threat, making drainage and flow critical considerations. In the Sahel, Bernstein understood, nature always has the final word — so the course was shaped around it rather than imposed upon it.