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in the footsteps of legends
Although China and Vietnam have garnered most attention for the raft of new golf courses opening in both countries, Thailand’s accessibility, all-round appeal and range of courses makes it perfect for a golf holiday combined with everything else this wonderful country has to offer.
If Tiger Woods didn’t have Thai heritage he may never have played at Blue Canyon Country Club on the island of Phuket. And now, more than a decade later, visitors would not be left wondering how Tiger drove the green on the 390-metre par-4 13th hole in the 1998 Johnnie Walker Classic, a tournament he won after mowing down Ernie Els’ nine-stroke lead to win in a playoff.
The fact that Tiger twice pulled off the impossible in that tournament – as he has done many times since – adds to the appeal of playing a round at Blue Canyon, and elsewhere in the golden kingdom.
Such as at the Thai Country Club in Bangkok, where Tiger’s nameplate on the number one locker is something of a holy grail for members and visitors. As is the sparkling new Siam Country Club Pattaya Plantation, where glamour girl Lorena Ochoa won the 2009 Honda LPGA Championship.
Walking in the footsteps of such legends is just one attraction of playing golf in Thailand. There are many others: outstanding layouts, uncrowded courses, great scenery, easy access, reasonable prices, excellent facilities and super-friendly people.
Right now, a tourism downturn in Thailand means there’s great value everywhere. What’s most appealing is that you can have your papaya and eat it too: play golf as often or as little as you like, stay in stunning resorts, do and see all the things tourists want to do and – perhaps most important of all – don’t compromise the enjoyment of a non-golfing partner.
Green fees are similar to resort courses in Australia and, while caddies (always female) are compulsory, they are friendly, knowledgeable and helpful.
So let’s get into the swing and check out six Thai courses that represent a good cross-section of golf in the Golden Kingdom.
Bangkok
Thai Country Club
Host of the Volvo Masters Asia tournament for the past four years (and again in December this year), the Thai Country Club in the Bangkapong district, not far from Bangkok’s swank new Suvarnabhumi International Airport, is all class.
There are few better clubhouses anywhere than the huge, beautifully-appointed and furnished palatial edifice in which Tiger Woods has his nameplate on the #1 locker – with food and service to match.
The course may no longer be Thailand’s best, but the slightly undulating track with an abundance of water, strategic bunkering and clever contouring is more than a solid test for any player.
The 18-hole layout measures 6493 metres from the back tees and 5996 metres from the whites, not unduly daunting for a championship layout. But a course doesn’t attract the quality of tournaments or the elite of Bangkok business as its members – as the TCC can boast – without being special. And it is, because every hole was thoroughly thought out and planned by Denis Griffiths who at the time he designed the course in the mid-1990s was president of the American Society of Golf Course Architects.
There are a number of par-4s that are par-5s for 90 percent of players, a par-5 that could easily be a par-6, two long par-3s and close to 100 bunkers – more than five per hole.
Owned and managed by the group which runs Peninsula hotels, the TCC’s signature hole is the monster 549-metre par-5 14th that skirts out-of-bounds on the left to reach front, back and right greenside bunkers. A six here is a good score for most.
There are also two wonderful eye-catching par-3s: the long 230-metre 6th that requires an accurate tee shot to avoid water all along the right and out-of-bounds to the left; and the inviting 160-metre 11th with a full water carry to a large but tough sloping green.
There are two 400-metre-plus par-4s from the back tees, one on each nine. The 415-metre ninth is a relatively straightforward brute with an initial short water carry, and the 449-metre 12th, also with an initial water carry, has just one fairway bunker.
If the true measure of any golf course is design, condition, challenge, service and amenities, the TCC scores better than par. Carts are mandatory, the caddies (also compulsory) are professional, and the 19th hole is as sumptuous and appealing as you’ll find anywhere. Just be sure to find the time before or after the game to relax with a drink and meal.
Walk-in green fees can be as high as 4800 baht ($A175/$NZ218) on weekdays to 6000 baht ($A220/$NZ274) at weekends, but better rates (half these prices or less) can usually be obtained online at www.thailandgolfers.com
www.thaicountryclub.com
Pinehurst Golf & Country Club
Opened in 1990, Pinehurst was one of Bangkok’s earlier courses and, until the advent of the Thai Country Club, it hosted major Asian tour events including the Johnnie Walker Classic in 1992 and Thai Open in 1994.
Situated on the northern outskirts of the city, its first appearances are deceiving. The clubhouse of the 27-hole complex isn’t as salubrious as some, and the course not quite as perfectly maintained as others. But for 1700 baht on weekdays (approx. $A62/$77NZ) and 2300 baht ($A84/$NZ104) at weekends it offers excellent value for visitors – especially those with limited time who don’t want to pay the earth for a round, or single players seeking a day’s break from shopping and Bangkok’s never-ending bustle.
The course has north (lake), south (greenfield) and west (forest) layouts, a nice mix of water and trees, not too many bunkers, relatively flat topography and some visually appealing, as well as testing, holes.
Not surprisingly, water is more prevalent on the lake course than elsewhere, but can be avoided by judicious club selection and sure shotmaking. Several holes require a lay-up or big drive to avoid the water, with low markers rarely resisting the urge to chance their arm.
Average to good golfers will find Pinehurst a challenging layout without being unduly tough, and a rewarding experience if you’re on target.
www.golforient.com
Pattaya
Siam Country Club Pattaya Plantation
A half-hour or so north of Pattaya at Chonburi and a few kilometres off the motorway to Bangkok is an absolute gem of a course that is so immaculately groomed and presented as to be almost perfect.
The Siam Country Club Pattaya Plantation is a sister course to the same club’s Old Course which hosted the 2007 and 2009 Honda LPGA Thailand events.
Opened last year, every hole is a gem – starting with the truly gobsmacking shortish par-4 dogleg first hole with 16 bunkers on a hillside between tee and green. Big hitters may be tempted to go for the sloping elevated green, while others will be pleased just to clear the bunkers stretching about 80 metres wide, with little space in between.
If that’s not enough early in a round, the huge raking uphill par-5 fifth hole, with two distinct fairways separated by even more bunkers (23 in total), is enough to get the heart racing and blood pumping. A full vista of the course awaits you on the next tee, a beautiful slightly uphill par-3 with billowing pampas grass all around.
The 27-hole layout was formerly a pineapple, sugar cane and tapioca plantation, with each nine named accordingly. From the superb clubhouse to the quality of the course, every detail has been addressed to the highest standard, making this a must-include visit on any Thai golf vacation.
As daunting as some holes appear, the course seems to bring out the best in most players – provided you avoid its tight ball-burying and club-grabbing rough, as well as the pampas grass that separates some fairways and forms attractive barriers between holes.
With a somewhat hilly layout and an environment that can be hot, the mandatory use of carts is welcome and adds to the enjoyment of a round.
Considering the quality of the course and facilities, the green fees of 2500 baht (approx. $A92/$NZ114) on weekdays and 3000 baht ($A110/$NZ137) at weekends is excellent value. It means that a wonderful day’s golf from Bangkok including car hire, cart, caddy, golf and lunch can be had for about $A200/person.
www.siamcountryclub.com
Laem Chabang International Country Club
Also located at Chonburi, Laem Chabang is a 27-hole Jack Nicklaus design surrounded by lush tropical vegetation with an accompanying 40-room Golf Lodge for those wishing to stay and play.
Anything carrying the Golden Bear’s name and imprimatur is certain to be first class, and Laem Chabang is no exception. A challenging mixture of jungle, lakes and open areas, it’s a course with something for everyone. But be sure you’re accurate – for there are numerous ways to come unstuck!
The three nines are each par-36, with two par-3s, two par-5s and five par-4s. The lower Valley course, at 3309 metres, is the longest by about 100 metres. Despite its name, it has water on seven of the nine holes compared with six on the lake course. And the mountain course may well be in the hills, but with water on seven of the nine holes and tight driving essential, it’s an excellent and highly enjoyable test.
Indeed, the mountain course’s opening hole, a short par-4 even from the back tees, requires a pinpoint accurate tee shot to a fairway that opens up before a heavily-bunkered elevated green: a great first hole by any standard.
Among many other memorable holes, the Valley course’s par-5 second, with two water carries and a green sitting on a lake’s edge, is a ripper. Although not long at 490 metres from the back tee, achieving par here isn’t easy.
Even though Laem Chabang is only half an hour’s drive from Pattaya, this is a stay-and-play property well worth spending a few days. Not only are the facilities first-class, but there’s a sense of being away from it all in an exclusive enclave, while still being within easy reach of Pattaya and Bangkok’s madding crowds.
Green fees are the same as at Siam Country Club Pattaya Plantation and the clubhouse is among the best. Special weekday rates offer two rounds of golf and one night’s hotel accommodation for 3700 baht ($A134/$NZ166) per person based on two people staying and playing.
www.laemchabang.golf.com
Phuket
Blue Canyon Country Club
Blue Canyon has won so many awards it’s impossible to list them all. Suffice to say it has been named best course in Asia, best course in Thailand and best golf and spa destination numerous times. Which should be enough to convince anyone to want to play there.
Oh yes, Greg Norman won the 1994 Johnnie Walker Classic on the 6564-metre championship layout, Tiger Woods won the same event four years later and an unknown South African, Anton Haig, was the victor when Blue Canyon again hosted the tournament in 2007.
After experiencing the course, Greg Norman said he wanted to come back and play it by himself, Fred Couples described the par-3 17th as one of the best par-3s in the world, and Tiger drove 390 metres across a canyon to a small, protected green on the par-4 13th to make it the signature hole of all signature holes in Asia.
But all this doesn’t tell you much about the course itself. Suffice to say it’s AWESOME, a truly great experience for any golfer. And on the Canyon course you have to walk – a rarity in a country where golf carts seem to have taken over. But what a joy it is to stroll among rubber trees, traverse canyons, absorb the views and marvel at how a golf course can be so beautiful.
Phuket airport lies over an adjacent hill, but apart from an occasional glimpse of the control tower and seeing an occasional plane, you wouldn’t know it’s there.
Blue Canyon has two layouts – the Canyon and Lakes courses. It’s the former that everyone, understandably, wants to play. Among many wonderful holes are the deceiving par-3 second over water that plays longer than it looks, the long par-4 eighth and superb par-5 ninth that is reachable in two with a big drive, the Tiger-tamed canyon-crossing dogleg-right 13th, and the par-3 14th which plays from a highly elevated tee to an island green.
Freddie Couples might have ogled at the 17th, but there are better holes. That said, the course is long – almost 6100 metres from the blue tees. Coupled with the fact that there are numerous sloping fairways, plenty of natural and artificial hazards and testing greens, a 10-marker should expect to play to 15 and a 20-marker to 30. Anything better is admirable.
Nevertheless, scoring hardly matters. It’s one course you just want to play and play again, almost irrespective of the numbers on your card. The clubhouse, perched on the highest point, offers commanding views over the Canyon’s ninth and 18th holes, and is as impeccably presented as the course itself.
Strictly speaking this is a members’ only course, but can be played by unaccompanied visitors on application for 4200 baht ($A152/$NZ190). Apartments and a spa lodge adjacent to the course make this a golfing destination of the highest quality. Don’t miss it!
www.bluecanyonclub.com
Loch Palm
Just 15 minutes’ drive from Patong, the entertainment and accommodation hub of Phuket, Loch Palm Golf Club features lakeside and canyon courses – the latter an addition in the past two years that has catapulted the complex into the attention zone of keen golfers visiting the island.
The 5993-metre lake course circumnavigates Phuket’s largest lake, which was quarried during bygone tin-mining days and now provides a delightful – and sometimes hazardous – backdrop to the course. Six of the front nine holes and five holes on the back nine skirt the water. The occasional burn, often unseen from the tee or fairway, adds a degree of risk to what sometimes appear to be relatively simple drives and approach shots.
Except for the water, Loch Palm’s early holes are relatively benign. But the 545-metre par-5 fifth and the shortish following hole, a sharp dogleg right that is well protected by water and sand, signal it’s not all plain sailing.
The signature hole is undoubtedly the 14th, a delightful 147-metre downhill par-3 to a large green sitting on the edge of the lake. Take in the view of surrounding villas and countryside before you hit, because it’s all flat back to the clubhouse.
Loch Palm’s nearby Red Mountain layout, opened two years ago, was built on a disused tin mine and presents a more challenging test of golf in a lush tropical environment. Its elevation and 6400-metre length makes it one of the toughest courses on Phuket and, at 5000 baht per visitor ($A180/$NZ225) plus 1000 baht ($A37/$NZ46) for a caddy and cart, also the most expensive.
Conversely, Loch Palm’s lakeside rates are 3500 baht ($A127/$NZ158) plus caddy and optional cart. It also gets by far most of the visitor traffic.
www.lochpalm.com
www.redmountainphuket.com
Written by Paul Myers.
at a glance
Getting there: Thai Airways flies to Bangkok three times daily from Sydney, twice daily from Melbourne, daily from Brisbane, five times a week from Perth and four times a week from Auckland, with connections throughout Thailand.
Jetstar flies three times weekly from Melbourne to Bangkok and three times weekly from Sydney to Phuket. www.thaiair.com
Accommodation: On Phuket, Club Med at Kata Beach offers a peaceful, beachside environment set in lush tropical surroundings www.clubmed.planet.com
In Pattaya, the Ravindra Beach Resort & Spa is a large, beautifully-appointed complex on the beach at Chonburi. www.ravindraresort.com
In Bangkok, the newly-opened Vie Hotel, located on a Skytrain line and close to major shopping, is a great new accommodation option, with a rooftop pool, excellent dining and contemporary decor. www.viehotelbangkok.com
More information: Tourism Authority of Thailand, phone (02) 9247 7549 www.thailand.net.au
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