Golf in Asia: Green Days

  • The 18th hole at Black Mountain Golf Club in Hua Hin, Thailand.

    The 18th hole at Black Mountain Golf Club in Hua Hin, Thailand.

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Golfasian managing director Mark Siegel, whose Bangkok-based company brings 7,000 European, North American, and Australian golf tourists to Asia each year, says that Thailand will remain the region’s market leader because other countries can’t match the kingdom’s “secret weapon”—the Thai people.

“It’s the leader because of the special way visitors are welcomed and treated,” he says. “You can probably find countries with better golf courses, maybe with better value, nicer weather, and better infrastructure, but no-where else matches the genuine friendliness of the Thai people.”

He adds, “Visiting golfers experience this in many ways, but especially with caddies, who really have fun and are extremely helpful and knowledgeable about golf. They also like their jobs. It’s not an act. They are Thai golf’s secret weapon. Everyone who comes to Thailand to play golf is a winner.”

The statistics bear out his claim. Up to half of Thailand’s golf tourists from the British Isles, Europe, Australia, Japan, and South Korea are repeat visitors. They may play different courses each time they visit (Thailand, after all, has 260 courses to choose from), but they keep coming back.

Malaysia, which is mounting a major official push for golf tourism through the newly formed Malaysian Golf Tourism Association (MGTA), has to convince golf tourists they can have as much fun as in Thailand. The quality of Malaysia’s golf courses meets every test, as do resort facilities on the mainland and in the eastern states of Sabah and Sarawak.

Vietnam, too, is seeking to capitalize on Asia’s growing popularity among international golfers. With only 30 courses, the options may be limited, but the central coast region of Hue–Danang–Hoi An has emerged as Vietnam’s golf capital, and as one of the best golf destinations in Asia. The latest draw comes courtesy of the November opening of Banyan Tree Lang Co, a five-star resort development complete with a Nick Faldo– designed championship golf course.

Indonesia, which currently attracts about 50,000 foreign golfers a year, mostly from elsewhere in Southeast Asia, is gearing up for a golf-tourism push of its own, led by  tourism minister Mari Elka Pangestu.

“Indonesia will now be much more visible as a genuine golf destination, and will give Thailand and Malaysia a run for their golf-travelers’ money,” says Dennis Kloeth, who owns and runs IndoGolf Travel, the country’s leading specialist golf-tourism company.

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