HÀ NỘI — The Bluffs Hồ Tràm Strip won the award for best golf course in Việt Nam in 2017, announced in Hà Nội on Wednesday.

With seven rounds of voting, the “Voting for Best Golf Course in Việt Nam” event is organised by the Việt Nam Golf Magazine in co-ordination with the Việt Nam Golf Association (VGA), the Việt Nam National Administration of Tourism and the General Department of Sports. The voting is aimed at highlighting Việt Nam’s golf courses and promoting Việt Nam as an attractive destination for tourism and golf.

The award has received the attention of the golf community and Vietnamese and foreign golf investors, as well as the support of the media and communication agencies.

The seventh round voting lasted from January 1, 2017 to August 31, 2017, and voters cast their votes online at www.vietnamgolfmagazine.net. Those competing are 18-hole courses, launched and operated officially before January 2017.

After collecting online votes, members of the judges panel visited most of the golf courses for accurate evaluation and rating. The votes of each of the judges were then reported to the judges panel and international golf experts.

According to the latest count of the judges panel, there were over 86,000 votes this year to award “Best Golf Course in Việt Nam 2017” and 18 other titles, reflecting the interest of the golfing community and the development of the golf industry in Việt Nam.

“In two years, many high-end golf courses have been launched, bringing an interesting experience for golfers. This voting will promote strongly the development of the Việt Nam golf industry”, Đoàn Mạnh Giao, chairman of the judges panel and VGA’s chairman, said.

Sam Thomas, manager of the Golf Environment Organisation, said environmental protection is an aspect the judges panel paid special attention to at this year’s voting.

Beside the quality of facilities, services and benefits, golf courses also need to conserve resources, create community values and enhance the long-term sustainability of golf.

The best golf course award was launched in 2007. This year, 30 out of 43 operating courses in Việt Nam participated in the vote. Many new golf courses also took part this year and received awards such as FLC Sầm Sơn Golf Links with best championship course 2017 and FLC Quy Nhơn Golf Links with best challenging experience course 2017. — VNS