Coaches welcome lease extension of Mandai public golf course until end-2026

SINGAPORE: Just as the initial announcement that Mandai Executive Golf Course would be shut down by the end of the year came as a shock, golf coaches say the news of an extension until December 2026 was equallya bolt from the blue. 

Except this time, the latest twist in the tale was a welcome one, they said.

It was revealed on Wednesday (Apr 3) that the public will be able to play at the Mandai Executive Golf Course for two additional years, after the operator was granted a tenancy extension.

Senior Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth Eric Chua said this in parliament, noting that it was one of the options made available to provide for public access to golfing.

"All my coaches and customers were ecstatic. I received tons of messages today," said Mr Dalston Koh, who runs SG Golf Coach Academy at Mandai. "The news that it was going to be closed was as shocking to us as the news that it is going to be extended."

Mr Koh, who is also a professional golfer, described it as a day of "thank you". "We do not know what went right or who to thank," he added.

The Singapore Golf Association's (SGA) general manager Joshua Ho said the association was "pleased" to hear of the two-year lease extension.

"It was a very good, pleasant surprise," said Mr Daren Lim, who first started golfing at the Mandai course about 30 years ago when he was still a junior player. 

While Mr Lim coaches at Tanah Merah Country Club, he also conducts sessions at the Mandai golf course.

"Mandai welcomes everybody to learn the golf game there," he added. "Any coach that wants to bring their student there, they are welcome."

It was initially announced in February that the Mandai golf course would have to make way for a new outdoor