Blue Canyon Country Club – Canyon Course

Course Data
LocationPhuket, Thailand
Yardage7179 yards Par 72
Course Rating74.8
Playing Date12 Feb. 2004
DesingnerYoshikazu Kato
Opened1991
CaddyYes
Golf CartNo
Rating
Overall Rating
5.15
Course Layout
5
Difficulty Level
6
Greens Conditions
4
Fairways Conditions
5
Landscaping & Views
6
 

This Canyon Course is one of the most prestigious courses in Asia. It has two 18-hole championship courses, Canyon and Lakes Course. Developed from an old tin mine and rubber plantations, both courses are molded around the existing canyons and rubber plantations, with minimal disruption to the natural landscape. The Canyon Course is a masterpiece of golf course design with spectacular, sometimes daunting, natural hazards, plus acres of lakes accentuated by towering rubber trees. The fairways often go straight to jail, blocked by rubber trees planted in tight, straight rows. The course is really challenging and is best suited to advanced players. Tiger Woods won the Johnnie Walker Classic here in 1998, and Greg Norman prevailed here in 1994.



A view from the clubhouse

A view from the clubhouse

A view from the clubhouse

 
3rd Par 4 449 yards
A very long and slightly uphill all the way par 4. The narrow fairway is well guarded by trees on both sides, so accurate drives and second shots are needed. A big and tall tree in the center of the fairway 75 yards short of the green might disturb your second shot. A good game plan to handle the tree is required to save par on this difficult hole. This tree is locally named “ A God Tree” and it is said that if you hit it, your golf will improve.


3rd Par 4 449 yards (3)

3rd Par 4 449 yards (2)

3rd Par 4 449 yards (1)
 
5th Par 4 398 yards

5th Par 4 398 yards (2)

5th Par 4 398 yards (1)
A slight uphill, straight par 4. OB runs from tee to green on the left. A strong approach shot over the green is suicidal as there are trees at the back of the green. The bunker on the right of the green is in play and the green has two-levels.
 
6th Par 5 556 yards
A difficult hole with a dogleg to the left fro the remaining 100 yards to the green. Both sides of the hole are guarded by trees and the landing areas of the tee and second shots are narrow. The tee shot is slight downhill and the seconds shot is over a small pond to hit from a downhill lie. The second shot must be placed to the left side of the fairway in order to have a clear view to the green on the third shot. If right, it can not aim for the green because of the trees in front.


6th Par 5 556 yards (3)

6th Par 5 556 yards (2)

6th Par 5 556 yards (1)
 
9th Par 5 561 yards
It is straight up to 460 yards from the tee and then an almost 90 degree dogleg to the left for the reaming 100 yards. Even if you lay up, the landing area of the fairway is narrow and guarded by water on both sides. The third shot is uphill over water, and the right judgment of the distance is required for the approach shot. The green is very undulating and fast from back to front.


9th Par 5 561 yards (3)

9th Par 5 561 yards (2)

9th Par 5 561 yards (1)
 
11th Par 5 600 yards
A very long demanding par 5. The tee shot is slightly downhill and the ideal position is as close to the creek crossing the fairway as possible favoring the right side of the fairway in order to open up the second shot landing area, well guarded by bunkers on the left and by palm trees over the fairway. But the bunkers on the right can come into play on the tee shot. The long narrow green has bunkers and there are creeks on both sides of the green.

 

11th Par 5 600 yards (3)

11th Par 5 600 yards (2)

11th Par 5 600 yards (1)
 
12th Par 4 440 yards 

12th Par 4 440 yards (2)

12th Par 4 440 yards (1)
A booming tee shot to the relatively wide fairway is needed to set up a long iron or a fairway wood approach over a creek to a narrow green. The green slopes from the back to the front and the shot beyond the flag will leave a very fast downhill put.
 
13th Par 4 390 yards

13th Memorial Plate of Tiger Woods

A sharp dogleg to the right. The tee shot is from a bluff above a lake to another bluff. The hole might remind you of “Grand Canyon” in the US. You need to hit 220-40 yards over the bunkers to the right of the trees at the corner of the canyon. The easiest shot is an iron shot from the tee but then you will find a long second to an undulating and well-guarded green. It requires 290 yards a little uphill to the front edge of a green from a tee and you need to hit a very high ball to clear the high trees in front of the green. Tiger Woods hit the left edge in 1 at a tournament, which required very high a 300-yard drive. He had not only the technique but also the toughness of mind to hit such a great shot at an important event. I cannot believe it!.

 

13th Par 4 390 yards (3)

13th Par 4 390 yards (2)

13th Par 4 390 yards (1)
 
14th Par 3 194 yards

14th Par 3 194 yards (2)

14th Par 3 194 yards (1)
The beautiful par 3 needs a gut-tightening tee shot that descends to a natural island green whose shape is not a circle but a reverse “L”. The green looks narrow and the ball is influenced a lot by the wind, so the correct club selection is crucial on this hole. Fortunately, the teardrop-shaped green floating out in the lake is not as small as it looks.
 
15th Par 5 586 yards
A long double-dogleg to the left, then to the right. The tee shot needs to carry the lake and needs to avoid the bunker on the left and the OB on the right. If the drive is short, it may be better to lay up to the water hazard that crosses the fairway.


15th Par 5 586 yards (3)

15th Par 5 586 yards (2)

15th Par 5 586 yards (1)
 
17th Par 3 221 yards

17th green sn from the side

17th Par 3 221 yards
This hole was selected as one of the best 500 holes in the world by US Golf Magazine in 2000. It is very neat but difficult. The green is “『”shaped and extends to the right to surround valley. When the flag position is on the back right, a carry of 230 yards is required to clear the canyon and there is a width of only 20 yards between the cliff of the canyon and the bunker at the back, so even the top pros do not aim directly at the flag but aim safely at the left back of the green.
 
19th hole

Restaurant

Need to be accompanied by a member or to apply for a golf tour sponsored by an airline or some travel companies in order to play here. The meals at the restaurant were good and the club has Jacuzzis, steam room, sauna and massage facilities. It takes only 5 minutes from the Phuket Airport by car. The hotel is adjacent to the golf club and the room with the golf course view is recommended, although a little more expensive.



Hotel

Hotel

A view from the room

The Canyon Course is the one of the best among the courses designed by a Japanese who has done overseas work. The other courses of the Japanese architect Yoshikazu Kato are Treasure Hill G&CC in Thailand and The Southern Links GC in Okinawa, Japan. I have heard that he was worried by the maintenances of keeping the course in great conditions, so he decided to move to Thailand from Japan. He is still an advisor of the golf club.

According to the top100golfcourses.co.uk site,Blue Canyon CC (Canyon) was ranked 8th out of the 270 (as of 2015) courses in all of Thailand during its 2015 evaluation.