Niger’s land boundaries with seven other West African nations stretch to over 3,500 miles and the country occupies an area of just under half a million square miles, most of it located in the Sahara desert. Niger has struggled for prosperity since it became independent in 1960 but potential earnings from recently found oil and gold reserves might yet see a substantial increase in the country’s annual per capita income.

Niger’s one and only course is located to the north west of Niamey at Golf Club de Rio Bravo, where playing conditions at this 18-hole layout are far removed from the pristine, polished playing surfaces found elsewhere in the developed world. Holes are played with an orange-coloured ball teed from a square of astroturf then subsequent shots are taken from a fairway mat, en route to brown, oiled sand putting surfaces.