Empire

The tiny sultanate of Brunei is home to one of the most surprising and opulent courses in all of Asia. Designed by Jack Nicklaus and opened in the late 1990s, the Empire course was the venue for the inaugural Brunei Open on the Asian Tour in 2005, signaling the Southeast Asian country’s bid to become the region’s “Sultanate of Swing.”

The two nines loop in opposite direction from the magnificent hotel complex, with lush fairways offering great views of the South China Sea from those holes located along the shore – and for golfers who are too busy during the day, all 18 holes can be floodlit for night golf!

One of the best holes on the front nine is the 360-yard, par four, 6th requiring a 200-yard carry over a gorge to a narrow fairway that seems twice as far as it really is from the tee box. The back nine holes fall down to the water’s edge at the par five 15th then the fairway of the 18th is routed along the coastline with dramatic cliffs bounding the left side of a tough, stroke index 1, home hole.