Just 45 minutes from Kuala Lumpur, Awana Genting Highlands Golf & Country Resort is a tranquil escape 3,000 feet high on Malaysia’s longest mountain range. Besides its 18-hole golf course, you can take a ride on Asia’s longest cable car system or explore the surrounding, ancient rainforest.
Malaysia’s Tropical Island Golf Experience
Ernie Els comes to Malaysia for the first time the much-anticipated Els Club Teluk Datai opens on Langkawi in 2014. A wonderful tropical island golfing experience, Langkawi Island is duty free.
On Penang, Bukit Jawi Golf Resort features two 18-hole layouts – the Lake and Hill courses – as well as a 48-bay driving range and practice putting green, leisure facilities including swimming pool, tennis and badminton courts, and an on-site 66-room hotel.
Golfing in Borneo is just as exotic as it sounds, and is an experience not to be missed! Nestled within Karambunai Resorts on Sabah is Nexus Golf Resort Karambunai’s 18-hole course, set alongside the South China Sea. The course is player-friendly, with wide landing areas and contoured fairways while water provides the element of risk and reward.
Sabah Golf & Country Club is the oldest in the East Malaysian state. Originally opened in 1976 with a design by Robert Muir Graves, it was remodelled in 2004 by Nelson and Haworth and is reputed to be one of South East Asia’s toughest golf courses. Set amidst a residential development, the course features hilly terrain and undulating fairways with hazards including lakes and hidden bunkers.
Also in Sabah is the 27-hole Sutera Harbour Marina, Golf & Country Club. Its three nine-hole courses were designed by Graham Marsh and built on undulating, reclaimed land. The courses vary in difficulty and are open for play by members or guests of the Pacific Sutera Hotel and Magellan Sutera Resort. Night golf is available on 20 holes. Other facilities include a104-berth, deep-water marina, 14 restaurants and bars and a secluded island getaway. The resort also operates the heritage North Borneo Railway steam train into the heart of Borneo.
Malaysia’s Golf in the City Experience
Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club (KLGCC) is a private golf and country club just 8km from the capital’s business district which allows visitors onto its East Course, and members’ guests onto the West Course. It played host to the Maybank Malaysian Open in 2010 and 2011. Originally opened in 1991, both courses have undergone recent renovations. The West Course demands straight play with narrow, well-protected landing areas, while the East Course is parkland-style and features wildlife-rich wetlands and natural grasses.
Founded in 1984, the Saujana Golf and Country Club is nestled alongside two hotels, The Saujana Kuala Lumpur and The Club at The Saujana, amid two scenic 18-hole Ronald Fream golf courses (Palm & Bunga Raya). The Saujana Golf and Country Club is regularly voted Malaysia’s number one golf club as well as being named one of the 100 best golf resorts in the world. The two courses sprawl over 400 acres and are exciting to play for beginners and pros alike. Saujana has hosted many international events such as Malaysian Open, Eisenhower Trophy and Espirito Santo Trophy.
The Kotai Permai Golf & Country Club has a magnificent championship course designed by Ross Watson which was formerly a palm oil plantation. The front nine traverses relatively flat terrain and features scenic water hazards, with the par-4 2nd hole acknowledged as one of Malaysia’s best golf holes. The visually-stunning inward nine climbs and drops with the undulating terrain, the par-5 18th being one of the great finishing holes in Malaysia. The club also features a 60-bay driving range and extensive leisure facilities including an Olympic-sized lap pool.
Palm Garden Golf Club, located near Kuala Lumpur Airport, re-opened in 2012 with a testing new design by renowned Australian architect Ted Parslow, with lots of undulations, mounds and swales.
Templer Park Golf Club is another ‘must visit’ course with its spectacular limestone backdrop and a host of monkeys who enjoy the surroundings as much as the golfers. Malaysian Open host venue Templer Park, created by famous Japanese designer Jumbo Ozaki, is always in awesome condition.
Impian Golf Club’s design was inspired by the rainforests and its tropical parkland-themed championship golf course blends naturally with the surrounding lush greenery. An easy drive from KL, it encompasses 142 acres on a flat plateau, the layout bordered by trees and punctuated by climbs and drops. The receptive, fast greens are some of the best in Malaysia
Located 18km from Kuala Lumpur’s centre, Kelab Golf Perkhidmatan Awam (KGPA) was established in 1989 and is a 27-hole golf course. The championship course, Hills and Lakes, features lush, rolling fairways lined with rough out-of-bounds areas, elevated tees and landscaped surroundings. The third nine, the Forest, caters for intermediate and senior golfers but is equally challenging. This is a good value for money course located next to the KLGCC.
Malaysia’s Jungle Golf Experience
Ayer Keroh Country Club (AKCC), in Malacca, is one of Malaysia’s oldest country clubs. The 27-hole golf course is cut out of virgin jungle yet is close to the North-South Highway with hotels nearby. Golfers share the course with wildlife including birds, monkeys, squirrels and monitor lizards that live in the jungle lining the fairways. Wayward shots are punished not only by the jungle but also by Ayer Keroh Lake, which comes into play on several holes.
Encompassing over 1,000 acres and sculptured from former tin-mining land, the 27-hole Clearwater Sanctuary Golf Resort is acclaimed as one of the region’s most beautiful golf courses. With its pristine fairways and luscious greens lined with majestic raintrees, meandering round vast lakes, this golfing retreat is also sanctuary to a rich variety of wildlife.
Clearwater Sanctuary is among the few golf resorts in South East Asia to join the Audubon International Programme, which promotes ecologically-sound land management, conservation of natural surroundings and the protection and enhancement of flora, fauna and water resources. The championship course comprises the Raintree Nine and Lakes Nine. The Wetlands Nine is a boutique par 3 course.
Malaysia’ Frontier Town Golf Experience
Close to Singapore in Johor, Horizon Hills is an 18-hole design by Australian Ross Watson set on 200 acres, where lush greenery meets serene lakes. Many holes feature dramatic changes in elevation from tee to green. Classical bunkering with sweeping sand faces, strategically-located cascading waterfalls, pristine ponds and lakes feature throughout the course. The palatial, modern clubhouse incorporates five-star amenities including an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
Pulai Springs Resort, at the foot of Mount Pulai in Johor, is a five-star resort with two USGA-class 18-hole golf courses. The Pulai Course was designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr and the Melana Course by Peter Dalkeith Scott. Both are courses of distinctions and were designed to provide the ultimate challenge with memorable signature holes amidst the varied terrain, water elements and changes in elevation. The second Els Club is being built in Desaru and is expected to open in late 2014.
