'Golf in a Kingdom' adds Woodlands properties in Pattaya

New Thai golf experience figures in upcoming Asian Tour event, too.

BANGKOK (July 28, 2009) - 'Golf in a Kingdom: The Thai Golf Experience' is just a month old but already having an impact. Another luxury property has joined and the region's top pro tour has again put a Kingdom track on its schedule.

Last week, the distinctive Woodlands Hotel & Resort and Woodlands Suites - a pair of related lodgings in Pattaya - became part of 'Golf in a Kingdom: The Thai Golf Experience (www.golfinakingdom.com), which launched in June as an itinerary and golf-travel resource that matches Thailand's top courses with its most desirable hotels.

Also, the Asian PGA Tour has tapped 'Golf in a Kingdom' member course Santiburi Samui Country Club as host venue of the inaugural Queen's Cup tournament, Aug. 13-16. Santiburi Samui CC is a dramatic layout that deftly traverses a jungle of towering coconut trees on gentle slopes of Koh Samui's picturesque Khao Pom Mountain.

"The Asian Tour's coming here is further proof that playing 'Golf in a Kingdom' means playing the best Thailand and Southeast Asia have to offer," said Folke Nyberg, director of golf at Santiburi Samui CC. "We've got a little work to do on the event set-up side, but the course is ready - it's in championship condition every day of the year."

The Woodlands properties are the Kingdom's first upscale accommodations in the resort hub of Pattaya. One is a sprawling hotel containing 134 contemporary guest rooms; the other a vertical compilation of 74 stylish, serviced apartments. Both are set in a quiet beachfront locale just north of town, connected by footpaths that weave through manicured gardens and lead, in some directions, to tropical swimming pools.

Fellow Kingdom member Siam Country Club, a 36-hole, championship venue (its Plantation Course hosted the 2009 Honda LPGA Thailand), is about 10 minutes away by car.

Other first-class accommodations in the 'Golf in a Kingdom' portfolio include the Anantara Phuket, Bangkok Marriott Resort & Spa, Anantara Golden Triangle, Anantara Hua Hin, Anantara Koh Samui, and Hua Hin Marriott Resort & Spa.

"The Kingdom's hotels comprise an elite group," said Stephane Bringer, the Woodlands general manager. "We fit into that collection by offering the same high level of style, comfort and service as the rest. But, of course, we do this in Pattaya, a beautiful beachside city no golfer on holiday should miss."

The Asian PGA Tour has stopped at 'Golf in a Kingdom' courses before - at the prestigious Thai Country Club six times, and at Santiburi Chiang Rai in 2008 for the Singha Thailand PGA Championship. Other golf venues in the Kingdom lineup include Muang Kaew Golf Club in Bangkok, Chiang Mai Highlands Golf & Spa Resort in Chiang Mai, and Banyan Golf Club in Hua Hin.

"There has been a lot of positive buzz of late for 'Golf in a Kingdom', but I think holding the Queen's Cup at Santiburi Samui will only add to the allure," said Mark Siegel, president of Bangkok-based Golf tour operator Golfasian, a member of 'Golf in a Kingdom' cooperative, along with the courses, hotels and the Tourist Authority of Thailand.

"We're already fielding repeated inquiries regarding these various course and hotel properties, but the addition of Woodlands gives greater scope to what we can offer traveling golfers. We frankly expect more commitments from Thai hotels and courses in the coming weeks. Wherever you play in the Kingdom, the golf and lodgings go together, so the itineraries we can assemble for people will only become more diverse with time."

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For more information on 'Golf in a Kingdom: The Thai Golf Experience', or to make golf travel plans in Thailand, visit www.golfinakingdom.com, or send email to info@golfinakingdom.com

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