“The saying that you can go to Thailand and play cheap golf has become a thing of the past.”
Thailand, which has been called the holy land of golf travel in winter with basic and unlimited rounds of 36 holes a day, is also experiencing a skyrocketing green fee as the spread of Corona 19 subsides.
Mr. K, an office worker who came on a golf trip to Thailand at the end of January, and his party played a round at a golf course near Bangkok on the 4th and 5th. I paid 4,200 baht (about 157,000 won, or less, non-member general visitors) and 6,200 baht (about 231,000 won), respectively.” . It was too high even if it went up,” he was surprised.
Overseas golf trips this winter have become the most active since Corona 19. Internet golf reservation platform XGOLF has received more than 100 overseas golf course reservation inquiries a day since the end of last year. As the number of overseas golf travel inquiries increased, the site conducted a survey on its members, and about 38% (273 people)스포츠토토 out of 724 respondents said they would go on a golf trip to Thailand. At the same time, the biggest reason for going on a golf trip abroad was ‘cheap cost’.
But the reality was completely different. As a result of E-Daily’s coverage in Thailand, the price for weekdays and weekends at a membership golf course that takes about an hour from Bangkok ranged from a minimum of 2,000 baht (approximately 74,000 won) to a maximum of 7,200 baht (approximately 279,000 won). . Compared to golf courses in Korea, there are still many places that are cheaper, but there are many places where the weekend rate of golf courses with good facilities is over 200,000 won, so there was no big difference.
As of May 2022, researched by the Korea Leisure Industry Research Institute, the average green fee (excluding caddy fees) at domestic golf courses was 221,000 won on weekdays and 280,000 won on weekends, based on membership golf courses in the metropolitan area. Some expensive places have weekend green fees of over 300,000 won, but there are more in the 200,000 won range.
Looking at the fees for each golf course, the minimum green fee for Bangkok GC, which is about 32 km north of downtown Bangkok, was 2,300 baht (about 86,000 won) on weekdays and 3,100 baht (about 115,900 won) on weekends. In addition, each golfer had to pay a caddy fee of 400 baht (about 15,000 won) and a cart fee of 750 baht (about 28,000 won).
The Royal Gems Golf & Sports Club in Nakhon Pathom, about 40 km north of Bangkok, was similar. The weekday rates at this golf course were 2,400 baht green fee (about 89,700 won), 400 baht caddy (about 15,000 won), and 700 baht (about 26,000 won) for golf carts. It was more expensive at 4,250 baht (approximately 158,900 won) including the usage fee.
Even in Thailand, the green fee of a place known as a high-end golf course is much higher than this, so there was no big difference compared to Korea.
The weekend fee for RG City Golf Club, which was the venue for the Asian Tour Thai Open, is around 6,200 baht (KRW 231,800,000), and the weekend fee for Siam Country Club Old Course, where the LPGA Tour Honda Thailand is held, is also 5,900 baht, the weekend green fee of Alpine Country Club, which is considered one of the best among Thai golf courses near Pattaya, has risen to 7,200 baht (approximately 279,000 won).
Guide A, who operates in Bangkok for Korean golfers, said, “Thailand golf courses have been almost non-operating for the past three years due to Corona 19.” Green fees have risen significantly as golf tourists have flocked from Korea. Compared to before Corona 19, it seems to have increased by more than 30% on average.” He said, “As before, there are many golf courses where you can play a round for 2,000 baht (about 77,400 won) even on weekends, and if you use a package product that costs 1 to 2 million won in Korea, you can play as much as you want for 4 to 5 days.” “However, many golfers who come on a golf trip these days want to play a round on a golf course with good course conditions and luxurious facilities such as clubhouses. The fee for using such a golf course is almost 200,000 won on weekends. It is true that you have to travel for several hours to round in a cheap place, and there are many places where the quality of the course or accommodations are poor.”
Another reason why Thailand has been popular as a golf destination is that so-called ‘Emperor Golf’ was possible. Even 4-5 years ago, there were many golf courses where you could play golf leisurely without worrying about other golfers. However, finding such a golf course near Bangkok this winter is not easy.
Golfer B, who came to Bangkok with friends on a golf trip, said, “There were many places where it took at least 5 and a half hours to round 18 holes even on weekdays, and sometimes it took more than 6 hours on weekends.” I came all the way to Thailand, but it was difficult because there were many times when I had to wait for rounds. I was looking forward to a golf trip after a long time, but coming to Southeast Asia and playing golf to my heart’s content seems to be a thing of the past.”
Mr. B’s companion, Mr. C, said, “When I came to Thailand five years ago, even if I went to a well-maintained high-end golf course, I could play rounds for 100,000 to 150,000 won a day, but now I can only play 9 holes with that money.” “Except for the warm weather, I don’t think I will be able to come to Thailand often because I have to pay more than 200,000 won on weekends to play golf. After Corona 19, Korea has a lot of green fees, so it’s a burden, but it’s the same in Thailand.”