Mission Hills (Kanchanaburi) Golf Club & Resort

Mission Hills (Kanchanaburi) Golf Club & Resort: One of two Mission Hills resorts in Thailand (the other is in Phuket) this Jack Nicklaus designed golf course carries all the hallmarks of the great man's work. Jungle-clad hills and rural countryside are all around, creating a real golf oasis in the middle of the Kanchanaburi / River Kwai area.

The relatively flat fairways are excellently defined with impressively large palm trees lining the way. Expansive bunkers and sandy waste areas are also much in play. Around the attractively earth-mounded and well-bunkered greens, thicker bermuda grass should be avoided if at all possible.

Although maintenance standards are adequate without being immaculate (the sandy waste areas for example could be better maintained), the strength of the design makes up for any presentation deficiencies. The par-5's are among the best holes on the course. The 8th for example is as attractive a long hole as you'll find; very well bunkered down the leftside and centre of the fairway, with a beautiful stretch of water and reeds flanking the rightside from tee-to-green.

The 12th is another long hole, this time with a wide creek splitting the fairway from tee-to-green; a double fairway gives you the option to go left or right from the tee, although the creek has a habit of claiming its fair share of victims. The 17th, this time a par-4, is another strategically testing hole, with an approach shot required to an island green.