After a seven-year absence, Thailand is back on the DP World Tour International Schedule with one of the most spectacular holes in world golf on show at Amata Spring Country Club.
The signature par three 17th features Asia’s only floating island green which is only accessible by short boat trip beneath the striking Amata Castle.
Sitting in the vast lake of Amata Spring, the putting surface features two distinct tiers and there are two elevated tees in place for this week’s Thailand Classic.
Amata Spring staged four Royal Trophy matches, involving teams from Europe and Asia, between 2006 and 2010 and was the host venue for last year’s prestigious Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship.
Here, we see what some of the players in the field have to say about the novelty factor of tackling a hole described as "iconic", "beautiful" and "crazy".
Kiradech Aphibarnrat
“Amata Spring is one of the best golf courses in Thailand. Everyone wants to play here, especially the 17th hole, the island green, it’s iconic. You just want to be dry, hit it on the green and keep yourself away from the water. I have a little tip for all the players this week: the most important thing in Amata Spring is the boat. Because without the boat, you can’t complete the round. Nobody is going to swim over! Keep it on the green, make it simple, make the putt. This course will have a bunch of birdies, the DP World Tour players are some of the best in the world. We’ll see a lot of birdies this week, but let’s see who takes the trophy and gets the job done.”
Rafa Cabrera Bello
“It’s my favourite hole on the course. It’s a beautiful island green, relatively small, two different tees, it almost feels a little wider or a little narrower depending on which tee you use. You can play it different ways with the two tees and different pin positions. The fact you have to get a boat to it is pretty cool.”
Nicolai Højgaard
“The 17th looks crazy when you’re looking at it right now, but I would imagine when you’re out there the green will look big enough to feel comfortable hitting a tee shot. It looks interesting. It makes it [the course] a bit more special, you have a hole you always think about and when you look back at this week and see highlights, that hole will be shown all the time because it’s so unique. It will be a memory.”
