Ask golf fans about Tiger Woods in 1998 and most will tell you it was the year between his first Masters and the run that followed, the year he was rebuilding his swing and winning less than people expected. One of the wins he did collect that season came a long way from Augusta, on a course carved out of an old tin mine on the Thai island of Phuket.
The course is the Canyon Course at Blue Canyon Country Club, and it is still open to anyone with a tee time and a tolerance for heat.
The comeback
The Johnnie Walker Classic was one of Asia’s biggest events in the 1990s, and Blue Canyon hosted it three times: in 1994, when Greg Norman won; in 1998; and again in 2007, when Anton Haig took the title. In 1998, Woods started the final day eight shots behind. He closed the gap, forced a playoff with Ernie Els, and won it.
The club has not let anyone forget. The 390-yard 13th on the Canyon is known as “The Tiger Hole”. The Asian Tour came back to the club in 2021 for the Blue Canyon Phuket Championship, so the course still has a place on the professional calendar.
A course built through an old mine
Blue Canyon’s story starts in 1988, when development began on an abandoned tin mine flanked by rubber plantations. Japanese architect Yoshikazu Kato chose to route the course through the old workings rather than bulldoze them flat, which is why the Canyon has the ravines, sharp banks and forced carries that give it its name. It opened in 1991. A sister course, the Lakes, opened later in the decade.
From the back tees the Canyon plays 7,244 yards, par 72, with a course rating of 74.8 and a slope of 141. That is a demanding number anywhere. The fairways are tight, and the canyon edges ask for full carries rather than bump-and-run options. The short par-3 17th, played across a ravine, is in GOLF Magazine’s list of the world’s 500 best holes. The fairways are zoysia and the greens TifEagle, and the whole course was re-grassed, with the renovated 18 back in play from February 2024.
Playing it today
For a visiting golfer, a few practical points:
- Tees. There are four sets on the Canyon. Mid and high handicappers are better off on the whites (6,330 yards) or reds (5,943 yards). The back tees are there for the scratch players and the curious.
- Cost. The club does not publish rates online. In the 2026 low season, agents sold the Canyon at THB 4,500 including the compulsory caddie and cart. High-season prices from November had not been published at the end of September and are expected to be higher. Add a caddie tip of THB 400 to 500.
- Timing. Highs run 31 to 34 °C all year. The club lists hours of 8:00 to 17:00; ask for the first slot of the day. November to April is the dry season, with December to March the most reliable.
- Location. The club is about 20 minutes from Phuket International Airport, on the main road toward the west-coast beaches. That makes it possible to play on arrival or departure day if your flights line up.
- Dress. Collared shirt, tailored shorts or trousers, no denim, soft spikes.
Canyon first, or Lakes?
If you have the time, play both. The Lakes Course is wider and a little shorter at 7,129 yards from the back, but the club says water is in play on 17 of its 18 holes, and its closing par 4, split by the canyon, was once named the best par 4 in Asia by Asian Golf Monthly. It is a good opener after a long flight. Then come back for the Canyon when your swing has caught up with the time zone.
Worth the trip?
Few courses let a regular golfer play the same holes where Norman, Woods and the Asian Tour competed, for the price of an ordinary resort round. Blue Canyon is one of them. Stand on the 13th tee, look at the line Tiger would have taken, and then take the line that suits your game.
For yardages by tee, the green-fee sources, contact details and the differences between the two courses laid out side by side, this course guide covers what you need before booking.