Nick Shan: "Vietnam Can Set a New Benchmark for Golf Tourism"  03:45, 10/07/2026

What makes this role special to you?

I believe this role provides a unique opportunity to help shape the growth of golf across Asia-Pacific in a very positive way for generations to come. There are fantastic golf facilities across the region, with highly experienced administrators and players continuing to achieve at the highest level. APGC has the chance to collaborate, provide the required expertise and showcase Asia-Pacific to the rest of the world.

What has shaped your view of the game?

I worked for the Sunshine Tour in South Africa, where I learned across many different areas — from organising co-sanctioned professional tournaments with the European Tour to procuring sponsorship, staff and equipment. It gave me an understanding of the global network of professional golf, as well as the international standards that domestic tournaments should aim to achieve.

The 10 years I worked with The R&A in amateur golf was a fantastic period, working on tournaments, academies and with National Golf Associations, with a focus on golf development across Asia-Pacific. It gave me an accurate perspective of the different levels of golf maturity across the region’s sub-regions.

These collective experiences have given me a clear perspective on the current state of golf across the region and enabled me to recognise the collaboration of various expertise required to elevate the golf ecosystem across Asia-Pacific.

What attracted you to APGC’s mission?

The opportunity to collaborate with various industry specialists to provide the required expertise to APGC member countries attracted me to apply for the role. It is key to understand the challenges and opportunities across the Asia-Pacific to elevate the ability of the APGC to serve their domestic stakeholders and showcase the potential of golf as a thriving lifestyle across Asia-Pacific.

What is the region’s greatest opportunity today?

Growing the pool of golfers of different age groups across Asia-Pacific is key to growing the size of market that will enjoy the sport. This will also help to provide a continuous depth of golfers that would like to work and support the golf eco-system. This increases the total addressable market for the whole industry, which is healthy to continuously improve best practice and standards of excellence.

What makes a modern golf destination stand out beyond course conditions?

A combination of a quality golf course, accommodation and a high-quality food and beverage experience contribute to the possibility of guests returning to a facility. A facility should ensure that their staff are trained to provide quality service.    

What makes Vietnam stand out?

Vietnam has a number of quality golf resorts that provide golf, accommodation and good food and beverage. The opportunity is to continue improving the quality of these three elements and, most importantly, the level of service. In aiming to set the benchmark, surrounding Southeast Asian countries will be required to elevate their facilities and services to remain competitive in the golf tourism market.

What role do the Awards play?

It is very important for the Vietnam Golf & Leisure Awards to help raise standards and support the development of golf in Vietnam. APGC is very grateful for this and encourages other publications to do the same. Profiling best practice and showcasing companies that provide opportunities for people to work in the ecosystem that supports golf as a lifestyle is important.

What should awards recognise beyond the golf course?

Golf has become more than just a sport; it is a lifestyle. We should recognise the companies that help train people to find work in the hospitality industry that supports golf. Golf resorts create many jobs, so we should also recognise the hotel groups that support golf and invest in staff training to provide a great experience for golf tourists.

What should new projects focus on?

New projects should look to incorporate well-designed accommodation with family-friendly facilities. Staff training should focus on delivering excellent service, alongside quality food and beverage offerings. All of these elements combine to promote golf as a lifestyle for families to appreciate and enjoy.