Moving to Singapore in February

[DRGJR72]

Any suggestions on where to play? Get gear? etc.?

Hi all,

Thought I would throw this out there to you guys and see if there was any advice to be had. My family is moving to Singapore in February and will be there for about 4 years. I am going to be a member of the American Club and will be living somewhere in District 9,10, or 11. I had a couple of questions.

How is the golf??
Where do you buy gear, balls, etc?
Any advice for an American living in Singapore?

Any help would be appreciated.

Also I hope to be able to access WRX from there as we are going to have a VPN, but if there are blocking issues I just wanted to say it has been a pleasure being a part of this little club and being able to contribute a little here and there has been a great thing for me. If I am unable to access the website, good luck and best of wishes to all of you and I will see you back here in a few years.

Dan

[optionstraderbc]

Never been but here is a link. Be sure to yell fore if one goes astray or we may see you on the news getting caned!


[url="http://www-singapore.com/golfing.htm"]http://www-singapore.com/golfing.htm[/url]


[url="http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&expIds=27955,28009,28220&sugexp=gsih&xhr=t&cp=9&qe=Z29sZiBpbiBzaQ&qesig=5SkfZ0HemAkjBaOgnfo8xg&pkc=AFgZ2tmq1rkeSNTVdcuqwH45lrSCO21ezou4DfvKG1B107u0ceilqfyqSqkIQcmTuZ4B6YmmRrowZZjaTKuslGgTENz4mxK6YA&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=golf+in+singapore&fb=1&gl=us&hq=golf&hnear=Singapore&ei=MmQuTc6eGIGC8gacz5DECQ&sa=X&oi=local_group&ct=image&resnum=4&sqi=2&ved=0CAcQtgMwAw"]http://maps.google.c...ved=0CAcQtgMwAw[/url]

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g294265-Activities-c12-Singapore.html

[Yuck]

Hop on the ferry (about 40 minutes), and play the Greg Norman course in Indonesia for a change of pace. Bring sun screen if you have never lived on the equator before.

[SergioFan]

Hi,

I have been to Singapore a few times on holday/stopovers and golfequipment is pretty expensive there, especially compared to US prices.

Visited a friend there in oktober 2010 and we drove to Malaysia to play golf at [url="http://www.hhgcc.com.my/index.html"]Horizon Hills[/url]. Played it just 3 days after Harrington won there.

According to my friend it is much cheaper to play in Malaysia and the equipment is also cheaper there.

He told me that the golf-course on Sentosa Island is good but they are pretty strict with the tempo and there was always many playing so he almost always plays i Malaysia.

If i remember correct they (in Singapore) have a course with lights so that you can play in the evening, think it's called Marina Bay or something like that..

Singapore is a great city to stay in, but it is a bit expensive. Plenty of shoppingcentres and places to eat - i love it

Hope this info is usefull.

[mozgolf]

Dont panic you will be able to access the website, Singapore is not 3rd world my friend.

There is about 30 courses as I recall before you even start venturing to Johor (Malaysia)- the state has about another 30 courses as well- many not far from Singapore, and then the ferry trips to Indonesian Island of Bintan - a number of signature courses.

I envy you. You are entering a bit of a golfing nirvana in that region. For variety Thailand is not to far away and if your on a tight budget try Cambodia for a cheap holiday with great cheap accommodation, eating and golf

[DRGJR72]

Thanks for the replies. I appreciate the input. And yes I am aware that Singapore is not a 3rd world country. They do however have censorship with respect to some US sites on the internet and was not certain if I was going to be able to access all that I can here in the states.

Has anyone played the courses in Singapore??? If so how would you rank them???

Thanks

Dan

[Ridge]

I've spent a lot of time in Singapore, including a two year posting, and as I am sure you have now discovered, you need to be a member to play on weekends and membership is not cheap. Most of my golf was played at Sentosa where they hold the Barclays...very nice course and they have a second one which is ok. The other top golf courses are Tanah Merah and Laguna however more have sprung up and like all things, are subjective. I never thought the courses in Malaysia were any good so only went a few times. Bintan Island, which is a 40min ferry ride, has a number of resorts and a few good courses. Ria Bintan is actually very nice and has some spectacular holes. I played here a bit as well but it made for a long day.


I am an American scratch golfer as well and would be interested to know what you have learned as I am contemplating a transfer back there and wouldn't go without joining a club.

[DRGJR72]

hi Ridge,

Thanks for the reply. As far as what I have learned so far being over here.

Things have been a little easier for me as I joined the local message board over here and like WRX there are a bunch of golf nuts. Also through a mutual friend I have been able to meet several really great guys and started to make some friendships. Like you said it is hard to play golf over here unless you know people who are members.

I am also a member of the American Club here in Singapore and that allows me access to 3 or 4 courses here in Singapore and if I opt to join the Platinum club I get access to many more. The greens fees are close to what the locals Singaporean residents pay, so that is good.

I have played Laguna, Tanah Merah, Sembawang,SICC,and NSRCC. They are all different and interesting in their own way.

Great place here in Singapore. It has been a pleasant surprise. Now the price of the gear...that is whole other ballgame...HA.

[mozgolf]

Bet you can access most of the websites you were after as well, unless you have a pretty nasty taste in porn. Objectionable material is about all that's blocked. Singapore probably has a more open press than anywhere in the SEA region.

Enjoy the golf and a great part of the World

[DRGJR72]

Ha...Classic. Luckily I am not a member of nambla or any of those off the wall joints. It is pretty sweet over here I have to say. Not much different than the US in many aspects. But at the same time...it is quite different. Pretty neat experience.

Dan

[eventemposwing]

Dan, you want to play the Serapong Course on Sentosa mate! (Sentosa GC)

Hole 5 and Hole 7 .....stunning

See here!

http://www.sentosagolf.com/index.php/golfing/serapong/serapong-course-layout.html

(Living in Britain now so only get to play there when I'm visiting family!)

[Ridge]

I was checking out the American Club website and didn't see anything about the platinum club membership...do you have any more detes on that? Does it get you access to any of the good courses? Also, as a scratch golfer, did you look at joining one of the golf clubs instead?

[Optimus_Prime]

Singapore is an awesome country, we have a house out there so visit every so often



Dont spend all your time golfing, go to the F1, do some lagoon and sea fishing both on boat and in stilt houses at night, its an amazing experience and the fish taste great


Theres plenty more out there like the night life and of course shopping as they have an amazing number of quality stores for everything, plus the food centres are just perfection all amazing quality and dirt cheap

[Toos]

I know this is an old discussion but some info for anyone coming to live in Sg - join NTUC (you get rebates on what you buy at Fairprice which for us is more than the cost of the membership - $9/month) and then join mygolfkaki. This will get you onto Orchid CC for about $80 weekdays and $100 Sun afternoon which is ridiculously cheap compared to 'visitor' rates and only takes a half day rather than the 10+ hour trips to Malaysia or Batam/Bintan.

[scagnetti]

What's an American to do that only visits and works there on short hauls?

 

I've actually found some cheap-ish shops and bought a bag and set of ping rescues there, but have yet to play...

 

Any good suggestions for someone on a three or four day stay?