Thai Country Club joins IGOLF Laureate Course program

The Thai Country Club, which has hosted numerous international tournaments, was accepted into the IGOLF Laureate Course program.

The certificate presentation was made to the Thai Country Club Board of Directors by IGOLF Chairman Paul Sochaczewski and IGOLF Council of Experts member Herbert Beng.

The course is owned and managed by Peninsula Hotels. Thai Country Club has hosted the Volvo Masters of Asia from 2005 to 2008, the Johnnie Walker Super Tour in 1998 won by Vijay Singh, and the Asian Honda Classic in 1997 won by Tiger Woods.

In making the presentation, Mr Sochaczewski noted several key achievements in environment/social activities:

• Exemplary program for caddies – large day care nursery for caddies’ children, all caddies are given life insurance, language training in Korean, Japanese and English at special on-course training center, special fund of $100,000 (derived from surcharge on green fees) which pays for various caddie-support activities.
• Give back to the community - sponsor an educational pavilion for mentally-challenged children from nearby communities.
• The overall success of Thai Country Club’s operation in Thailand has attracted the attention of the golfing industry and resulted in invitations to the club’s management to attend seminars and symposiums to give an insight into how to organize and managed a successful golf club in Asia.

In accepting the award, Jean Pierre Schneider, the Thai Country Club’s general manager, noted: "We constantly strive to retain Thai Country Club’s acclaimed position as one of the most successful golf clubs in Asia.  Functioning as an environmentally – aware company, Thai Country Club management and staff follow a strict code of recycling and reuse whenever possible with an understanding that a golf course is a living environment with its own, finely-balanced ecosystems. We ensure our course is maintained using products that do not upset the balance of nature and our success in this respect has resulted in a year-on-year increase in migratory birds, along with local creatures, such as monitor lizards, thriving in their own habitats on different parts of the course."