Top 3 golf destinations in Asia

China, Thailand and Vietnam are home to world-class golf resorts and courses designed by the likes of Jack Nicklaus, Sir Nick Faldo and Robert Trent Jones Jr. Here’s our handy guide.

Thailand

Thailand offers golfers incredible courses and resorts, especially close to the capital Bangkok, around the cities of Pattaya and Hua Hin and on the tropical island of Phuket.

In Bangkok, Le Meridien Suvarnabhumi Bangkok Golf Resort & Spa is one of the best luxury places to stay. It’s also home to the excellent Summit Windmill Golf Club. Close by is Riverdale Golf Club and Suwan Golf & Country Club which hosted the 2011 Thailand Open.

Around an hour outside the city, Lam Luk Ka has two championship 18-hole courses, one of which hosted the 2002 Thailand PGA Championship. Close by is Alpine Golf Club, remembered as the site of Tiger Woods’ Johnnie Walker PGA Tour victory in 2000.

The resort city of Pattaya, on Thailand’s eastern coast, is known for its cuisine, sun-kissed beaches and dynamic nightlife. But it’s also a golfers’ paradise with more than 20 fantastic courses. The Jack Nicklaus-designed Laem Chabang here is deservedly regarded as one of the legendary golfer’s best creations in all of Southeast Asia.

Siam Country Club is another favourite due to its playability and close proximity to Pattaya. American architect Lee Schmidt modernised the layout with a complete renovation in 2006, elevating it to a world-class standard.

Phuket is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. Along with world-class courses and luxury resorts, Thailand’s largest island is home to palm-fringed beaches and mouth-watering cuisine. Among the best resorts here is Mission Hills Golf Resort where you’ll find an ocean-lined golf course from Nicklaus Design.

Other great courses here include Laguna Phuket Golf Club, an 18-hole course set within the Laguna Phuket Resort and Loch Palm Golf Club, just a short drive from Phuket Town and Patong Beach. Blue Canyon Country Club, which offers stay-and-play packages, is also well worth a visit.

Two hours south of Bangkok on the Gulf of Thailand, Hua Hin is a palm-fringed seaside resort city famous for its picturesque beaches. It’s also great for golfers. One of the most famous courses here is the Black Mountain Golf Club, set in the foothills of Black Mountain which acts as a stunning backdrop to a number of holes. The West Course, a superb 9-hole course, was added in 2016.

Other notable golf courses in Hua Hin include the Springfield Royal Country Club. This renowned Jack Nicklaus design is stunningly beautiful and typical of the region. Banyan Golf Club, located just a few minutes south of the city centre, is another course that blends seamlessly with the natural landscape having been carved from a former pineapple plantation.

Vietnam

Vietnam has in recent years emerged as one of the world’s best and fastest-growing golf destinations with a superb range of championship golf courses to go with the glorious climate, fantastic beaches, resorts and gorgeous cuisine.

Laguna Lang Co is one of the best luxury resorts to stay and play in the country, near Lang Co Bay in northeast Vietnam. It beautifully sits between the cities of Hue and Danang on a crescent beach framed by jungle and mountains. The 280-hectare resort is home to an 18-hole championship golf course designed by Sir Nick Faldo as well as the Banyan Tree Lang Co and Angsana Lang Co five-star hotels.

Faldo’s 18-hole championship course delivers a golfing experience that can be enjoyed by the most experienced players and beginners alike. Each hole has its own character as the course weaves between trees, natural streams, rice paddies and impressive rock features to create a diverse golf experience.

Among the nation’s other top courses is BRG Da Nang Golf Resort, close to Danang’s famous My Khe Beach. It’s home to courses designed by Greg Norman and Jack Nicklaus making it a must-visit for golfers to Vietnam. The Norman Course is a links-style layout reminiscent of both Scottish links and Australian sand-belt courses, while the Nicklaus Course has taken inspiration from the layouts of Florida and is surrounded by paddy fields, lakes and the Coco River.

The Montgomerie Links Vietnam is another course situated just off Danang’s beach. Colin Montgomerie’s design boasts massive greens, treeless fairways and thick rough which gives it a links feel. With the sandy soil and wind-blown dunes, you might feel like you’re playing on the best courses in Scotland or Ireland.

Among the other top courses, Ba Na Hills Golf Club is Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald’s first design. 25 minutes from downtown Da Nang, the layout is set on a jungle-clad mountainside and carves its way through indigenous vegetation with fairways floodlit in the evening.

Bluffs Ho Tram Strip, another Norman design, is located 80 kilometres southeast of Ho Chi Minh City on Vietnam’s southern coastline. Opened in 2014, this 18-hole links-style course has massive sand dunes and is set on a rugged site with dramatic elevation changes that make for breathtaking panoramic views from almost every hole.

China

Before the 1980s there were no golf courses in China, but today there are over 500 and hundreds more are in the pipeline.

Mission Hills is China’s most famous golf complex. Made up of two resorts, the original is located in the north between the cities of Shenzhen and Dongguan and the second in the city of Haikou on the South China Sea island of Hainan. The original is the largest golf complex on Earth with an incredible 12 golf courses.

The resort is home to the world’s largest pro shop, China’s biggest day spa, and the first five-star resort attached to a golf course in China. Pete Dye, Ernie Els, Jack Nicklaus, Greg Norman, José María Olazábal, Annika Sörenstam, Ian Poulter, Justin Rose and Vijay Singh have all designed courses here.

Mission Hills Haikou is the world’s second-biggest golf complex. There are 10 golf courses all designed by Americans Brian Curley, former colleague of Pete Dye, and Lee Schmidt. There’s also a luxury hotel and an outdoor water theme park. Among the courses, Lava Fields and The Blackstone are especially good.

China‘s tropical Hainan Island boasts luxury resorts and superb courses other than Mission Hills. Great courses here include Shanquin Bay Golf Club where Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw have made the most of an outstanding site overlooking the South China Sea, and The Dunes at Shenzhou Peninsula, designed by Tom Weiskopf.

Spring City Golf & Lake Resort is another fantastic place to stay and play with two international standard 18-hole golf courses in the southwestern province of Yunnan among mountains and lakes. The Lakeview Course designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr. weaves along the shores of Yangzong Lake, while the Mountainview Course, designed by Jack Nicklaus, winds ingeniously over undulating ground.

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