“Vietnam golf industry will have many opportunities to shine!” 09:00, 29/07/2022

As a longtime member of the jury, what do you think when this year the golf course voting event is renamed to the Vietnam Golf & Leisure Award?

Personally, I consider this to be a prestigious and professional event and actively contribute to promoting the beauty of Vietnamese golf courses. I am also very "curious" when in this 10th season, the organizers decided to raise the event to the Vietnam Golf & Leisure Awards. Because I personally feel that leisure is a very broad field and how will the organizer evaluate the criteria for this award category. However, I also appreciate this adaptation because we still know that, in addition to golf courses, the service and entertainment factors related to golf are also very important. Golfers on the course not only experience a generous round of golf, they also bring their families to stay at hotels/resorts and explore the amenities adjacent to the golf course. Therefore, raising the event level will not only encourage golf courses but also resorts and accompanying services to further develop the golf tourism industry.

After many times accompanying the organizer committee, what do you expect from this year's event?

This year is the year after the Covid-19 pandemic, so surely the courses will also need to introduce and promote more to attract tourists back. The whole country has also had a number of new stadiums completed recently, so I hope all courts will respond and participate actively in the event.

In your opinion, what is the role of the jury in the process of inspecting golf courses?

The judges play a very important role in the inspection process. Because these will be the ones to check and evaluate whether the award-winning course will continue to promote their strengths and constantly upgrade their services, especially after a long time of being affected by the pandemic. For some new golf courses participating in the voting, the judges also need experience to evaluate the potentials and advantages of the course. There is no better verification than the fact that the judges go directly to the stadiums to review the actual situation.

As an experienced golfer, how do you evaluate golf courses in Vietnam?

Golf courses in Vietnam are generally designed by famous companies and architectures in the world, located in ideal locations, and are favored by the year-round warm and sunny tropical climate of the S-shaped strip of land. However, after a long time of the epidemic, most of the courts are making full use of their capacity, receiving too many visitors compared to the allowed player density, leading to overcrowding. The chain of consequences is the lack of professional services, the golf course is not maintained in time, and the quality of service is reduced. Hopefully this situation will improve in the near future.

In your opinion, how much of a player's decision when coming to a golf course will be dominated by convenient services, entertainment and resorts?

Các dịch vụ tiện ích gắn với golf sẽ chi phối phần nào đó đến quyết định của người chơi, tùy theo từng nhóm đối tượng. Nếu người chơi là khách du lịch thì các yếu tố này sẽ chiếm tới 80%, còn nếu đối tượng là các golfer thường xuyên lên sân thì dịch vụ tiện ích chỉ chiếm khoảng 20-30% quyết định đến với sân golf đó.

The utility services associated with golf will partly influence the player's decision, depending on each target group. If the player is a tourist, these factors account for 80%, and if the player is a local golfer, utility services only account for about 20-30% of the decision to come to that golf course.

After important events like the Vietnam Golf & Leisure Awards, will the future of golf and golf tourism in Vietnam thrive?

I’m definitely sure about that. I hope the organizer will find the necessary criteria to make the vote more attractive as well as create prestige and resonance in the golf community.

Mr. Nguyen Quoc Hung

Position: Deputy Director of High Performance Sports Department 2

Handicap: 7

More information about the Vietnam Golf & Leisure Award:

• Online launch time: March 2022 - June 2022
• Survey period: August 2022
• Awards press conference: October 2022
• Voting criteria: 18-hole golf course or larger, operating before December 2021

Jury members

• Vietnam Golf & Leisure Magazine
• Representative of Vietnam National Administration of Tourism
• Representative of the General Department of Sports
• Representative of Vietnam Golf Association
• Foreign golf experts