Vietnam to see more golf courses It is expected that Vietnam will have 90 golf courses, with every province and city having an average of 1.4 golf courses. If everything goes smoothly, the $100 million Legend Hill Golf Resort in Soc Son district of Hanoi developed by BRG, a big real estate company, would be put into operation this year end. Meanwhile, Tuan Chau Group is awaiting the Quang Ninh provincial authorities’ approval to expand the existing golf course from 18 to 27 holes in the Ha Long Bay area. It is also considering developing three new villa areas as a part of a sea encroachment project. Sources said a big real estate group has asked for permission to build a 54-hole golf course capitalized at VND1.3 trillion in Hanoi. Another investor has asked for permission to build a 100 hectare golf course in Binh Dinh province as a part of its resort complex. In Can Tho City, an 18-hole golf course project covering an area of 80 hectares has just received approval. Under the golf course development plan by 2020 approved by the Prime Minister, Vietnam would have 90 golf courses by that time, the figure which analysts believe is too high for a country with small territorial area, high population and an agriculture-based economy like Vietnam. A branding expert noted that golf course developers target foreign golf players and  businesspeople who come to Vietnam as key personnel of foreign-invested enterprises. It is estimated that there are 15,000 golf players in Vietnam, most of whom are foreigners. Mark Siegel, managing director of the company which organizes the biggest Asian tournament, Golfasian, noted that Vietnam is among the world’s newly emerged destination for golf players. According to the businessman, the tourism & golf industry can bring revenue of $200-300 million to Vietnam every year. However, the branding expert noted that investors still maintain the illusion that Vietnam is a major destination for golf players. He cited a Ministry of Planning and Investment’s report as saying that only 29 golf course projects have been put into operation, while land plots allocated to other projects have been left idle. Other plans are still on paper. Most recently, the investor of the Phan Thiet golf course asked local authorities to turn the golf course into an urban area. The investor’s report showed that the golf course has been unprofitable since it became operational in 1997, and that it has made only modest contributions to local economic development. Sacom had poured VND686 billion into Sacom Tuyen Lam golf course project by the end of 2014, while its revenue from membership card sales was only VND1 billion for the year. NCDT