Alpine Golf & Sports Club - Hole 1 in Bangkok, Thailand - Thailand's Top 18 Holes

Continuing our best 18 holes theme in Thailand, we have picked the 1^st hole at Alpine Golf & Sports Club in Bangkok. We could have picked many holes from this championship layout which is certainly in the top half dozen courses in the country. However, we opted for the first hole which gives a great indication of what to expect for the rest of the round with a rolling fairway, water and well placed bunkers. This mature and tight course starts off with a bang and continues on from there.

Named ‘The Waterfall’, water is certainly what you see at Alpine Golf & Sports Club’s opening hole. Only measuring 382 yards from the regular blue tees, its not a long hole and its all about the tee-shot. For those brave enough to hit a driver, ideally to the right half of the fairway it will only leave a short into the green. There is a large lake off to the right of the tee shot, and anything headed too far right better have legs, or it’ll be straight into the drink!

For those who wish to take a more conservative approach, center-left of the fairway is the ideal line off the tee. Going too far left will bring a large tree in to play on the 2nd shot, that is about 60 yards from the green. This is very much a risk/reward hole from the tee, so the further up and right the tee shot is, the more simple the hole is from there.

If you’ve hit a blinder off the tee and ended up on the right hand side of the fairway, the hole is pretty much straight forward from here-on-in. The green slopes right-to-left and there are bunkers on the left-hand side of the green. It is best to try to be below the hole here, and on every hole at Alpine Golf & Sports Club. Something at the hole which rolls down, will leave an uphill putt and a good chance at par.

If you’ve been more conservative off the tee, the challenge here continues. You will have a medium to long iron in your hands, and a large tree to contend with. It will take a high ball to get over the tree, or best to play right-to-left around the tree. This should allow you to hold the green and leave yourself with a putt. Too much right-to-left could lead to bunker trouble, so good to keep that in mind when facing thus daunting shot!

Having landed on the green, a two putt should be relatively straight forward, provided you’ve left the ball below the hole. The greens here are quick and have lots of hidden breaks in them, hence being below the hole is vital. Trust the caddie’s line, and hit the putt with confidence.

However, if you have kept the ball above the hole or missed the green, then trouble awaits. The bunkers are good to play out of, and luckily are below the hole. However, as we all know it is easy to hit bunker shots a bit thin and that can lead to a big number. It’s better to be short out of these bunkers, which will leave you with an uphill attack to the hole.

If you’re above the hole well, good luck! Getting down in two will be a challenge and the putter will be tested at this early stage of the round!

In conclusion, just because it’s the first hole of the day, many golfers will hit a 3 wood just to find the fairway leaving a longer shot in. It is a great opening hole that will test all facets of your game and get your attention quickly! A good par here will give you confidence to tackle what lies ahead.

We’d love to hear about your experience at Alpine Golf & Country Club. Let us know on our Facebook page!

All Holes in the Series

1. Hole 9B at Springfield Royal in Hua Hin, Thailand

2. Hole 18 at Nikanti Golf Club in Bangkok, Thailand

3. Hole 16 at Sea Pines Golf Course in Hua Hin, Thailand

4. Hole 5 on Sugar Cane at Siam Country Club – Plantation Course in Pattaya, Thailand

5. Hole 15 at Banyan Golf Club in Hua Hin, Thailand

6. Hole 8 at Red Mountain Golf Club in Phuket, Thailand

7. Hole 11 at Black Mountain Golf Club in Hua Hin, Thailand

8. Hole 15 at Chee Chan Golf Resort in Pattaya, Thailand

9. Hole 16 at Subhapruek Golf Club in Bangkok, Thailand

10. Hole 18 at Blue Canyon Country Club, Lakes Course in Phuket, Thailand