If you are planning a Thailand golfing holiday later this year, you may wish to consider being here at the same time as the Ryder Cup. The 2008 USA versus Europe shootout is scheduled for the weekend of 19-21 September at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky. Thailand is a great place to catch all of the action on TV at one of the many sports bars in the main golfing centers. Valhalla is the Jack Nicklaus designed course where Tiger Woods beat Bob May in a thrilling US PGA play-off in 2000 on his way to a sweep of the four majors. Kentucky is 11 hours behind us.
I for one can not wait for this great event to start. Here’s how I plan to spend that week-end:
On Friday, September 19, after finishing work in Bangkok, I’ll probably head for somewhere like The Londoner on Sukhumvit Soi 33 with its super array of large TV screens, a wide selection of beers brewed on site, a good range of both Thai and Western food. Play begins at 7 pm Thailand time and I’ll probably watch the golf through until the early hours.
Sports bars in Thailand usually stay open whenever there is a major sporting event and, normally, you can enjoy the TV coverage without all of those annoying commercial interruptions. If you are in Pattaya, Shenanigans Irish Pub, now located on The Avenue, is a similar style venue, as is Molly Malones Irish Pub on the Beach Road in Patong, Phuket, and the Octopussy Bar on Poon Suk Road in Hua Hin. I like the atmosphere in these places when there is a major sports event on. If you prefer to sit quietly watching, many Thailand hotels also offer a cable TV service.
After a leisurely breakfast on Saturday, September 20, I will join my usual golfing buddies on one of Bangkok’s wide choice of golf courses, somewhere where they will have coverage of the Ryder Cup on the clubhouse TV, such as Alpine Golf & Sports Club. I prefer to play in the afternoon as it is a little cooler over the closing holes when you may be beginning to feel a bit tired. After our round we will probably take in the morning’s play in Kentucky before heading back to catch the afternoon session on the big screen downtown at Gullivers on Soi 5.
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On Sunday, September 21 I’ll have another late round of golf at Thai Country Club where I can have a shower, spa, and great meal afterward. Then home for a nap to make sure that do not miss a single shot of the singles session which starts at 11 pm Thai time. By then I should be at my favorite hotel, the Westin Grande Sukkumvit, watching the event on their 20 foot projection TV. If, as usual, the Ryder Cup goes down to the wire, I may be late into the office on Monday morning!
What a great week-end! I can hardly wait.
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