Asian Golf Travel Nation - March 2015

After a great response to our Hua Hin and Pattaya amateur golf weeks our next group tour is going to be in Phuket starting 8th June.

This event has always been well received for those players looking to get out of the winter season in Australia, and for players looking to play golf mid-year in a warm climate with some spectacular golf courses. The featured golf course in the Phuket event would have to be Red Mountain Golf Club.
Red Mountain Golf Course opened in 2007 and is now considered Phuket's most spectacular.

golf course. The course was designed to take advantage of a huge variety of landforms and dramatic elevation changes, making it Phuket's hilliest eighteen. The entire Red Mountain site is an abandoned tin mine. The hole routing explores the four corners of the former tin mine property presenting a memorable tour of Phuket's historical landscapes.

Other courses to be included in this 4-round event will be the recently re-modelled and re-opened Laguna Golf Club. The golf course is undulating with excellent putting surfaces and playing conditions. Fairway tiers, depressions and mounds dominate play. Wide fairways are seemingly easy, but golfers still need to position their ball to have good scoring opportunities.  Many holes on the front nine are defined by the existing water bodies which have been naturally landscaped. The back nine meanders through mature trees. Both nines take advantage of large overhanging trees which influence play and frame most of the holes. The rough areas are a mix of wood chip and native grasses.

Our tournament hotel for Phuket is the Dusit D2 Patong and is just a short walk to one of the most famous beaches in Phuket, Patong Beach.

Our Early Bird Booking offer is 1 free night accommodation or free round of golf at Phuket Country Club for payment in full prior to 15th March 2015.

To register for the Phuket Golf Week, please click this link
Other events throughout the year can be found on this link www.asiagolfweek.com

Have you thought about golf travel insurance for your trip? Golfasian has teamed up with Pacific Cross insurance to offer

• Personal accident insurance up to USD 65,000
• Medical treatment up to USD 75,000
• Emergency Evacuation & Repatriation
• Loss/Damage of Baggage up to USD 800
• Hole-In-One up to USD 300
• Loss/Damage of Golfing Equipment up to USD 2,000
• And a lot more!

For more information visit our website.

Sanuk Villa Soi 112 is one of the most luxurious Thai-Bali style private estates in Hua Hin, close to the Banyan Golf Club and the Hua Hin Floating Market. With the Banyan Golf Club just around the corner this is the perfect investment for a golfing family. Featuring one of the largest plots in this private holiday resort, you even have your own private fish pond in your own back yard. Sanuk Villa Soi 112 focuses on Thai-Balinese, outdoor living. This villa was designed with the idea of spending your time outside on the massive terrace areas surrounding the large, private swimming pool.

To find out more about how easy it is to purchase property and how the prices are comparatively much cheaper than those in the West, please contact the GM of our Property Division - Stephen van der Merwe - [email protected].

Feel free to stop by our office and see what we can offer or take our property tour (free of charge).

For a complete listing of Thailand properties visit our website.

My Name is Wihan du Preez. I'm 27 years old and from Johannesburg, South Africa. I have been playing golf for nearly 18 years and am currently a 12 handicap. I'm a member of Magalies Park Country Club in the North West Province. I would describe the course as a quite challenging “safari-course', with several species of animals roaming the area such as impala, warthogs & zebras…fortunately the lions avoid us.

This was our family's first trip to Thailand (Phuket) and we were very excited to experience the wonderful beaches and well-known golf courses the country has to offer. Our family consists of my dad, mother and 2 older brothers, all of whom play golf and came on this tour. My brother's 2 kids, aged 4 and 2 respectively also joined us.

We stayed at The Nap Patong Hotel in Patong beach. We were all very impressed with the location, professionalism of staff and the high quality of the hotel. The staff were also exceptionally friendly and helpful at all times.

I absolutely loved Thailand. As quite a conservative South African, Thailand was a culture shock but in a good way. The local people were some of the most humble I've ever met and exceptionally friendly. The quality of the beaches exceeded my expectations and you really have to be there to appreciate the clarity and beauty of the waters of Thailand.

We also went on a boat trip to Phi Phi Island where we snorkeled; definitely another highlight of the tour. After that we went to the famous Maya Beach where the movie “The Beach” with Leonardo DiCaprio was filmed. The scenery was incredible; I definitely recommend it to everyone.

We played 4 courses in Phuket: Red Mountain, Blue Canyon (Canyon course), Loch Palm & Blue Canyon (Lakes course), all of which were exceptional. Red Mountain was by far the best golfing experience of my life and the scenery on the course is any golfer's dream. The signature 17th with its huge elevation change was spectacular. The whole course can be described in one word, dramatic!

As the golf-courses are quite expensive compared to South Africa we were glad that all the golf was included in our trip with Golfasian. I played my best round on the last day at Blue Canyon with a steady and satisfying 84.

The weather was great and after a few days in Phuket you get used to the humidity. The sunsets in Phuket are breathtaking!

After golf the whole family went back to hotel and hit the beach. As our hotel was only about 200m from the main beach it was really convenient.

At night we took tuk-tuks into town and walked around the city, tasting various local dishes washed down with an iced cold local beer (Chang was my personal favorite and relatively cheap).

All in all we were exceptionally pleased with the whole Thailand experience and will definitely return in the near future together with Golfasian.

Bali the "Island of the Gods" is one of the highest quality golf destinations in Asia. Golf in other places may be similar, but Bali, with the surrounding beauty of the oceans, mountains and rice fields, provides you with a truly unique and authentic golfing experience.

Bali golf is like a dream come true. Bali National in Nusa Dua hosted the 1994 Asian Dunhill Masters, was voted by Fortune Magazine as one of Asia's top five golf courses in 1997, and since its 2013 renovations stands out as the king of Bali golf.

Bali's other courses have had their share of accolades too. Bali Nirwana Golf Club has been voted by Asian Golf Monthly and Golf Digest magazines as Indonesia's best golf course. New Kuta Golf Club hosted the 2009 Asian Tour Indonesia Open and is one of the finest links courses in Asia.  Bali Handara Country Club, located high in the mountains was ranked in the top 50 courses in the world in 1980 and is the only course in the world that plays inside a crater of an extinct volcano. For a quick round, Bali Beach Golf Course is a top 9-hole course that gives the Bali golfer an excellent value-for-money golf option.

Golfasian organizes package tours combining Bali golf courses and with the best golf resorts on Bali. We book tee times & accommodations, arrange transportation, and can suggest from a wide selection of sightseeing and other non-golf Bali activities. Whether it is for one or two rounds of golf, or a stay-and-play package, Golfasian can arrange it for you with first class service at competitive prices.

For more information you can also visit our designated Bali Golf website.

[Read the entire destination review]

(best golf course in Bali after 2013 renovations)

A Robin Nelson and Rodney Wright designed Hawaiian-styled golf course, Bali National Golf Club re-opened in 2013 after undergoing extensive renovations. Bali National Golf Club is located at the southern tip of the island near Bali's top hotels. It is only a short 15 minute drive by new 4-lane toll way from the Bali International Airport.

The Bali golf course now features new Paspalum turf, with scalloped bunkering lining most fairways and elevated greens. Many of the newly routed holes have lengthened to championship distances as the course now plays to over 7100 yards from the tips.

[Read more about one of Indonesia's Best Golf Courses]

Conrad Bali beckons from its beach of golden sand, a beacon of highly personalized luxury and timeless style. This award-winning luxury resort located on the coast of Nusa Dua at Tanjung Benoa offers a selection of spacious guest rooms amidst the lush gardens and meandering pools of the resort, as well as the lavish accommodation of the premium and very private Conrad Suites. The Luxury of Being Yourself begins before you even check in to this legendary Bali hotel, with a choice of bathroom amenities from chic Shanghai Tang, vegan-friendly Tara Smith or spa aficionado Aromatherapy Associates.

[Read more about one of Indonesia's Best Hotels]

Play golf at all of the Bali golf courses, relax at one of the sand beaches, shop at local markets and huge shopping malls, and enjoy the great Balinese cuisine.
Not only will you play at the best courses but you will also discover the true Balinese culture and attractions. You have the option to stay at one of the selected top resorts on the island. Don't wait any longer and enjoy the Best of Bali!

Recommended Hotels:

• 4 Star The Grand Bali Resort
• 4 Star Novotel Bali Nusa Dua Hotel & Residences
• 5 Star Ayodya Resort Bali
• 5 Star The Laguna Resort & Spa Nusa Dua Bali
• We have a wide range of 3 - 5 star hotels available. To meet your preferences and budget please contact us for further information.

[Best of Bali Golf Itinerary...]

Bali, 2 March 2015 -- Two of Asia's leading tourism operators have joined forces to promote international golf tourism to Indonesia.

Golfasian, the largest dedicated inbound golf tour operator in South East Asia, and Asia World Indonesia, one of the country's leading destination management companies, have formed a partnership to be known as Golfasian Indonesia that aims to substantially increase the number of golf tourists to the archipelago.

Initially, the new entity will concentrate on inbound golf tourism to Bali, where there are four high-calibre courses.

Currently, Bali's inbound golf tourism market mostly comprises golfers from Australia, New Zealand, Japan and Korea.

While no exact figures are available, Indonesia's inbound golf tourism market is dwarfed by the 700,000 who visit Thailand each year, and is well below numbers visiting Malaysia and Vietnam.

But Golfasian managing director, Mark Siegel, says there is great potential for growth. "The number and quality of courses in Indonesia, service standards and infrastructure mean there is huge potential to grow the market, which is a major reason why Golfasian and Asia World Indonesia are joining forces," he says. "It is a perfect combination to use Asia World Indonesia's on-the-ground operational capabilities and Golfasian's sales and marketing expertise.

"Last year, Golfasian hosted 15,000 foreign golfers in Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Indonesia. I believe the arrangement with Asia World Indonesia will increase this number substantially."

One of the first activities of the new venture will be to host 60 international golf tour operators in Bali immediately after the Asian Golf Tourism Convention, to be held in Jakarta in late April, the first time a major golf tourism event has been held in Indonesia.

Asia World Indonesia's managing director, Renato Domini, says he and Mark Siegel share the same high standards in servicing guests. "Asia World Indonesia is a well established destination marketing company in Indonesia. We know the destination and Golfasian knows golf. This is a perfect combination. Golf in Indonesia is growing rapidly and I'm sure there will be strong demand for golf tours here in the next few years."

Golfasian Indonesia will operate from Asia World Indonesia's office in Bali.

For more information, contact:
Golfasian Indonesia           
http://www.golfasian.com/golf-holidays/indonesia/

Thailand

• Bangkok
  • Alpine Golf & Sports Club - Course will be closed on 13, 24, 26 March and from 31 March - 14 April for tournaments.
  • Bangkok Golf Club - Course will be closed on 7, 11, 18-20, 23 and 26 March for tournaments.
  • Cascata Golf Club - Course will be closed on 6, 10, 13-14, 19, 25, 27 and 30 March for tournaments.
  • Lakewood Country Club - Course will be closed on 4, 6, 9, 18, and 25-27 March for tournaments.
  • Lotus Valley Golf Resort - Course will be closed on 9 March for a tournament.
  • Muang Kaew Golf Club - Course will be closed on 27 March for a tournament.
  • President Country Club - Course will be closed on 5-6 March for a tournament.
  • Riverdale Golf Club - Course will be closed on 6, 8, 13, 18, 20, 22 and 27 March for tournaments.
  • Royal Gems Golf & Country Club - Course will be closed on 13, 25 and 27 March for tournaments.
  • Thai Country Club - Course will be closed from 30 March - 7 April for annual maintenance.
  • The Royal Gems Golf & Sports Club - Course will be closed on 13, 16, 18, 20 and 26 March for tournaments.
  • The Royal Gems Golf City (Dream Arena) - Course will be closed on 5, 10, 13, 19 and 26 March for tournaments.
  • Vintage Golf Club - Course will be closed on 13, 27 and 31 March for tournaments.
• Hua Hin
  • Banyan Golf Club - Course will be closed on 24 and 26 March for tournaments.
  • Black Mountain Golf Club - Course will be closed on 10 and 21 March for tournaments.
  • Palm Hills Golf Club - Course will be closed on 28 March for a tournament.
  • Royal Hua Hin Golf Course - Course will be closed on 21 March for a tournament.
  • Sea Pines Golf Course - Course will be closed from 27 - 28 March for a tournament.
  • Springfield Royal Country Club - Course will be closed on 21 and 28 March for a tournament.
• Pattaya
  • Burapha Golf Club - Course will be closed on 13, 23 and 31 March for tournaments.
  • Greenwood Golf & Resort (Noble Place) - Course will be closed on 7 March and 4 April for tournaments.
  • Khao Kheow Country Club - Course will be closed on 6 March for a tournament.
  • Laem Chabang International Country Club - Course will be closed on 28 March for a tournament.
  • Phoenix Golf & Country Club - Course will be closed on 13 March for a tournament.
  • Rayong Green Valley Country Club - Course will be closed on 12 and 21 March for tournaments.
  • Siam Country Club, Plantation Course - Course will be closed on 11 March for a tournament and from 8 June - 16 June for the 2015 Thailand Open.
  • St. Andrews 2000 Golf Club - Course will be closed on 11 March for a tournament.
• Phuket
  • Blue Canyon Country Club, Lakes Course - Course will be closed on 21 March for a tournament.
  • Laguna Phuket Golf Club - Course will be closed on 7, 8 and 15 March for tournaments.
  • Phuket Country Club - Course will undergo coring green on 10, 11 and 18 March.
  • Red Mountain Golf Club - Course will be closed from 15-16 March for tournaments.
• Khao Yai
  • Mountain Creek Golf Resort - Course will be closed on 28 March for a tournament.
  • Panorama Golf & Country Club - Course will be closed on 22 and 29 March for tournaments.

Vietnam

• Danang
  
  • Danang Golf Club - Course will undergo renovation from 4 - 8 May, coring green from 25 - 26 May and fairway renovation from 1 - 30 September (will not affect play).
  • Montgomerie Links Vietnam - Course will be closed on 7 March for the Mercedes Qualifier 2015 Tournament.
• Hanoi
  
  • Heron Lake Golf Course - Course will be closed on 9 March for maintenance.
  • Kings Island Golf Resort - Course will be closed from 6 - 8 March (Mountainview closed) and 20 -22 March (Lakeside closed) for maintenance.
• Saigon
  
  • Long Than Golf Club - Course will be closed on 8 March for a tournament.
  • The Bluffs Ho Tram Strip - Course will be closed on 10, 17, 24 and 31 March for maintenance.

Malaysia

• Kuala Lumpur
  • Royal Selangor Golf Club, Old Course - Course will be closed until 31 March for maintenance.
  • Saujana Golf & Country Club, Palm Course - Course will be closed until December 2015 for maintenance.

Indonesia

• All golf courses are in good condition

Singapore

• All golf courses are in good condition.

Pattaya Amateur Golf Week - March 2015
Date: March 8 - 14, 2015| Location: Pattaya, Thailand [Find out more]

Malaysia Amateur Golf Week - May 2015
Date: May 10 - 15, 2015| Location: Malaysia

Bali Amateur Golf Week - May 2015
Date: May 17 - 23, 2015| Location: Bali

Phuket Amateur Golf Week - June 2015
Date: 7 - 13 June, 2015| Location: Phuket, Thailand [Find out more]

Centara World Masters Golf Championship - June 2015
Date: 14 - 20 June, 2015| Location: Hua Hin, Thailand [Find out more]

Cambodia Amateur Golf Week - August 2015
Date: 2 - 9 August, 2015| Location: Siem Reap, Cambodia [Find out more]

Golf Coast Vietnam Amateur Golf Week - August 2015
Date: 10 - 16 August, 2015| Location: Danang, Vietnam [Find out more]

Vietnam World Masters Golf Championship - September 2015
Date: 6 - 12 September, 2015| Location: Danang, Vietnam [Find out more]

Siam Country Club Pattaya Amateur Golf Week - October 2015
Date: 18 - 24 October, 2015| Location: Pattaya, Thailand [Find out more]

Chiang Mai Amateur Golf Week - October 2015
Date: 25 - 31 October, 2015| Location: Chiang Mai, Thailand [Find out more]

Tips On Playing Thai Country Club

Most of you know that my home course is Thai Country Club. Having played this excellent Bangkok golf course more-or-less one time per week for the past 3 years, my scores have ranged from a few over par to over 90. Looking back on my rounds I can see a few things in common that led to good scores.

1. Stay out of the rough. Hitting fairways in regulation is the single biggest key to scoring well at Thai Country Club. The rough at Thai Country Club is formed by thick Zoysia grass that is next to impossible to hit from. The best solution when in the rough is to hit sideways back onto the fairway. Trying to advance the ball often leads to the same shot all over again.
2. Play for less break when putting.  Most of the greens at Thai Country Club are flattish. If you think the ball will break two cups; then putt for a one cup break. If it looks like a one grip break; play half of a grip. The only exceptions are on holes 15, 16, and 17 which do have a lot of movement due to the greens gradually sinking into the adjacent ponds.
3. Use one extra club into the greens. Somehow the yardages on course are correct. However, the front of most greens is slightly elevated and it is hard to get any run once the balls land on the fringe. Better is to play for a full carry to the green by using one club more than you would normally select.

By following these 3 tips you will be able to hit your handicap or below at Thai Country Club. If not, then just enjoy your round, the outstanding 5-star service, and award winning clubhouse. After all it is all about the total golfing experience when golfing at Thai Country Club.

[Read the entire article]

Other golf stories can be found at the Thailand Golf Zone, Vietnam Golf Zone and Phuket Golf Zone where there are over 600 other original articles dealing exclusively with golf in Asia and golf travel.

I would love to hear about any golf tips that any of you may have developed for getting the maximum enjoyment from your golf trips, and can incorporate some in future articles. Therefore if you have any golf tips or suggestions you would like to share, please let me know by dropping me an email.

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I'm no Dave Peltz, the famous putting guru in the United States who has coached most of the greats, but I do recognize a common trait amongst those I've played with who seem to make the most putts.

First they seem to read the greens well no matter what their speed or undulations but we'll deal with that in a later entry. What strikes me is that they get the ball rolling very early with top spin leading to the least instability or oscillation. The key to this seems to be keeping the putter low to the ground as much as possible throughout the stroke, accelerating smoothly and extending the putter head square down the target line as far as is comfortably possible.

Give it a try and once you've mastered the distance a low smooth stroke gives you hopefully you will see more putts go in.      

[Read more Golf Tips Articles]

If you have any other questions regarding golf tips to help you with your game email us at [email protected] and we will reply in upcoming newsletters

For more golf tips visit www.golfthink.com

Golfasian has a full schedule of trade shows and roadshows during the next few months.

You can find us at the following events:

• April 27 - 30 - Asia Golf Tourism Convention (AGTC) (Jakarta, Indonesia)
• October 5 - 8 - International Golf Travel Mart (IGTM) (Tenerife)

Arrange an appointment with Golfasian at one of these exhibits.

• Licensed by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), License No: 14/00515
• Licensed by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, License No: 79-302/2011
• Recommended by the International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO)
• Recommended by the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA)
• Member of International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO)
• Member of Association of Thai Travel Agents (ATTA)
• Member of the International Association of Travel and Tourism Professionals (SKAL)
• Member of the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM)
• Founder and member of Golf in a Kingdom (GIAK)
• Founder and member of Golf Coast Vietnam (GCV)
• Member of Bali Golf Paradise (BGP)
• Winner of Asia's Best Golf Operator of the Year 2014 Award

Toll Free US/Canada: 1-866-550-2284

E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.golfasian.com