Former Singapore Open winners Kyi Hla Han and Zaw Moe have led the chorus of approval for the newly-renovated Serapong Course at Sentosa Golf Club.
Han, a former Asian Tour number one and winner of the Singapore Open in 1994, and Moe – the 1997 Singapore Open champion – were invited by the club to play the course during its soft opening.
The two Myanmar golfers were joined in their group by Cho Minn Thant, Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer of the Asian Tour, and Australian Unho Park, a 20-year veteran of the Tour, who is now a key part of its administrative team.
Voted by Asian Tour members as the ‘Best Golf Course on Tour’ last year, the Serapong had been closed since March as it underwent extensive renovations. Changes have been made to the bunkers – which now have creative, artistic serrated edges – fairways, and tee boxes.
“The renovations are great! The fairways and greens are fantastic, and the bunkers are also excellent,” said Kyi Hla Han, a former Commissioner of the Asian Tour.
“I was working on a course in Mandalay, in Myanmar, which has classic bunkers with rough edges. It gives the course a more classic look. The changes to the bunkers at Sentosa are similar. I think it is a wonderful design element, and something that appeals to me as a course designer, the more classic, older look.
“The Serapong has always stood up well to the players in the Singapore Open – the scores are not too low. It is a tough course from the back tees.”
Zaw was equally impressed. “The course looks fantastic. The fairways are really good, they have just one type of grass,” said Zaw, who enjoyed success on both the Asian Tour and Japan Golf Tour Organisation.
“For me the course looks the same, but it is the condition that is really noticeable. The course looks neat and extremely well presented, as always. And, of course, you can really see the new shaping around the bunkers – very distinctive,” he added.
A Full Business Member of the Asian Golf Industry Federation, the Asian Tour is headquartered at Sentosa Golf Club, so Cho was also delighted to have the chance to play the course.
He said: “The Serapong has always been one of the most acclaimed courses on the Asian Tour. They [Sentosa] have really outdone themselves in what they have done to the course over the last nine months.
“The condition of the golf course is excellent. They have made the bunkers a bit trickier, the sand is great, the fairways are looking immaculate, and the greens are rolling great so there’s not much more we can ask for.
“There is no real one thing that stands out. I feel it’s one of those courses that doesn’t have a signature hole because the whole golf course is memorable, and the finer details have been done really well.”
“It is remarkable for the members to give up their golf course during this pandemic period where a lot of people were actually playing golf, it’s incredible they could have the patience and the foresight to do that. It is going to pay dividends in the long run.”
