Garden City Golf Club

The course was designed be a challenge for professional golfers yet enjoyable for club golfers, and at 7,258 yards with a hefty slope rating of 75 from the championship tees, it certainly achieved the former.

Once flat and featureless rice fields have been totally remodelled into a beautiful, mature and modern golf course full of bumps and hollows, with plenty of man-made hazards in the shape of water features and bunkers. While the greens are generally large and inviting, the palm-lined fairways offer little roll, making the course pay even longer than its already substantial yardage would suggest, so distance off the tee is crucial to a good score.

While the course layout makes it clear that there's a lot of water around, it's less of a threat than it appears, with only a few forced carries to contend with, although the island green at the excellent par-5 11th is a notable exception.

One of the best holes is the 6th, a 439-yard par 4 with water running along the entire length of the left side of the fairway and a pair of bunker complexes dead centre of the fairway; making par here is some achievement. The 8th is an excellent par-5 risk-reward hole, with the fairway splitting in two offering you the chance to play to the left and cut out the long route around the lake. It's quite some carry if you can pull it off, and landing in the massive bunker just short of the green is not a bad result.

The caddies are excellent, offering helpful tips and preferred lines from the tee, and always ready with an umbrella for some much needed shade. addies are available to attend to golfers' needs.

The Garden City clubhouse is modern and well-equipped, with ample changing rooms, an excellent restaurant serving local and international favourites, and a well-stocked pro shop. There's also a large covered driving range where you can get warmed up before a round at this excellent golf course.

Overall, Garden City Golf Club offers excellent golfing paired with Khmer hospitality and culture, and has a realistic claim to be the best golf course in Cambodia. This is a must-play on any golf holiday in Phnom Penh.