SINGAPORE, 12 July 2024: Singapore’s first and only 18-hole public golf course, Marina Bay Golf Course (MBGC), closed on 30 June after the land lease expired.
Owned and managed by NTUC Club, the course opened to the public in 2006. For 18 years, MBGC welcomed members of the public to experience its world-class facilities. It made its mark by earning numerous accolades, including Best Public Golf Course in Asia Pacific and ranking among the top three golf courses in Singapore.
In the past 18 years, MBGC has seen over 1.3 million people on the greens and dispensed over 419 million driving range golf balls.
Despite the closure of MGBC, NTUC Club will continue to make the sport accessible through its estate-less golf club, My Golf Kaki (MGK). This has been done by providing more slots to MGK members on weekdays and increasing the number of days night golf is available at the Orchid Country Club (OCC). This is in addition to the recent expansion of MGK’s portfolio of local and overseas courses, including in Indonesia and Malaysia.
“In anticipation of MBGC’s closure, we stepped up efforts since last year to promote the affordable MGK membership to golfers,” said NTUC Club’s Chief Executive Officer Lim Eng Lee. “We are encouraged by the response with the community growing from 7,000 to over 9,000 members in the last 12 months.”
Inclusive golf courses on the table
NTUC Club says it is committed to growing Singapore’s golfing community and has been discussing potential sites for development under the Labour Movement with the authorities.
It plans for future LM golf courses to “be inclusive with a new, integrated golf concept enhanced by additional recreational spaces for family-friendly activities such as cycling tracks, nature trails, and common spaces for picnics and performances. Future LM golf courses will welcome not just golfers but the public and people from all walks of life.”
