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Danang Golf Resort now boosts 27 holes, Norman designed this Dunes course
and the 9-hole Nicklaus designed Bulkhead course opened in 2018 where
the wooden bulkheads lines various trees, fairways and greens. The Dunes
is a links style course with wide and firm fairways, allowing players
to gain the extra driving distances. While there are barely any ponds,
bunkers, rough of fescue grasses & wild seaside vegetation, sandy
waste areas, swales and hollows are strategically placed.
The greens are fast and undulating. Some of the holes incorporate dunes
which resembles the courses in Scotland, Ireland or Melbourne Sandbelt,
the area of the designer's birth country. The routing is fantastic and the
flows of 18 holes are excellent. Although the course has a limited see view
(only hole 16), I personally think the flows of 18 holes are slightly better
than The Bluffs Ho Tram and Cam Rahn (Links) of the same Norman designs,
although the other two use more dynamic terrain. The course is also routed
to show a couple of the war relics, the reminisce of the Vietnam war.
Scorecard
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A long over-the-lake par three with a long and two-tiered green. The hole
consists of deep bunkers to the right and left sides of the green. |
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A straight and long par four with a well-placed fairway bunker on the right
at 255 yards from the tee. The elevated green is guarded by two bunkers
in front and the other bunkers to the right and back. |
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| With a slight dogleg to the right, players on this par five
will face a narrow landing area off the tee and on the second shots. The
second shot is slightly uphill and the third is uphill. While approaching
the green, there are two bunkers in front and one behind to look out for. |
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The sixth hole is a relatively straight par four. There is a dune field
appearing on the left side at around the 265 yards mark from the tee ground.
The further players hits, the narrower the landing area becomes. With a
slightly uphill second shot, players should notice the bunkers guarding
the green in front and to its left. The green is two-tiered, and slops from
front to back. If the pin is located on the back tier, players must pay
attention to the correct distance to avoid hitting over the green. |
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While another relatively straight fairway, this par five does meander
slightly to the left and right. A tee shot of 270 yards is required in
order to cross the three bunkers to the right side of the fairway. A long
hitter on the second shot will have to look out for a fairway bunker to
the left and in the center. The green is wide and two-leveled, consisting
of a tall left side.
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The eleventh hole is a downhill, short par three. There are two bunkers
in front and one behind the green that come into play. While the green looks
small at first glance, players will notice that it is actually quite large
as they get closer to the hole. |
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A very long par four with a dogleg to the left. Players should hit hard
to have a long drive as the fairway is wide. The shallow green is gently
two-tiered, left & right, and is protected by three bunkers. This is
a demanding hole that will require both distance and accuracy off the second
shot. |
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A straight and a very short par 4. A cross bunker is nicely placed in the
center of the relatively tight fairway, which is located between 245 to
265-yard marks. Big hitters will be drivable to carry the ball over the
bunker onto the green, due to the help as a gentle downward slope beyond
the bunker. However, another very long bunker lies from the 275-yard mark
off the tee ground to the front right side of slightly elevated green. This
is a typical a risk/reward hole. |
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| A stunning signature hole, which plays slightly uphill to
a green back-dropped by the East Sea. While this hole is quite short and
easy, although playing into the wind, this beautiful par three is picturesque.
The contrast between the blue ocean and the green offers a dazzling and
colorful image. The green contour is nice as well. |
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The course is a 20-minute drive from both Danang City and Danang Airport.
It is a private club but has access to visitors. The nearby golf course
Montgomery
Links is also just a few minutes’ drive.
The Top 100 Golf Courses (top100golfcourses.com)
ranked Danang GR (Dunes) as the 4th best golf course in Vietnam. There are
around 70 courses in Vietnam up to now. The other works of Greg Norman in
Vietnam are The
Bluffs Ho Tram and KN GL - Cam Rahn.
During my stay, I resided at the Little Hoi An in Hoi An which was located
just 20 minutes, by car, from the course. This riverside hotel was quite
lovely, comfortable, and tasteful, with an incredibly friendly staff. Guests
can also access the old city through a 10 minutes’ walk and check out a
world heritage location.
While I was at Hoi An’s Old City, I ate at the Morning Glory. This was a
restaurant that offered a great atmosphere and fantastic Viennese food.
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Hole 2 Par 3 219 yards (2)