Golf players aim to get locals into the swing

Once seen as a luxury, growing numbers of Vietnamese are embracing the game

Indochina Land has received Quang Nam provincial authorities’ green light to develop a golf course in Dien Ban district, just four kilometres from another 18-hole facility under construction.
In the neighbouring Danang, South Korean firm Daewon plans to develop a 27-hole course in association with a residential area worth $300 million. Another Korean firm has recently received the licence to develop a 27-hole course in the city while VinaCapital is fine-tuning procedures for a 36-hole property.
In total the country has around 30 new projects at various stages of development and the upcoming facilities will pose heavy competition to the existing 11 courses.
Most golf courses are designed with villas for sale or integrated into resorts as developers aim to attract the increasing number of foreign tourists. Korean and Japanese are the largest groups of customers, but Vietnamese are set to be the biggest force in the golfing scene despite the current low levels of players.
“We will initially attract South Korean tourists to the course but eventually we aim at Vietnamese as the main players,” said Lee Young Wook, general director of Sky Lake, which recently received the licence to develop a 36-hole course with villas and recreation facilities on 260 hectares in Hatay province.
The project is developed by DK ENC, Kim’s development and Fine AM to the tune of $22 million.
Lee is confident the high economic growth will bring more people to golf. “Consider the dynamic situation in Hanoi, golf is growing rapidly,” he said “We think we need many more golf courses.”
Vietnam has an estimated 4,000 golfers but the number is expected to rise steadily as improving living conditions will expose more to what is still considered a luxury sports because of its high membership and green fees.
Golfers now have to pay $6,000 to $30,000 for a membership while paying $50 to $70 for green fee. In contrast, annual national per capita income is around $700.
He said the company decided on Vietnam because other countries such as Thailand already have a lot of golf courses and Vietnam is still in the early stages of development.
Vietnam only has 11 courses in operation compared to 18 in Singapore, 70 in the Philippines, 109 in Thailand and 173 in Malaysia, according to Asia Professional Golfer Association.
Lee said the company planned to set up a golf school in Hatay to train the young Vietnamese.
Another Korean group is due to open a 54-hole course in Hoa Binh province in the next few months while Hanoi will boast the first 18-hole facility in Soc Son district in the next few weeks.



No. 790/December 4-10, 2006