Thailand Golf Holidays, Phuket Golf Packages, Hua Hin Golf Vacations

Thailand’s Best Golf Tee Times

A common misconception is that scheduling Thailand golf tee times ‘as early as possible’ is best to both beat the heat and get back to your hotel early.  Actually this depends on where you golf in Thailand and what your priorities are.

When you golf in Phuket humidity plays a big factor on ‘how hot it feels’.  During night time warm moist air over the sea moves over Phuket Island driving up humidity, then during the day the sun comes out and burns off humidity.  If you golf in Phuket, humidity will typically be highest in the very early morning and lowest during late afternoon. The “coolest” part of the day is afternoon, not morning.

Another phenomena particularly in and around Pattaya is that there is very little air movement in early morning. Then, in the afternoon, pleasant sea breezes from the gulf of Thailand descend upon Pattaya golf courses by around 2-3PM each day.  The net effect is that the most uncomfortable time of day is 9AM to 1 PM.  If you schedule to golf in Pattaya 7AM the front nine will be pleasant. But, by the time you get to the back nine, the weather can be very hot with stagnant air as you come down the stretch.  I do not know about you, but this often wears me down. On the other hand if you plan to tee tee-off at around midday it will be hot when you start, but much more moderate with pleasant breezes after you make the turn. This makes golf in Pattaya much more enjoyable.

The Future Of Thailand Golf

The future is looking bright for Thailand golf with investment again seeing a surge with one new golf course estimated to be opened every 3 months or so for the next two years. Thailand’s visiting golfers are also on the rise and the ‘Tourism Authority of Thailand’ recognizes the positive effects of Thailand golfing tourism on the country’s economy which is why it heavily supported inbound golf tourism since its landmark success with the first ‘Visit Thailand’ campaign back in 1987. Today over 500,000 golfers visit Thailand each year and this number just keeps going up.

Many of Thailand’s courses have been designed by internationally recognized golf course builders & architects such as Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo, Greg Norman, Pete Dye and Robert Trent Jones Jr. The landscape is indeed varied, offering courses carved out of the jungle, atop of mountain retreats and bordering onto some of the world’s whitest sand beaches. An apt case study is the picturesque Laguna Phuket Golf Club, which was awarded this year an IGOLF ‘Laureate Course Status’ by the International Golf and Life Foundation (IGOLF) for its commitment to environmental and social responsibility. Laguna is a shining example, having been rehabilitated from a barren tin mine. It now plays home to a variety of wildlife, including kingfisher birds, fishing eagles and white egrets.