Pattaya Golf Courses (Part 1)

This is a sister article to my posts last week about golf in Bangkok. Also, due to the length of the course descriptions I will again post this article as a multi-part series.

Pattaya can now be easily be reached from Bangkok by car in around 1.5 hours due to the completion of the superhighway and motorway between the 2 cities, There have always been some excellent golf courses in the Pattaya areas but many golfers shunned the idea of going to Pattaya due to the cities dirty and run down feel as well as availability of accommodations of international standard. Now however, there are some excellent 4 and 5 star resorts open in the area and many actives are available for both golfers, non-golfers, and families. The nearby golf courses number around 20, of which 15 of them are of championship quality. Of course it is difficult and takes time to play at each course, so I thought it would be useful to share my thoughts on my favorite 5 courses in the area. Again, these are my personal favorites and I welcome any comment on other courses that should be added to this list.

Here are my 5 favorite courses, in no particular order in the Pattaya area.

1. Laem Chabang International Country Club is without doubt the leading course in the area. It actually may be the best or at least in the top 3 in all Thailand. . A fantastic Jack Nicklaus designed facility with 3 different 9 holes, named Mountain Lake & Valley are all equally challenging. However the Valley course is my favorite due to the beautiful scenery and most challenging holes.

Typically Nicklaus, with wide, but well bunkered fairways, there is plenty of water awaiting the errant shot. Large sloping greens also demand full concentration while putting to ensure a good score.

There is also an excellent clubhouse with equally good facilities. If you have the time, order some refreshments and local snacks after your round to take in the sights and enjoy the clubhouse’s excellent restaurant., All of the staff are  extremely professional including the  well trained caddies. This makes for a wonderful total golfing experience.

The one downside for this course, at least in my opinion, is that golf carts are compulsory. Given a choice I always prefer to walk the golf course I am playing on as the closest to nature is most welcome, it gives me more time to take in the scenery, and finally I like to read the lay of the land while walking up to my ball so as to to be able to best plan each shot.

I will continue with my other favorite Pattaya golf courses tomorrow.

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