At the weekend there was a mood of celebration among golfers, who were aware that the club, with its iconic Lakes and Canyon courses, had changed hands, and that Mr Sia was out of the frame.
The club and the Canyon course opened in 1991, the creation of a consortium of Japanese and Phuket investors who turned 1,800 rai of tin mines into a thing of beauty. The Lakes course opened eight years later.
Designed by golf course architect Yoshikazu Kato, BCCC attracted some big names in golf, and is the only course in the world to have hosted three Johnny Walker Classics – in 1994, when the winner was Greg Norman, in 1998 when Tiger Woods won, and in 2007 when Anton Haig was the victor.
According to the BCCC website, Tiger Woods described the Canyon course as “one of the best I have ever played on”, while Bernhard Langer said, “It’s an excellent layout,” and Greg Norman expressed a wish after the Classic: “I would like to return to play here on my own.”
It also featured in international politics, especially when Thaksin Shinawatra was Prime Minister. He played golf there and had discussions with former US Presidents George HW Bush and Bill Clinton, and with his Singaporean and Malaysian counterparts, Goh Chok Tong and Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
But behind the glitter and the big names, things were not at all right with BCCC.
Murex, the owning company, went into bankruptcy and, in 2004, Rawat Jindaphol, one of the original investors, sued Blue Canyon Holdings and Mr Sia for illegally watering down the holdings of his family from 65 per cent to just 4 per cent.
He also aimed criminal charges at Mr Sia and a couple of others for falsifying documents. These suits continue to rumble on in the courts and are as yet unresolved.
In 2005 a white knight appeared in the form of Deutsche Bank, which paid B2 billion for a big chunk of the club and put it into its RREEF Global Opportunities Fund II.
The following year Murex was declared solvent by the Bankruptcy Court. But Mr Sia’s troubles were not over. The same year, the local investors managed to get a court decision awarding the club to them, and unceremoniously booted him out.
The putsch did not last, however. Mr Sia fought back through the courts and regained control.
Golfers continued to play throughout, but complained often about how poorly the club was managed, and how poorly maintained the courses were.
It is an indication of how far the reputation of the club has declined that the BMW Golf Cup International, an amateur competition drawing players from 50 countries and being played at BCCC this week (March 10 to 15), is regarded as a very big deal.
The club was so mired in legal suits brought by Mr Rawat that in 2009 the Phuket Provincial Court Chief Justice, Varangkana Sujaritkul, urged golf-playing colleagues not to play at BCC.
“It is not good that the judges are playing golf at the course, as they may be seen as taking sides with one party in the [Sia-Rawat] dispute,” she said.
She added that neither side in the dispute seemed interested in taking the case to mediation.
Now, though, it seems that judges may once again be able to play the Canyon and Lakes courses.
Mr Thanit’s Ocean Group Phuket owns the two Ocean shopping malls in Patong and the one in Phuket Town, 11 Rattana hotels and apartment blocks across the island, 10 Big One convenience stores, three restaurants, and snooker, bowling and karaoke establishments. He is also a major shareholder in the Phuket Bulletin and Blue Wave Radio.
Repeated attempts to contact Mr Thanit over several days for comment on his purchase, and the details, were unsuccessful.
- See more at: http://www.thephuketnews.com/phuket-blue-canyon-bought-in-hostile-takeover-45176.php#sthash.nkCDBrc5.dpuf
วันหยุดสุดสัปดาห์ มีอารมณ์แห่งการเฉลิมฉลองในหมู่นักกอล์ฟ ที่ทราบที่คลับ กับความสวยงามโดดเด่นและแคนยอน คอร์ส ได้เปลี่ยนมือ และที่นาย Sia จากเฟรมสโมสรและแคนยอนหลักสูตรเปิดในปีพ.ศ. 2534 การสร้างองค์กรของนักลงทุนญี่ปุ่นและภูเก็ตที่เปิดเหมืองดีบุก 1800 ไร่เป็นสิ่งที่สวยงาม หลักสูตรทะเลสาบเปิดแปดปีต่อมาออกแบบ โดยสถาปนิกกอล์ฟ Yoshikazu นายกาโต BCCC ชื่อบางใหญ่ในสนามกอล์ฟที่ดึงดูด และ หลักสูตรเดียวในโลกที่มีโฮสต์ 3 จอห์นนี่วอล์คเกอร์คลาสสิก – ในปี 1994 เมื่อผู้ชนะถูกกานอร์แมน ในปี 1998 เมื่อชนะไทเกอร์วูดส์ และ ในปี 2007 เมื่อแอนทอน Haig ถูกวิคเตอร์ที่ตามเว็บไซต์ BCCC ไทเกอร์วูดส์อธิบายหลักสูตรแคนยอนเป็น "หนึ่งดีสุดที่ฉันเคยมีเล่นบน" Bernhard Langer กล่าวว่า "มันเป็นการดี" และนอร์แมนกาแสดงต้องหลังคลาสสิค: "อยากกลับไปเล่นที่นี่ด้วยตัวเอง"มันยังที่โดดเด่นในการเมืองระหว่างประเทศ โดยเฉพาะอย่างยิ่งเมื่อทักษิณชินวัตรเป็นนายกรัฐมนตรี เขาเล่นกอล์ฟมี และได้สนทนา กับ HW สหรัฐประธานาธิบดีจอร์จบุชและบิลคลินตันอดีต และของสิงคโปร์และมาเลเซีย คู่ Abdullah Ahmad Badawi และโก๊ะจ๊กตงแต่หลังกลิทเทอร์และชื่อใหญ่ สิ่งไม่เหมาะกับ BCCCMurex, the owning company, went into bankruptcy and, in 2004, Rawat Jindaphol, one of the original investors, sued Blue Canyon Holdings and Mr Sia for illegally watering down the holdings of his family from 65 per cent to just 4 per cent.He also aimed criminal charges at Mr Sia and a couple of others for falsifying documents. These suits continue to rumble on in the courts and are as yet unresolved.In 2005 a white knight appeared in the form of Deutsche Bank, which paid B2 billion for a big chunk of the club and put it into its RREEF Global Opportunities Fund II.The following year Murex was declared solvent by the Bankruptcy Court. But Mr Sia’s troubles were not over. The same year, the local investors managed to get a court decision awarding the club to them, and unceremoniously booted him out.The putsch did not last, however. Mr Sia fought back through the courts and regained control.Golfers continued to play throughout, but complained often about how poorly the club was managed, and how poorly maintained the courses were.It is an indication of how far the reputation of the club has declined that the BMW Golf Cup International, an amateur competition drawing players from 50 countries and being played at BCCC this week (March 10 to 15), is regarded as a very big deal.The club was so mired in legal suits brought by Mr Rawat that in 2009 the Phuket Provincial Court Chief Justice, Varangkana Sujaritkul, urged golf-playing colleagues not to play at BCC.“It is not good that the judges are playing golf at the course, as they may be seen as taking sides with one party in the [Sia-Rawat] dispute,” she said.She added that neither side in the dispute seemed interested in taking the case to mediation.Now, though, it seems that judges may once again be able to play the Canyon and Lakes courses.Mr Thanit’s Ocean Group Phuket owns the two Ocean shopping malls in Patong and the one in Phuket Town, 11 Rattana hotels and apartment blocks across the island, 10 Big One convenience stores, three restaurants, and snooker, bowling and karaoke establishments. He is also a major shareholder in the Phuket Bulletin and Blue Wave Radio.Repeated attempts to contact Mr Thanit over several days for comment on his purchase, and the details, were unsuccessful.- See more at: http://www.thephuketnews.com/phuket-blue-canyon-bought-in-hostile-takeover-45176.php#sthash.nkCDBrc5.dpuf
การแปล กรุณารอสักครู่..
