Donald makes his design debut

Four-time Ryder Cup winner has created his first course at Ba Na Hills GC. It’s Vietnam’s longest.

The first golf course designed by former world No.1 Luke Donald has officially opened at Ba Na Hills GC in Vietnam.

Featuring 18 tour-calibre holes at the foot of a towering mountain range less than half an hour’s drive from Danang, Vietnam’s fourth largest city. Three other designer courses have been built nearby within the past seven years.

But, unlike Colin Montgomerie’sMontgomerie Links, Greg Norman’s Danang Golf Club and Nick Faldo’s Laguna Lang Co, Ba Na Hills GC will play away from the coast in a cooler setting typically void of wind.

 “This is an important addition to one of the best new golf destinations in Asia,” said Donald. “The large rolling hills, stunning mountain backdrop and adjacent river at Ba Na Hills will provide golfers with the ideal complement to the existing courses in the area.”

Stretching 7,858 yards from the championship tees, Ba Na Hills GC is the longest layout in the country and comprises a succession of undulating and sometimes small greens, making it perfectly capable of testing the world’s best golfers.

However, with four other sets of tees, generous landing areas and high-density MiniVerde putting surfaces, the course can attract players of all skill levels.

“I think people are going to really be taken by the diverse mix of natural topography and vegetation out here as well,” said Jack Hedges, Ba Na Hills GC’s general manager. “From the rose lily trees to the wispy redtop grass, there’s an incomparable beauty to the landscape, with the Truong Son Mountains looming.”

What’s more, it is set apart from the others by its unique lighting system. The arrangement is so comprehensive that you can start and finish your round in the dark.

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