How refreshing to see something so beautiful emerge from the doom and gloom of Covid-19 and the associated problems it has caused so many.
Recently I looked at a new golf course project located just beyond Suvarnabhumi airport, and it was love at first sight.
No longer must we travel to Ireland or Scotland to experience the wondrous experience of links golf, as the Ban Rakat Club will very shortly unveil a masterpiece called Ballyshear Links.
This delightful Scottish golfing experience will be Thailand's gain and stand out uniquely from other courses in the country due to the very nature of the new holes.
The added attention to detail and unquestionable quality prompts me to predict that the Ban Rakat Club that encompasses Ballyshear Links will shoot straight to the top of the charts.
Designed by US architects Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner, this course will take your breath away.
Crafted by Links Golf Services, this creation has been lovingly overseen by Bret Brennan and Josh McFadden.
Ballyshear Links will seduce you with its raw sandy wasteland areas, wild whiffs of long grass and wide-open flowing fairways.
The greens already look like Queen Elizabeth's favourite living room carpet and will inevitably play an instrumental part in an immediate 'reputation' that will spread far and wide.
Their slopes twist 'up hill and down dale' and will be a magnificent challenge.
Whilst visiting the club, I was instantly transported back to the famous links courses that I have had the privilege to stroll around over the years.
Placing the ball on the correct side of fairways from the tee so, as to give you a way into the greens, is the key for a reasonable score for any links course and Ballyshear is no exception.
Bumps, hollows and swirls that will take your ball off to the side of the green if any approach is not hit true.
These are familiar links challenges that will become quickly associated with Ballyshear and a popular topic of conversation for many at the 19th.
The driving force behind this wonderful project is Takeyasu Aiyama who is obviously a very well-travelled avid golfer and a man who is thoroughly passionate about the game while fully understanding golf's traditionalism, history and incorporated respected values.
He possesses two other golf courses and obviously completely understands how to establish and push through successful projects.
His main aim is to present a high class esteemed 'traditional' golf course together with a matching clubhouse.
The birth of the Ban Rakat Club is scheduled for later this year. For more information, call 02-263-0150.