Welcome to the summer edition of the Asian Golf Travel Nation. As you can see this newsletter’s name has been changed to reflect the international nature of information contained. Original and news breaking stories on the state of golf in South East Asia, useful golf course information, unique golf playing tips for South East Asia’s tropical environment, announcements of golf travel promotions, and our latest subscription offer are all still integral parts of the newsletter.

The summer golf season is in full swing and I hope you are having some great golf. Here in Thailand, the weather has cooled slightly, after a very hot spring. The central and northern regions are seeing mostly overcast days with early evening showers once the Sunday goes down. In Phuket, there have been a few days of continuous rain mixed with times of overcast skies. For clients in Phuket, we will schedule golf on off days as requested.

This summer will see the Hua Hin Golf festival return in August and this year all area courses are participating by offering reduced green fees all month! I was in Hua Hin 2 weeks ago and all the courses there looked to be in great shape. Construction at Black Mountain was completed on all but the 11th hole. The first 9 at the new Banyan Golf Club is open for play and the full 18 should be playable around the same time as the Hua Hin golf festival. Springfield is in as good of condition as I have seen in over 3 years, particularly the original Nicklaus 18. Even Imperial Lake View looked to be a fun play and the greens and fairways of the newest Desert nine have grown in nicely.

In the last issue I reported on legal situation Blue Canyon Country Club in Phuket. The court battles between the prior management and current owners may or may not be solved, but the golf course is open for play and in good condition and the club facilities are in full use, which is great news for those headed to Phuket for golf.

Have you heard about the new golf courses in Cambodia and Vietnam? The courses being located at World Heritage designated sites of Siem Reap and Hoi An (Danang), makes for some really spectacular golfing. Golfing in either of these counties either alone or in combination with locations in Thailand makes for some of the most exotic golf anywhere! Have a look at our specialized Vietnam Golf & Cambodia Golf websites, where extensive information on these locations and some suggested trip itineraries can be found.

What about Golfasian? At the moment we should be in the “low season”, but thanks to your support, we are still welcoming golfers from all over the world in numbers comparable to those seen during the rest of the year. Thailand and the rest of South East Asia are fast becoming recognized as year-round golf destinations. With reasonable costs, great service, and of course, world-class golf: travelers are taking advantage of the year-round playing conditions. In fact, in cooperation with the Tourist Authority Thailand we accommodated a group of Australian travel agents to the central region of Thailand last month. All of them were surprised at the playing conditions, in spite of this being the so-called “rainy season”, and plan to send multiple golf groups here over the coming months.

Finally, I want to wish everyone a very successful golf season. For those of you who are looking for a summer golf package I would like to suggest Hua Hin, Pattaya, or Bangkok, where you will find great low season prices, good hotel and golf course availability, and be able to golf practically everyday thoughout the summer. For those of you considering a winter holiday, we are taking inquiries and making reservations for the November to April high season and as usual, some of the better resorts around Thailand already have limited availability; early reservations are strongly encouraged.

A golf holiday to South East Asia and Thailand in particular is still one of the best values around, which is even more important in these uncertain and trying economic times. Drop me an email with your request; you will be surprised at the possibilities.

Remember if you want to get regular updates on the Thailand (and South East Asia) golf scene, then sign-up for uninterrupted email delivery of this newsletter. In addition, all persons signing up will automatically receive the latest “Thailand Golf Insider Tips” special report.

Have a great summer and remember, think positive and YOU WILL SHOOT PAR.

Mark Siegel
Managing Director