Great Golf Deals in Thailand

From the equipment to the membership at a golf club and the golfing holidays you may take, golf can be a very expensive hobby.

Now the weathers warming up and we’re all thinking about holidays but may want to be a little kinder to our wallets with the economic situation still slow, why not look at Thailand for an exotic getaway that not only has beautiful places to see and visit but according to a recent survey conducted by Asian golf vacation specialists Golfasian, has some of the most competitive golf rates for visitors across Asia and the Middle East.

The average round of golf was 29% lower in Thailand than a similar number of clubs surveyed across six different countries. The survey compared the midweek high season visitor rates.

Mark Siegel founder of Golfasian and President of Golf in A Kingdom said, “We knew from the feedback we were getting from our regular customers, that golf here was very reasonable. However we were very surprised that our survey showed that there really was such a large difference between Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Dubai or Bali.

“For example, a round of golf at Black Mountain Golf Club in Thailand’s Hua Hin, who recently hosted both the Asian Tour Masters and the prestigious Royal Trophy, was only US$130.00. This compares with another Asian Tour venue, Sentosa Golf Club in Singapore, where they charge US$238.00 a round, but without a caddie.”

Siegel explained, “For our survey to be fair, we compared rates with similar top championship courses in Thailand and abroad. Many of the courses selected have held international golf championships, and all offer a first class golfing experience.

“Apart from the cost of actually playing 18 holes on some great courses, another plus factor for golfers holidaying in Thailand, is that the cost of lodging, transportation and food and beverages is also lower.”

If you are considering flying off to play golf in Thailand or another destination don’t forget to pack golf insurance in your bag. Golfplan Insurance policies provide 120 days Worldwide Cover and also include cover for: 

•    Equipment,
•    Public Liability,
•    Personal Accident,
•    Club Fees,
•    Accidental Property Damage,
•    Personal Effects.

New Golf Academy at Moscow’s Olympic Stadium

Thomson Perret and Lobb, the golf course design practice founded by five-times Open Champion Peter Thomson and partners Ross Perrett and Tim Lobb, has announced work will begin on the new golf academy at Moscow’s Luzhniki Olympic Complex in spring.

The golf academy will feature an original 9-hole par-3 golf course design, with six of the holes sharing two splash-shaped greens, a driving range and a practice putting area, plus a clubhouse with indoor golf simulators.

The landmark development will introduce golf to Europe’s largest sports centre, which has already been the venue of prestigious events - the 1980 Olympics and 2008 Champions League Final between Manchester United and Chelsea, and boasts facilities for more than 40 different sports with five million visits per year.

It comes at a perfect time, with the return of golf to the Olympics in 2016.

TPL principal Tim Lobb said: “TPL has an excellent understanding of designing golf experiences that appeal to players in new markets, and I’m confident we will create an academy that compliments existing sporting facilities on site and showcases golf to this emerging market.”

Dimitry Aleshin, Deputy Director of Development and Commercial Affairs of the Luzhniki Olympic Complex, said: “TPL’s design will create a welcome addition to the sporting facilities at the Luzhniki Complex. As Moscow’s first city centre golf academy I’m certain it will be well received and encourage more people to take up the sport.”

The Celtic Manor Wales Open will run until at least 2014

The Celtic Manor Wales Open has been hosted at this prestigious club in Newport since the year 2000 making this year its 12th, where we expect to see more major golfing names return back to The Twenty Ten course on Thursday 2nd to Sunday 5th June 2011.

Celtic Manor Resort Marketing and Commercial Director Gareth Rees Jones said:
“This year will see our 12th staging of the tournament and we are committed to host the tournament until at least 2014, so the total benefit over 15 years is likely to exceed £20m.
“The Celtic Manor Resort is also a substantial contributor to the local economy on a year-round basis with an annual outlay in excess of £14m to employees, suppliers and contractors within the NP postcode area.”

With the amount of money generated from this top European tournament, who can blame the club for wanting to keep hold of it just a little bit longer.

An IFM Sports Marketing Survey, commissioned to carry out the Economic Impact Study by The Celtic Manor Resort found that spectators attending the 2010 four day golf tournament where they watched Graeme McDowell claim The Celtic Manor Wales Open title spent more than £1.5m in Newport and South Wales. The large boost to the local economy generated from visiting golf fans, where almost half came largely from England and Scotland, spent money on accommodation, food, travel, tournament tickets and related costs.

The figures quoted from the economic impact study concentrated on the direct spend during the week of the tournament alone and made no account of the media profile brought by the tournament and other long-term benefits to Celtic Manor, Newport and Wales.

Tiger Woods - Triumphs and Tribulations

Tiger Woods  dusted off his clubs again for the first time since his shocking first round exit from the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship at the hands of Thomas Bjorn.

The WGC event at Dorral didn’t show Tiger Woods at his best either. Woods had two bad shots - hitting a 122 yard drive on the second hole, which did not even reach the ladies' tee, and then hitting a three wood off the 14th tee, making only 188 yards. However, the second shot 3 wood which carried 245 yards to near the front edge of the green made up for his previous errors.

Good to see that we mortals are not the only ones who can produce bad shots!

Woods’ games haven’t been all bad, with glimmers of a recovery which came at the Dubai Desert Classic, when Woods hit a tremendous 66 in the second round. But two days later, following a 72 and a 75, he found himself well down the leader board and involved in a spitting storm.
Woods unlucky streak is turning into a regular occurrence, as the former world number one has now fallen down to fifth in the rankings, having not won for 16 months and without even a top ten finish in his appearances this season.

Will Woods return to his former glory? Woods is rather blasé when thinking about this "When will I win again? Whenever it happens, it happens. I'm just going to keep trying to progress.”


With all this in mind, will Woods be ready for April's Masters? A tournament he has won on four occasions, the last of which came in 2005