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It is one of the most
reputable courses in Thailand. The massive redbrick clubhouse fronted by a large
lake is really beautiful. Its layout developed on flat terrain is excellent; moreover
it features large greens with ridges and steep slopes. However, I was a little
disappointed by the greens as they were slow, which hampered the smooth rolling
of balls. The fairway grass, ordered from Hawaii, have one of best in Asia, helped
by good maintenance by the club. It is very comfortable to walk on the fairway
as if you were on a carpet.
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A short par 4 dogleg to the
right with an impressive layout. The tee shot is over water and you need to choose
which fairway to hit out of the 2 parts of the fairways divided by a huge bunker.
The left fairway is safer and it will leave a short iron to the green. You would
need a carry of 260 yards on the right fairway to clear and the water and the
bunker.When the Honda Classic 1997 was held here, there was no black tee on this
hole, so the blue tee, 37 yards shorter, was used. Tiger Woods did hit the green
in one for this par 4 with, my Lord!, an iron. You need not only hit over 260
yards straight but also clear the large bunker in front of the green in order
to hit the green directly. But he did it with an iron! |
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A par 3 with a very steep
slope and water on the right side. The contrast between the lake, the green, the
bunkers, and the palm trees behind the green is delightful. |
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| The waters come into play on the
left side of the fairway if the tee shot is over 270 yards. For the second shot,
the hole doglegs to the right and a long hitter can hit the green in 2 for this
short par 5, but the water in front of the green will catch every ball that is
short. |
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| A very long, signature par 3 over
water. The head winds often blow , so it is safe to use one less lofted club and
aim to the left side of the green in order to avoid the water. If you hit too
far left, you may find one of deep hollows, which makeit difficult to save par.
This hole has been selected as one of the best 500 holes in the world in the year
of 2000 by US Golf Magazine. |
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| There is an OB on the left and
3 bunkers on the left of the fairway come into play. Unless you are a truly long
enough hitter to carry over the bunkers 270 yards from the tee, the landing area
of the fairway is dramatically narrow, so an accurate drive is needed. The bunkers
in front of the green await every ball hit short. |
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Two lakes come into
play on the tee and approach shots. You should favor the left side with your approach
as the right side of the green borders water. The green slopes steeply toward
the water. |
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Most of the right side
faces lakes, so water comes into play on each shot. The landing area for the drive
is very narrow because of bunkers, which makes the shot difficult. |
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It takes less than one hour from Central
Bangkok. Peninsula Group, the top hotel brand in Hong Kong, operates the clubhouse & restaurant and the club is luxurious. Especially the changing room is highly
comfortable and restaurant is excellent as superb as a 5 star hotel. The clubhouse
has been voted best in Asia. You need to be accompanied by a member to play here.
The course is open to visitors, otherwise, who book through some travel agencies
or who stay at The Peninsula Bangkok. I was impressed by the high-tech digital
display, equipped in the caddy’s trolley, showing the remaining yardage to the
center of a green from any chosen spot. But it became useless when the battery
ran out on the second hole, which would be one of easygoing characteristics of
Thailand. Tiger Woods helped the course become famous by winning the 1997
Honda Classic, his first victory in Thailand. The other Denis Griffiths
designed courses in Thailand are Phoenix G&CC,
Dynasty G&CC, Soi Dao Highland GC, and Changmai
Green valley CC.
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2rd Par 4 362 yards (2)