Blue Canyon Country Club, Canyon Course
Yoshikazu Kato laid the Canyon Course over an abandoned tin mine flanked by rubber plantations; it opened in 1991. It is the only course to have hosted the Johnnie Walker Classic three times: Greg Norman won in 1994, Tiger Woods came from eight back on the final day to beat Ernie Els in a playoff in 1998, and Anton Haig won in 2007. The Asian Tour returned in 2021.
Par 72 and 7,244 yards from the black tees on the club's card, it is long, tight off the tee and asks for full carries over canyon edges. The 17th, a short par 3 across a ravine, is in GOLF Magazine's list of the world's 500 best holes. A full re-grassing (Zoysia matrella fairways, TifEagle greens) has been in play since early 2024.
Who it suits: single-figure players and anyone who wants to walk in tournament footsteps. Low-season fee: THB 4,500 (green fee 3,400, caddie 400, cart 700). Twenty minutes from the airport.
Blue Canyon Country Club, Lakes Course
The Lakes opened in 1999 (the club's page says 1998), also by Kato, par 72 and 7,129 yards. Wider and more forgiving than the Canyon but wetter: water is in play on most holes, and the closing par 4, with a canyon splitting the fairway, was named Best Par 4 in Asia by Asian Golf Monthly in 2003.
Who it suits: mid-handicappers who want the Blue Canyon setting without the forced carries, and groups of mixed ability. Low-season fee: THB 2,950 (green fee 1,850, caddie 400, cart 700), the best-value turf on the island.
Red Mountain Golf Club
Jon Morrow, with Al Tikkanen, opened Red Mountain in 2007 on a 1,400-rai former tin mine above Kathu. The routing uses the mine's red cliffs, gullies and flooded pits rather than hiding them, and it is the highest course on Phuket. Par 72, 6,905 yards. Carts and caddies are compulsory, the club says the course is not walkable, and marshals hold rounds to 4 hours 15 minutes. Top 100 Golf Courses ranks it 11th in Thailand.
Note for 2026: six new back-nine holes have been under construction since March 2025. Four are open, the 16th and 17th are not, and the designer expects the full layout by January 2027; until then 18 holes are played on a temporary routing.
Who it suits: players who want drama and do not mind blind shots. Low-season fee: THB 4,600 including caddie (400) and cart (700). About 20 minutes from Patong, 45 from the airport.
Laguna Golf Phuket
Max Wexler and David Abell built the original in 1992 inside the Laguna Phuket resort at Bang Tao; Paul Jansen reworked it between 2013 and January 2015, cutting bunkers from 100 to 37, reversing the nines and adding links-style contours. Par 71, 6,756 yards, the flattest course on the island, with lagoons rather than cliffs as the hazard. Asian Tour venue in 2009 and 2021.
Who it suits: guests of the Laguna hotels (free shuttles), couples and anyone who wants to walk. The club's published rate is THB 5,600 for 18 holes with caddie; the cart is optional at 700 (individual) or 1,000 (shared). Agent tables show THB 4,100 in low season excluding cart.
Loch Palm Golf Club
Dr Sukitti Klangvisai's 1993 layout sits in a basin of jungle hills next to Red Mountain, under the same owner. Par 72 and 6,555 yards, the shortest of the main courses, but the lake (the loch) dominates the front nine and the back nine tightens and climbs. The downhill par-3 14th, water on three sides, is the hole people talk about; the range hits floating balls into the lake.
Who it suits: placement players, and the second round of a trip when the ego is still bruised from Red Mountain. Low-season fee: THB 3,600 excluding the optional cart (700). Fifteen minutes from Patong and Karon.
Phuket Country Club
The island's first course, also by Klangvisai, opened in 1989 in the central valley between Patong and Phuket Town under limestone cliffs. The main 18 is par 72 and 6,484 yards; a further nine makes 27. The front nine is the harder half. The par-5 10th, 557 yards, turns almost 180 degrees around a lake and is probably the most photographed hole on Phuket; the par-3 17th plays to an island green.
Who it suits: value seekers and walkers, since the cart (THB 900) is optional. Low-season fee: THB 3,200 excluding cart. Twenty minutes from Patong, Karon and Kata.
Aquella Golf & Country Club, Phang Nga
Opened in 2021 at Thai Muang, about 45 minutes north of the airport, by Pacific Coast Design (Paul Reeves and Phil Ryan) on the northern part of the old Thai Muang course. Par 72 and over 7,000 yards, Platinum Paspalum turf throughout, timber-faced bunkers as the signature; the 161-yard par-3 11th looks out to the Andaman Sea.
Who it suits: golfers who like firm, modern conditioning and a quiet day off the island. Low-season fee: THB 2,850 including caddie and cart.
Katathong Golf Resort & Spa, Phang Nga
Katathong (2015) lies in a reclaimed tin-mining valley near Phang Nga town. Par 72 and 6,837 yards on the resort's card; the 16th tee shot crosses a former open-cast pit and the par-3 10th is 215 yards to an island green. The resort says 40 minutes from Phuket airport; agents quote 80. No designer is published.
Who it suits: a stay-and-play night for groups doing a week on Phuket. Low-season fee: THB 3,150 including caddie and cart.
