Fraser's Hill Golf Course

Folks, any of you tried playing at the Fraser's Hill Golf Course recently? The last time I played there was about 15 years ago. Anyone tried it recently? Any good?

whao bro.

u played golf 15 years liao ar??


now handicap 10?

LOL! I played a round at Fraser's Hill Golf Course over the weekend. Pretty rough and tough. Saw a spider the size of my hand scuttle around near the OOB marker.

And my handicap? I played golf 15 years ago... not played golf for 15 years.

Technospaz wrote:

LOL! I played a round at Fraser's Hill Golf Course over the weekend. Pretty rough and tough. Saw a spider the size of my hand scuttle around near the OOB marker.

And my handicap? I played golf 15 years ago... not played golf for 15 years.

wow.. i also wanna use ur tag line.

i also played golf abt 10 years ago.

Use my tagline It's true.

WOA PIAN!
J PLAY GOLF 15 YEARS AGO AND KK 10 YEARS AGO. NO WONDER YOU TWO DRIVE THE BALLS FAR AND STRAIGHT AND NEAR TO THE HAIRPIN. HAHAHA!
I AM CONSIDERING GOING THERE (FRASER HILL) TO PLAY ONE OF THESE WEEKENDS. PLEASE TELL ME MORE.

MIKEPT wrote:

WOA PIAN!
J PLAY GOLF 15 YEARS AGO AND KK 10 YEARS AGO. NO WONDER YOU TWO DRIVE THE BALLS FAR AND STRAIGHT AND NEAR TO THE HAIRPIN. HAHAHA!
I AM CONSIDERING GOING THERE (FRASER HILL) TO PLAY ONE OF THESE WEEKENDS. PLEASE TELL ME MORE.

Fraser's Hill is a no-no course. Not good. I should write a review like I did for Octville. Give me some time. In the meantime, I wouldn't recommend it.

The course is naturally difficult because it is located in the hills. But maintenance is a big issue. It is not well maintained and irrigation is a big problem since many parts of the fairway are muddy etc. Greens are also badly kept and don't get me started on the bunkers.

This is my somewhat overdue review of the Fraser's Hill Golf Course (played there in July '09):

Introductory Note
Please note that there were 2 golf courses in Fraser's Hill. There was the 18 holes Par 70 course and the 9 holes course. The former has, unfortunately, closed down (possibly due to a lack of maintenance). As such, I played the 9 holes course which is located in the town center. Arguably, this is the more well-known course since everyone sees it the moment they reach Fraser's Hill. Therefore, this review is for the 9 holes golf course known as the Fraser's Hill Golf Course (operated by the Fraser's Hill Development Corporation).

Fairways (3/10)
The fairways were in rather poor condition. This course is cow grass all the way and because of the dew, often wet surroundings and bad irrigation, getting your ball in a plugged lie is almost the norm. The fairways are not well kept though I will say that they are relatively free of leaves, branches etc so that helps if you're looking for your ball (provided it isn't buried in the earth somewhere). Also, there were several portions of the course (closer towards the greens and bunkers) which were under repair. Fortunately, they are marked "GUR" clearly.

Save for the 1st and 4th holes, the fairways are pretty narrow so shot accuracy is a must. The complicate matters, if you mishit the ball, not only does it fly into an OB area, it's likely that you'll never find your ball again. This is because most of the OB areas are either the very thick jungle or the main road which skims the perimeter of the course.

Greens (4/10)
The greens were not very well kept. Most were extremely fast but fortunately, there weren't any which were overly undulating. While there appears to be some effort taken to improve the quality of the greens, this is still far from what a semi-decent course should have.

Bunkers (2/5)
The bunkers were not too deep but unfortunately, were more gravel than sand. As such, it felt more like hitting out of a hole than an actual sand bunker. While there weren't many bunkers, the poor quality of each bunker made recovery a challenging experience.

Water hazards (3/5)
There were no lakes in this course. However, there were a couple of drains which ran by the side of the fairway. This, in my mind, is akin to a water hazard and posed a challenge for those whose shots tended to go awry.

Getting around (3.5/5)
The course is a walking course only. Given that the course sits on the hills itself, it can be quite taxing if you plan to carry your bag around the course (even though it is only a 9 holes course). As such, trolleys are recommended and if you haven't got one, they can be rented at RM10 for a full 18 holes. That said, I will admit that the course is quite gorgeous. Imagine playing in the hills (cool weather and lots of trees). While you walk, take time to appreciate the surroundings (you may find a stray animal or creature) and it can be an enjoyable experience particularly if there's no rain.

Service (3/5)
There really isn't any service here except for a makeshift office which is manned by a nice malay gentleman who doubles up as the course marshall and pro show owner. He will register all golfers (no query on handicap etc), issue receipts, sell you used balls and t-shirts, rent bags, trolleys and even offer some advice on the course. Like I said, he was nice.

Facilities (2.5/5)
The clubhouse has just been redesigned and refurbished. As such, it was empty when I was there. I'm recording a neutral score because in its heydays, the clubhouse was pretty good. There was a bustling terrace where golfers could sit, enjoy the cool weather, drink and eat pretty good fried chicken wings IIRC. Also, there were other facilities like a changing room, billiards room, karaoke room etc. So, I assume that this will be the case in the months to come (as they re-do the clubhouse) but without any certainty (which is not an unfair approach for such things in Malaysia), I'll stick to a neutral score.

Getting to Fraser's Hill (1/5)
The route to Fraser's Hill remains one of the most challenging in spite of this highlands resort being touted as a must-see destination for locals and foreigners. From KL, you can take the PLUS (i.e. North South highway) and exit at Rawang. From that exit, it's another 40-50km to Fraser's Hill but there were hardly any road signs indicating the route. You'll know that you're closing in when you drive by a massive dam which looks both impressive and intimidating (you can stop to take pictures if you want). The roads then start to twist and turn so drive cautiously. To make matters worse, there are lots of blind corners which means that hooting is advisable to warn incoming drivers that you're making the bend.

Once you finally reach the "base" of Fraser's Hill, the track up is another 7-8km but this is well-coordinated since it the road is wide enough for one car only. To ensure that there are no accidents, the gates are opened at specific times for those traveling up and specific times for those traveling down. This means that you'll need to time your journey to match the opening of the gates for when you want to travel up or down. (There used to be another route which allowed cars to travel down such that there was no need for the timed opening of the gate to this single route. However, there was a landslide there which forced that route to be closed.)

Overall Score: 44%

Green Fees: RM40 for the whole day (play as many times as you want)
Opening Hours: 8am - 7pm daily.

For more information on Fraser's Hill, go to:
http://www.tourism.gov.my/en/destinations/item.asp?item=frasershill
http://www.malaysiasite.nl/frasereng.htm