Palm Hills Golf Resort and
Country Club
18 Holes | Par 72 | By Max Wexler |
Opened 1992
About
the course
Palm Hills has set itself up to offer a true resort lifestyle,
with condominiums and expensive houses, affordable holiday
villas, and a well-equipped sports club accompanying the
golf course. This is all a testament to Hua Hin's enduring
appeal.
Whilst the course is not one of the
more difficult in the region, it's well laid out with lots
of dog-legs and water hazards to toughen it up, whilst maintaining
its scenic appeal. The course meanders round the property
with very few holes side by side and offers pleasant views
of the surroundings and from some of the more elevated areas-the
sea.
Playing
the course: White tees
The 2nd 459 yards par 5 is a fun hole.
With water down both sides and in front of you with the
drive, a strong tee shot is needed but, as a reward, you'll
get a shot at the green in two. Have a go: this is as short
a par 5 as you will get in this region. If you can't get
there, lay up sensibly with the second shot but make sure
you pick a target. The green is protected by bunkers, so
the approach needs to be precise, so get a read from the
caddie and sink it.
The 10th 406 yards par 4
has an elevated teeing ground, which gives a good view over
some of the property and dog-legs to the right round a hill
and past some of the condominium units. You may even get
a ripple of applause if the owners are having breakfast
on their verandas. It's not a hard hole unless the rive
is poor, but it's one to look out for as the scenery is
remarkably good. The approach is reasonably straightforward
but the green has some big slopes on it and needs to be
treated with care if your're going to make par here.
The 14th 338 yards par 4,
although short, provides one of the more interesting tests
on Palm Hills. It's a dog-leg left with water guarding the
inside and some of the fairway, so choose the right club
off the tee and be careful not to over cook it.
Negotiate the drive well and you'll
have an easy second with the chance of birdie or par. Make
a mess and you'll be picking another golf ball out of your
bag and dropping out of the water hazard.
The 19th
hole
The clubhouse is unpretentious with both an indoor air-conditioned
restaurant and an outdoor patio with tables and umbrellas
to sprovide shade. As with many Thai golf clubs, the food
is reasonably priced and tasty and a cold beer, or fresh
lemon juice with soday, will make you feel good whether
you've played well or not. Have a look round the whole area
as there are some interesting houses and villas set in quiet
surroundings with hills, lakes, valleys and sea views all
making Palm Hills the first class facility that it is.
