The Masters course at Manila Southwoods Golf & Country Club is a high-octane version of a Nicklaus course for the tropics and it is a hugely enjoyable day out...
Overall rating
5.0
The Masters course at Manila Southwoods Golf & Country Club is a high-octane version of a Nicklaus course for the tropics and it is a hugely enjoyable day out...
Manila Southwoods Golf & Country Club (Masters)
The Masters course at Manila Southwoods is one of the tougher Jack Nicklaus courses is Asia, perhaps the toughest. Being a so called “signature course” which means a little more of the Great Bear’s time was spent on location than would be the norm. The Southwoods Golf & Country Club is unusual in having two signature Nicklaus courses on the site (the other is called Legends) and it is perhaps for this reason that one of them turned out to be as tough a track as it is. The Masters course has hosted several Philippine Open Tournaments as well as the 1996 World Amateur Team Championship.
The course features trouble at every turn. Fifteen holes incorporate water as a hazard. The course guide comments that the 366-yard 1st should be regarded as “a gentle start to a bear of a course”. Things toughen up considerably at the 2nd and the gloves are fully off by the time we reach the 6th which is the stroke one hole.
Nicklaus courses are by no means everybody’s favourite. I for one would question the placement of bunkers alongside water, and the use of large tracks of shallow sand and the persistent reflex to select water as the hazard of choice. The Masters course at Manila Southwoods is a high-octane version of a Nicklaus course for the tropics and it is a hugely enjoyable day out on one of the tougher courses in the region.
Reproduced with kind permission from The Finest Golf Courses of Asia & Australasia by James Spence.
The latest ranking of the Top 100 Golf Courses in the World serves as the ultimate global golf bucket list. Most members of our World Top 100 Panel are seasoned golfers, each playing 20-30 of these courses annually while travelling extensively over decades to form their opinions on others. We recognise that opinions vary—even among our panel members. Rankings are subjective, and there are undoubtedly 50 or more courses in the UK and USA alone that could easily fit onto this list. Links Golf Pilgrimages The rankings
California, United States
New Jersey, United States
Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
New York, United States
New York, United States
