Forest Valley Golf Club, Sanya, Hainan Island, China - October 2011

We had some very heavy rain leading up to our golf game at the Forest Valley Golf Course.  The course is up in the mountain area of Sanya and there had been a lot of rain overnight and early in the morning.  We were able to get our 18 holes in without getting too wet and it was so hot we dried off very quickly,

This was the most challenging course that we played - especially for the girls as we had some long water & rough carry on a lot of the holes.  It was challenging and a lot of fun to see if we could make it across the long carries.  Some of the holes we did have some success but a lot of them were the donation of a golf ball. The boys lost a lot of balls also as the rough was inaccessible & looking for the ball a waste of time.  The boys had one extra ball between the lot of them at the end of the match.  Peter lost eight balls in the first five holes.
A good sense of humour was required but we all enjoyed the day.  Our caddies could speak no English at all and just pointed or placed the ball in the direction to go.  This is a new golf course and the staff have not been trained properly to deal with Europeans.  They were very friendly all the same & the clubhouse was lovely. I would expect to see a lot of improvement to this course when it is properly established.  I was impressed with their use of foliage on the course and the clubhouse grounds were impressive.

It was worth the trip to the mountains for this game - take a lot of golf balls with you for this course - but put it on your list. 

Dragon Valley Golf Course, Sanya, Hainan Island, China - October 2011

Dragon Valley Golf Course was a great experience.  The weather held okay for us and we played 18 holes there.  The fairways were wide but challenging in places.  We particularly liked the 17th par 3 that had water carry to an island green.  Lauren, Lynn & I all reached the green in one and had a par which made us happy.

The boys enjoyed the course also & had a good day. Our caddies could not speak great English but were very helpful on the putting green.

The Clubhouse was sensational. The spiral sandstone staircase and the facilities were 5 star.  The ladies make up room alone was amazing with an array of complimentary products to use, showers, spa, security lockers etc.

Put this on your "Must experience" list.

Yalong Bay Golf Club, Sanya, Hainan Island, China October 2011

Yalong Bay Golf Course was very conveniently across the road from the Sheraton Hotel where we were staying.  The weather was a bit showery but we decided to have a go and luckily it turned out to be okay and we did not get really wet.

It is a beautiful Course - a bit easier than Sun Valley and the fairways were nice and wide.  Once again the greens were slow even though they did not look it.  Pace of the putt was again an issue.  The caddies were very helpful with their golf advice and we all had a good day.

The clubhouse was lovely with beautiful facilities for the players.  The ladies room had big soaking tubs and a huge make-up room as well as showers, lockers and spa.

We had a light lunch of toasted sandwiches & drinks after golf in the lounge overlooking the course.

It was a lovely day that we all enjoyed. Add this one to your list if golfing in Sanya.