Author Archives: Thailand Golf Holiday

Thailand Flooding Update

As you may have heard, parts of the Kingdom of Thailand have been suffering from flooding over the last few weeks. As monsoon rains continue, the situation has now become more critical. Bangkok is bracing for the worst flooding it’s seen in decades as waters from the flooded central plains continue to rush in. Rising water levels on the Chao Phraya River and city canals have left some riverside restaurants, shops and homes submerged, while public piers are covered in makeshift platforms and sand...

Lam Luk Ka, A Piece of Bangkok Golf Countryside

Lam Luk Ka Country Club sets the stage for a golf experience not easily forgotten.  Lam Luk Ka has two 18-hole courses; the East and West courses. These 36 holes meander through Bangkok's wetlands, where shade trees and water ways provide homes for birds and wildlife and a relaxing day in a park land environment. The Championship East Course played host to the 2002 Thailand PGA Championship and 2009 Asian Tour qualifying events. The Lam Luk Ka East Course will challenge the best play...

Golf In Bangkok

Bangkok is an enchanting city with rich golf, culture and attractions. It is known as an international golf destination for its diversity of 60 golf courses, year-round golfing weather, delicious food, numerous attractions, and most of all friendly people. Bangkok was voted “World’s Best City” by Travel +Leisure magazine in 2010. The championship golf courses and vibrant streets of Bangkok never stop to amaze vising golfers. Courses such as Thai Country Club, where Tiger Woods cruised to a 10 s...

Phuket Golf Course Improvements

Things are changing at many on the Phuket golf courses and improvements are taking place all over the island. Loch Palm Golf Club is leading the way and the new club house is all set to be open and in place for the coming high season. The style is similar to neighbor and sister course Red Mountain Golf Club with a magnificent new locker room on the first floor that has fantastic views over the putting green and Crystal Lake. The open air restaurant on the ground floor is in the same location bu...

After the 18th hole in Bangkok

A round of golf usually finishes at the 18th hole at most golf clubs. Then it’s off home for a cup of tea or a hot chocolate before bed. Well one of the pleasures of taking a Bangkok golf holiday is the fun just does not stop at the Bangkok golf course. Bangkok not only has over 60 golf courses, but it is also known globally for its excellent shopping, great cultural attractions, great spa and massage, and of course a wide variety of restaurants and night life. The great thing about Bangkok is i...

Laem Chabang Golf Has New Grass

Last month I had the good fortune to play my favorite Pattaya golf course, Laem Chabang International Country Club. To my great surprise the Mountain Course, usually considered the best Laem Chabang golf course, and was closed for renovations, so we played the Lake Course and the Valley Course instead. About half way through the Lake nine I noticed something strange around the greens. The fringe areas seem to be brighter color than the fairways and greens. Upon closer inspection I realized that...

The Best Time Of Year For A Thailand Golf Holiday?

Actually ANY time is a good time for a Thailand golf holiday, as the courses stay green, the weather stays good, and the locals keep smiling all year round. For most golf travelers however, travel dates are dictated by work schedules and family matters and preference is to get away to a warm sunny place when it is cold and dark back home. But if you are flexible read on… You might be surprised that I often suggest the current season (August / September / October).  Here is why. WEATHERTra...

Golfing In A Phuket Tin Mine

We all like to boast that we have found a real gem of a course to play! Well if you decide to add a Phuket golf vacation to this year’s agenda, then I suggest you check out Red Mountain Golf Club. You will not be disappointed. Launched without too much fanfare in late 2008, Red Mountain has become the new kid on the block. Once the core of Phuket‘s tin mining industry, this course nestles in the lush Kathu Valley and is a 20 minute drive from Patong Beach. Red Mountain is owned by the same comp...

Are You A Thai Golf Swinger Or Hitter?

Here is something to think about from Mike “Spike” Collier, Director of Golf at Three Generation Golf Academy (TGGA). When golfing in Thailand what is the difference between being a swinger and a hitter? The number one difference is in the concept/mind-set and physical action between the two.That is to say, for a Thai golf swinger the club is pulled and thrown utilizing the feel of the weight of the swinging club head. A Thai golf hitter pushes against the club stressing the shaft using the ri...

Fun Bangkok Golf Course And Great Value Too

Many golf course designers forget that 90% of the players who will try to conquer their golf course are likely to be weekend or holiday amateurs, not golf professionals. Jack Nicklaus for example is incensed when he sees owners trying to extend the tee boxes to make holes as long as possible. ‘Why go for 250 yard carries when your average Thai golfer probably only hits his drive 170-190 yards. It also adds to the maintenance costs and watering bill.’ It was therefore refreshing to meet and spea...

What The Golf Experts Think About Thailand Golf

It is sometimes easy to get carried away talking about how wonderful playing golf in Thailand really is, especially as I live here. Therefore, it was rather refreshing to hear from some overseas journalists that they also agree with me; playing golf in Thailand is a great experience. A few months ago I hosted sixteen editors and journalists representing golf magazines in the USA and Europe. They sampled some of Thailand’s best golf courses including Thai Country Club, Chiang Mai Highlands, and ...

New Golf Gem of Thailand

With over 280 golf courses across Thailand, the Kingdom is already spoilt for choice, so it is a very pleasant surprise, when a new club opens that really does have something different to offer. The Royal Gems Golf City located just 35 minutes from the centre of Bangkok, has just finished the first phase of the proposed largest golf complex in Thailand. Known as the Dream Arena, it is the first replica golf course in Asia. Designed by  Ron Garl who was also responsible for Alpine Golf in ...

Golfing In A Tin Mine Can Be Fun

We all like to boast that we have played the most specular golf course in Thailand. Well if you include Phuket in your Thailand Golf Holiday, I suggest you check out Red Mountain Golf Club. You will not be disappointed. Launched without too much fanfare in late 2008, Red Mountain has become the new kid on the block in Phuket, and has displayed Blue Canyon as Phuket’s most popular golf course among Thailand golf holidaymakers. The brainchild of Mr K Banterng Tantivit, who is the chairman of the ...

To Bring Or Not To Bring Golf Balls For A Thailand Golf Holiday?

If you are planning Thailand golf holiday and want to stock up with some golf balls prior to your trip; DONT! Packing golf balls with your golf clubs or in your luggage will not only encroach on your free weight allowance (if you are not overweight already), it is also less costly than you might think to buy golf balls after you arrive in Thailand.  If you have ever been golfing in Thailand before, I am sure you may have seen locals stripping off at the end of the day and swimming around ...

It’s Not Only Thailand Golf

  Golf for many of us is a very serious addiction. We have to have our regular fix! Come rain or shine, family vacations, or business meetings, we all make all the excuses needed to arrange that very crucial meeting which just happens to clash with golf. That is our ‘speak’ for sod it I am going to play golf anyway. Here golfing in Thailand, a lot of business is conducted on the golf course. Golfers in Thailand often travel with their so-called business associates and in some companies; ...

Suwan Golf & Country Club 4 Years Later

Last reviewed here in 2007, I thought it time to check in on this Bangkok Golf Club. Billed as the only exclusive, world class public country club in Thailand, Suwan Golf and Country Club certainly did not let me down! My friends, two professionals and a happy 80's hitter like me, all decided that they wanted a new challenge. All of them had heard good reports about Suwan from me, but none of them had played the Bangkok golf course before.The drive from the center of Bangkok takes around o...

PGA Golf Tournament In Khao Yai Solidifies Panorama’s Reputation...

Khao Yai’s Panorama Golf and Country Club, managed by Quality Golf, hosted its first ever professional event in the Thailand golf course’s 18 year history. Played over 3 days in April the Thailand Senior Professional Golfers Association tournament was won by local Thai favorite Jamnian Chitprasong. Quality Golf managed to keep the usually tricky greens at a speed of 9.5 feet during the tournament. However, keeping the ball below the hole still proved to be sound advice for the top finishers. T...

Eliminates Bad Chips in Thailand

Poor chipping hurts my game. Last week at Alpine Golf Club in Bangkok I had the great opportunity to golf in a former European golf professional. He saw my bad chips and gave me the following tip. I immediately improved and was able to get up and down more than 50% of the time afterwards. Poor chipping stemmed from my poor technique. Below is the 4 step routine that showed most improvement: 1. I soled my wedge on the ground and raised it on its toe.2. I stood slightly closer to the ball with my...

Thai Golf After The Meeting

With positive signs that the global economy is at last showing signs of improvement, many companies are now scheduling overseas trips again, which means sending their staff back on the road and the Thai capital is again flooded with businessmen. But with a close eye on the bottom line costs, travel budgets are tight and gone are the chances of grabbing a few extra nights in Bangkok to fit in a couple of rounds of golf with the local VP or sales agents! In Thailand golf and business however are ...

Airfares and Hidden Fees For A Thailand Golf Vacation

Sorting out flights and airfare for a Thailand golf vacation can be time consuming and full of potential pitfalls.  Here is some guidance based on both my own experiences and what Golfasian’s clients tell me. In general, you will get the best options and pricing by arranging international airfare in your country of origin and booking round trip tickets.  As route and landing rights have become less restrictive and more players have joined the game, the options have opened up conside...

Mission Hills Phuket… Potentially Great Golf By The Sea

A Phuket golf vacation includes playing on some rounds in one of the world’s most beautiful locations and golfing on seaside courses should definitely an experience to savour, whether it’s a windy links course in Ireland or over the ocean golfing in Bali. Golf in Phuket Thailand for most golfers entails heading straight for Blue Canyon or Red Mountain, both of which are inland tin mining courses. However, shouldn’t a seaside golf course be part of the Phuket golf experience? For this, most expe...

Burpaha Golf Pattaya

Playing golf in Thailand is not just a sport, but can be a lot of entertainment too. There are none of those stuffy club secretaries wanting to see your accredited handicap card here. No, just turn up, give your clubs to the smiling door man and you are off. I was invited to play at Burapha Golf Club with some tourists enjoying their golf vacation in Pattaya. When I arrived at Burapha I was surprised to see so few people on the Pattaya golf course. Of course every day in Thailand is a holiday, ...

New Thai Golfers

In many countries around the world, golf is suffering from the global recession, and the industry will really begin to suffer unless it starts to focus on its future. You can play a game of football with friends after school with a ball and a couple of posts for goals. Same for baseball, you can play the game just with sticks for bats and cans for balls. But for new golfers to enter the sport, they first need to find and get to a golf course, and then they need to rent or maybe buy a set of cl...

Thailand Golf Is Still A Game To Enjoy

Sometimes I think golfers on holiday forget that the game of golf is all about getting out in the fresh air to hit some balls and then have a cool drink with your fellow golfers afterwards. Maybe it is because we have been brain-washed. Golf in the 21th century seems to be all about one up man ship and this is being fuelled by the manufacturers with their massive marketing campaigns. “This revolutionary six layer ball will give you distance and those clubs made from new space-age materials wil...

Lady Golf Stars Shine In Thailand Once Again

Thailand knows how to put on a show, and the top LPGA players were all on display at the Honda LPGA Thailand this weekend. With virtually all the star names in contention, the Siam Country Club in Pattaya provided the perfect backdrop to kick off the 2011 LPGA tour season in style. This popular tournament was launched in 2006 when a certain Miss Hee-Won Han from South Korea won the inaugural event. Since then the likes of Suzann Petersen from Norway, Lorena Ochoa from Mexico and Ai Miyazato fro...

Smiling Caddies, Sunshine, and Thailand Golf

Living in Thailand perhaps we take for granted the pleasures of playing a round of golf. In most of Europe and the USA, snow has put a damper on all hopes for that post New Year round with your golf buddies. Can’t get the car out of the deep drifts!!! Here in Thailand we are experiencing our own winter weather…. a beautiful 25 degrees centigrade with a cool breeze! How about those dreaded rush our traffic jams or clogged city roads? No panic with the traffic to get to the course on time in...

No Snow Or Freezing temperatures Here, Just Smiles!!!!

I have been reading and seeing on TV the horrendous chaos caused both in the States and across Europe recently by the snow storms and freezing temperatures. Well over here in Thailand the nearest we got to snow was a few fake snow drops on the Christmas trees in all the shopping centres! Currently the weather in Thailand is very pleasant at around the mid 20’s centigrade with some cool breezes. It’s the perfect golfing weather. Sorry, I am not trying to make you jealous, but at this time of yea...

Thailand Really Is A Golfer’s Paradise

We all get bombarded by travel agents jargon or see the Tourist Boards latest TV adverts extolling their countries fantastic features. One such feature here in Thailand is golf! Well I can safely say that Thailand golf is in a very healthy state here in the Kingdom of smiles with thousand of overseas players playing here every year. But it’s not just the tourists who love it here, so do the professionals who make their living out of the game. Thailand recently hosted the 5th edition of the Roya...

Bangkok Dining

Many on a Thailand golf package spend at least a few days in Thailand’s capital during their golf holiday as it offers convenient flight connections to around the world in addition to great golf, high standard accommodation, shopping, dining and entertainment. I am often asked for restaurant suggestions and while I do not claim to be a foodie, I know what I like. Here is a brief list of some of my favorites: ITALIANThere are many good Italian restaurants all over Bangkok in various price ranges...

Amazing Thailand Always Amazes You

Those who have visited Thailand agree that it is almost impossible to explain for those who haven’t.  Different.  Even just plan weird.  The Tourism Authority of Thailand’s official slogan of ‘Amazing Thailand’ sums it up fairly well though comes off as just another cheeky marketing slogan until you’ve actually experienced it. Even among Asian cultures it stands out as unique. Thailand is one of the few places in Asia that has never been under the rule or dominance of a wester...