Siam Country Club
Pattaya.

Siam Country Club Pattaya

Overview

Siam Country Club Pattaya is the most historically significant golf property in Thailand and the most decorated multi-course resort club in Pattaya. It is the first privately owned golf club ever opened in Thailand (1970), founded by the late industrialist Dr. Thaworn Phornprapha, originally designed by Japanese architect Ichisuke Izumi, and famously renovated by Americans Lee Schmidt and Brian Curley (2006-2007) to bring the Old Course up to modern international championship standards. The property has since expanded into a four-course championship complex:

• Old Course (1970) — the original, par 72, renovated 2006-2007
• Plantation Course (2008) — par 72, the first expansion
• Waterside Course (2014) — water-feature-rich championship layout
• Rolling Hills Course (2020) — the newest addition

For nearly two decades since its renovation, the Old Course has been the permanent venue for the Honda LPGA Thailand, the LPGA Tour's Asia-swing flagship event since 2010. This makes Siam Country Club the only Pattaya-region course with a continuous LPGA Tour presence, and one of the only Asian courses with that level of consistent international tour hosting.

For travellers planning a Pattaya golf trip, the Old Course is the headline round — a course you walk knowing professional women's golf has been contested on these fairways every winter for 15+ years. Combined with the three sister courses, Siam Country Club is the most concentrated multi-course championship golf experience in Thailand.

History — Thailand's First Privately Owned Golf Club

Founding (1970)

Siam Country Club opened in 1970 under the vision of Dr. Thaworn Phornprapha — a Thai industrialist whose family business empire included Siam Motors (Nissan Thailand) and a network of automotive and industrial operations. Dr. Phornprapha founded the club as the first privately owned golf club in Thailand, breaking from the previous model where Thai golf was confined to military-base courses and a few colonial-era public layouts.

The original course was designed by Ichisuke Izumi, a Japanese architect known for traditional course routing. The early Old Course was characterized by:

• Heavily contoured greens (a Japanese design hallmark)
• Large overhanging trees framing fairways
• Gentle bunkering rather than penal sand-trap defense

For over three decades the Old Course operated as a private members' club, hosting national tournaments and local play, but increasingly aging relative to the international championship-grade courses being built across Asia in the 1990s and 2000s.

The Renovation (2006-2007)

In 2006-2007, the Old Course was closed for a complete renovation by American course architects Lee Schmidt and Brian Curley of Schmidt-Curley Design. The renovation philosophy:

• Original routing kept largely intact — preserving the Izumi-era hole sequencing
• All other aspects modernized — green complexes rebuilt, drainage modernized, bunkering re-styled, fairways re-grassed, irrigation upgraded
• Brought to international championship levels — capable of hosting LPGA Tour and other major events

The renovation was so successful that within three years (2010) the Honda LPGA Thailand made Siam Country Club Old Course its permanent home.

Course Expansion (2008-2020)

The Phornprapha family aggressively expanded the property over the following 12 years:

• Plantation Course (2008) — first expansion, par 72, designed for slightly more playable challenge
• Waterside Course (2014) — water-feature-rich design, scenic
• Rolling Hills Course (2020) — newest course, terrain-driven layout

Today Siam Country Club operates 4 championship 18-hole courses on a single property — among the most multi-course concentrations in Asia.

The Four Courses

Old Course — The Crown Jewel

• Par 72
• Tighter fairways vs. the sister courses
• Most challenging of the four for accuracy
• Permanent host of Honda LPGA Thailand since 2010
• Heavily contoured greens reflect both Izumi's original design and the Schmidt-Curley modernization
• The course every visiting golfer wants to play
• Listed in Top 100 Asia courses in Golf Digest historical rankings

Plantation Course (2008)

• Par 72
• More playable, more forgiving greens vs. the Old Course
• Wider fairways suit higher-handicap players
• Designed as a counterpoint to the Old Course — the everyday-play layout for members
• Hosts the 2008-onward LPGA pro-am and qualifying events tied to the Honda Classic

Waterside Course (2014)

• Water-rich design — multiple lakes, streams, water hazards in play
• Strategic water-management decisions define the playing experience
• Scenic — heavy water features create visually striking holes
• More demanding than Plantation; comparable challenge to Old Course

Rolling Hills Course (2020)

• Newest course on the property
• Terrain-driven layout — uses the rolling hills west of the property
• Modern conditioning standards from day one
• Less storied than Old/Plantation/Waterside but increasingly featured in golf packages

Honda LPGA Thailand — The Tournament

The Honda LPGA Thailand is the LPGA Tour's annual Asia-swing event, contested at Siam Country Club Old Course since 2010. Notable elements:

• 15+ consecutive editions at the same venue (rare in modern professional golf)
• Late February / early March annual scheduling
• Total purse: typically $1.6-1.7 million (LPGA top-tier event)
• Past champions include world #1 ranked players and major champions
• Permanent venue status — uncommon globally; reflects course quality + tournament logistics
• Spectator-friendly with proper galleries, hospitality, infrastructure

For golfers, this means the fairways you walk are the same fairways professional women's golfers contest each February — a uniquely tangible connection to LPGA Tour play.

Pricing

Standard Green Fees

• Weekday (Old Course, 18 holes): ~฿3,550
• Weekend (Old Course, 18 holes): ~฿4,350
• Twilight rates: ~฿1,000
• Plantation/Waterside/Rolling Hills: typically ฿2,500-3,800 weekday, slightly higher weekend
• Multi-course packages (play 2 or 3 of the 4 courses): meaningfully discounted vs. individual rounds

Caddy & Cart

• Caddy fee ฿480 (compulsory, included in package)
• Caddy tip recommended: ฿500+ (paid directly to caddy after round)
• Cart fees: typically ฿700-1,000/person (separate from green fee at most tee bookings)

Discount Booking

The standard Pattaya golf discount platforms (Golfsavers, Golf Pattaya, Golfasian, Pattaya Golf Net, etc.) all offer Siam Country Club — typical 20-30% off walk-up rates.

Tournaments & Hosting Pedigree

Siam Country Club Old Course's tournament resume is the deepest in Thai golf:

• Honda LPGA Thailand 2010-present (LPGA Tour, annual)
• Multiple Asian Tour events historically
• Thai national championships
• AVANI Pattaya 2 Ball Golf Championship (June 2026 dates)
• Corporate and amateur tournaments year-round
• Pro-am events tied to the Honda LPGA

Pros

• Thailand's first privately owned golf club (1970)
• 4 championship 18-hole courses on one property — most concentrated in Asia
• Old Course is permanent LPGA Tour venue since 2010
• Schmidt-Curley renovation (2006-2007) — modernized to international championship grade
• Tournament-grade conditioning maintained year-round
• Ichisuke Izumi original design pedigree plus modern renovation
• Great range of difficulty — Plantation forgiving, Old/Waterside demanding
• Top-class caddies — among the most knowledgeable in Thai golf
• Listed in Top 100 Asia courses historically
• Multi-course packages for serious golf trips

Cons

• Premium pricing — among the highest green fees in Pattaya region
• East Pattaya location (Pong area) — 20-25 min from central Pattaya
• Booking essential during high season; LPGA week is closed for tournament prep
• Caddy + cart + tip add up — true cost is meaningfully higher than headline green fee
• Old Course difficulty — high handicaps may struggle; consider Plantation instead
• Members-priority during busy times can affect tee availability for visitors

Best For

• LPGA fans wanting to walk the Honda Thailand course
• Serious multi-day golf travellers — the 4-course property anchors a premium itinerary
• Tournament-grade conditioning seekers
• Multi-ability golf groups (Plantation easier, Old harder)
• Members and corporate hospitality — the property's club-culture roots
• Photogenic / scenic round seekers — Waterside especially

Not Best For

• Pure budget golfers (cheaper Pattaya courses available)
• Walk-up tee-time hopefuls (booking essential)
• Non-golfers wanting walkable Pattaya (East Pattaya location requires transport)
• High-handicap beginners on Old Course (Plantation more appropriate)

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