Golf team tee off in Johor

JOHOR BAHRU  The first round of the annual World Amateur Inter-Team Golf Championship (WAITGC) 2016, opened Monday, with the first qualifying round at Ponderosa Golf & Country Club followed by play at Horizon Hills Golf & Country Club, two well-known golf venues in Johor.

The four-day qualifying round of the 23rd edition of WAITGC draws nine teams from Australia, two from Brunei, 10 from Singapore, and four from Malaysia.

Once play is over at Ponderosa the tournament continues at Horizon Hills Golf & Country Club.

WAITGC is one of Tourism Malaysia’s initiatives to promote the country as a “top-of-mind” golf destination in the region.

The event has emerged as a well-regarded tournament managed by the Golf Club Managers Association of Malaysia (GCMAM) and sanctioned by the Malaysian Golf Association.

Since it made its debut in 1994, WAITGC has attracted more than 500 participants every year.

Besides testing the skills of the participants, this homegrown golf tournament also helps to promote Malaysia’s tourist attractions as it encourages participants and families to explore the country, pre and post-golf.

Golf tourism has been identified as one of the priority sectors to increase the nation’s tourism contribution to the economy and has been underscored in the country’s Economic Transformation Programme (ETP). Last year, golf tourism receipts amounted to MYR319 million.

In 2014, Malaysia registered 27.4 million tourist arrivals and RM72 billion in receipts, making tourism its second largest foreign exchange earner.

Through the Tourism NKEA (National Key Economic Area), collaborative efforts between the Ministry of Tourism and Culture, other Government agencies and the private sector have been enhanced to help secure Malaysia’s position as a leading tourist destination and achieve the country’s target of 36 million tourist arrivals and MYR168 billion in receipts by 2020.