History

Golf Club

The game of golf has been played in Seria, Brunei Negara Darussalam since 1928, a short time after the first oil well was drilled in southern Brunei. The earliest known “golf course” at Seria was the beach between Kuala Belait and Panaga.

Reports indicate that keen golfing members of the British Malayan Petroleum Company’s Drilling Department arranged for labour from the temporary mud plant (on the site of the present 12th hole) to clear the jungle over an area sufficient for six holes. Naturally when this came to light in 1933 there was severe criticism of the procedure, although not of the objective, and shortly thereafter a nine hole course was officially opened at Seria. In the same year, the first Captain of the Panaga Golf Club (J.S. Mason) took office. A kajang building near the mouth of Sungai Panaga served as the Panaga Golf Club (P.G.C.) clubhouse. The earliest members of the club came from the Miri Golf Club which predated the Panaga Golf Club by some years.

At that time there were more than the usual hazards to contend with, wild boars were rampant and cash payment was offered for boar, dead or alive. The resulting high cost and the occasional injury soon put an end to this method of control and, as an alternative, electrically charged barbed wire were strung on bottle neck insulators around tees and greens.

The temporary kajang clubhouse was replaced by a wooden building just prior to the Second World War, which it survived. During the occupation the golf course was used by the Japanese as a pipe yard and farm. At that time the Japanese were not the golf fans that we know them to be today!

After the war the golf course was again cleared by members and supporters of the club when they were not too busy with the rehabilitation of the Seria oilfield. The club was affiliated to the English Golf Union (E.G.U.) in 1949.

In 1959 the 9-hole course was redesigned into an 18-hole course with two overlapping nines. The locker room was relocated in a new building close to the new Panaga Club, the building that is now the Kuala Belait Boat Club boat shed (behind the 10th tee). The clubhouse facilities were transferred to the upstairs lounge and bar of the Panaga Club (now known as the Pelangi Room) as by that time the old clubhouse was succumbing to the ravages of age and white ants.

Golf Club

The full 18-hole course was first planned in October 1962, and was finally opened in May 1964. The course, which is much as it was prior to 2001, would have been ready much sooner had it not been for a series of problems both manmade and natural; the latter including floods, droughts and a plague of caterpillars.

In 1965, the Panaga Golf Club lost its quasi-independent status and was reconstituted as an integral section of the Panaga Club and shortly thereafter the locker rooms and caddy carts were moved into the main Panaga Club building. The “19th” was walled off to form a separate room and, at the same time, the other alterations to the building allowed the construction of the present combined 9th and 18th green. In the following years the ‘Pro Shop’ was added and the hill on the 13th fairway named “Bukit Thompson” after the then Managing Director, Dato P.E. Thompson, was built. This hill has the distinction of being recorded as the world’s lowest hill in the Guinness Book of Records.

Since its beginnings in 1966, The Panaga Open Championship has become a popular event, attracting players from throughout South East Asia. This event is now in its 40th year and still attracts over 200 entrants for the now, 54 hole, 3 day event.

In 1978 the ‘19th’ hole reverted back to the main club, although “the roll of honour” boards remained to give character to the room. These were later removed during the complete redecoration in the late 1990’s, and have yet to find a permanent home.

Also in 1978 the Brunei Golf Association (BGA) was formed and in 1987, this subsequently became the Brunei Darussalam Golf Association (BDGA). The first Brunei Golf Open Championship was held in 1978 at Panaga and the venue remained there until 1985, when the event was moved to Pantai Mentiri Golf Club near Bandar. In 2002 the event was again held very successfully at the Panaga Golf Club.

Since 2001, the Panaga Golf Club, under the stewardship of the Vice-Captain (S.N.G. Billeau), has been renovating the golf course, increasing its length and upgrading the course and facilities. In October 2001, a 5 Year Plan was proposed and accepted by the then PGC Committee. This plan was essentially a coordinated ‘wish list’, and included, but was certainly not limited to, new tees, new greens, a nursery, improved irrigation and general improvements to the asset as a whole. As part of this plan, new larger 3rd and 10th greens have been constructed and the 9th, 12th and 14th greens have been significantly enlarged and improved, In addition, 33 new tees have been built to a common design, increasing the teeing ground significantly.

Most recently both the 12th and the 15th holes have been significantly redesigned. In 2003, an EGM was held in order to formally accept major changes to the golf course. These included; increasing the length of the 8th hole and making it a par 5, increasing the length of the 16th hole (to include the ‘waste’ ground between the Panaga Sungai and the Panaga Creek) and making it into a par 4, and lastly, shortening the 17th hole into a par 3. These significant modifications would also have allowed the 18th hole to be lengthened, and in total would have increased the length of the golf course by over 150 yards. Unfortunately the proposal was very narrowly defeated.

The Panaga Golf Club is very sensitive to the current environmental issues, and as such, has been gradually improving the conditions for the natural wildlife on the course. Since 2002, the PGC has planted nearly 1000 new casuarina trees on the golf course. These trees are significant to Panaga, as not only do they give the golf course its character, but also, they are used by the Pied Hornbills to roost in at night. Other wildlife commonly seen on the golf course include, kingfishers, jungle crows, egrets, herons, parrots, monkeys, monitor lizards and occasionally snakes. In addition, and as part of the Flood Management Program, the number of pond habitats has significantly increased.

Current plans for the golf course envisage, in the short term at least, improved on-course irrigation (2005 & 2006), a new P.G.C. Clubhouse (2006 & 2007) and newly designed greens on the 5th hole (2006) and 7th hole (2007).

Over the years serious flooding has become an ever increasing problem at Panaga, with the most recent flooding being in December / January 1999/2000. Not only is this highly disruptive, but increasingly costly to rebuild the course after such an event. To counter this, the Panaga Golf Club is implementing a Flood Management Program, which will include new sluice and weir facilities on the Sungai Panaga, and improved water catchment areas on the golf course. These works should ensure that golf is played at Panaga long into the future.

To contact this section by email, go to the Panaga Club contacts page.

To contact this section by phone call the front office at 337 2204.