Singapore Loses Last 18-Hole Public Golf Course to Redevelopment

(Bloomberg) -- Singapore closes its last public 18-hole golf course this weekend, with the Marina Bay site overlooking the financial hub’s skyline succumbing to the government’s drive to redevelop land.

Opened less than 18 years ago, the course hosted its final rounds for the public on Saturday as it joins others in Singapore that have closed or shrunk in recent years. Only one public course remains, a nine-hole venue in the north of the city-state.

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The closure is the latest example of a major push to redevelop land, especially for housing, after soaring demand pushed home prices and rents out of reach for many residents. Golf courses in Singapore lease government land, leaving them vulnerable to changes in planning goals. Authorities have yet to announce details for the redevelopment of the Marina Bay site, which will include a memorial for the nation’s former leaders.

Other sports grounds making way for homes include the island’s Singapore Turf Club track, which is scheduled to hold its final race in October, ending more than 180 years of horse racing in the city-state. The club’s former venue in a wealthy central area was also reclaimed by authorities last year to build a new housing neighborhood. Singapore’s only Olympic-sized ice rink closed last year to make way for condos, leaving hockey players and figure skaters with no place to go.

Authorities must balance competing demands for space in the land-scarce financial hub, which has long sought to attract expatriates and has a burgeoning, aspirational middle class. In Hong Kong, similar moves caused push-back among some members of the business elite, after the government announced it would reclaim part of an exclusive golf course to build public housing.

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“Golf was never a factor to be in Singapore,” said Mohit Sagar, an expatriate from India who works for a content platform. Despite that, the golfer who has been playing in the city state for 16 years expressed regret at the closure of the Marina Bay site. “You can play golf in Singapore, but you won’t get this backdrop ever again.”

Marina Bay has been the flagship public course since it opened in 2006, the only 18-hole track accessible to everyone. The Phil Jacobs-designed course won numerous awards, with a signature par-three island hole and a rare, par-six hole that challenged experts and duffers alike. It offered night golf, giving players relief from the year-round tropical heat. The government announced in 2014 that it would not be renewing the club’s lease when it expired in 2024.

Golfers flocked to the course during the pandemic, when much of the city-state was shut down. They could enjoy a round, followed by spicy Char Kway Teow noodles and espresso martinis while taking in the skyline from its elevated open-air restaurant. Golfers played up to 10,000 rounds a month at the peak, up from 7,800 pre-Covid. Demand was so great that players had to log on to the website at midnight to snag a tee-time when new slots became available.

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“It’s obviously disappointing, but unsurprising because ever since I arrived, I’d known it would be closing,” said Tom Hawker, an expatriate who has lived in Singapore for over a decade. The 44-year-old business consultant was getting a last game of golf on Saturday at the course which he frequented once a week during the pandemic.

With Marina Bay now closed and the nine-hole Champions public course shut in December, Singapore’s last fully public course is at Mandai, a mostly par-three 9-hole site in the north that was due to close at the end of 2024. It was granted a two-year reprieve after the government deemed that it’s “important for the public to have continued access to the sport.”

Another club that was relocated in 2022 to make way for housing, Keppel Club, now operates a hybrid 18-hole course at Sime, with 60% of playing times reserved for the public.

The alternative for golfers is to join an expensive private club, or go to neighboring Malaysia or Indonesia to get a game. Top of the price list is the 36-hole Sentosa Golf Club, where locals have to pay at least S$500,000 ($369,000) for a membership while the cost for expatriates can run as high as S$850,000, according to brokerage Singolf Services Pte.

While foreigners can join the private clubs, a limited supply of memberships will drive up prices, said Singolf owner Lee Lee Langdale.

“It’s well-known in Singapore that land, especially golf courses, will be taken by the government to build other facilities in demand,” said Langdale, who doesn’t think this will make Singapore any less attractive for foreigners. “Most expats don’t have much time to play golf anyway.”

Many of those who do want to continue playing are choosing to go overseas for a game, she said.

“The easy option is to go away,” said Hawker, the British expat, whose visits to Marina Bay Golf Course dwindled to once a month lately as he opted to play more rounds abroad. “I’m nowhere near justifying the cost of a private club.”

--With assistance from Reinie Booysen.

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