Glenmarie Golf and Country Club in Malaysia

Glenmarie Golf and Country Club is about a half hour's drive from the Kuala Lumpur airport, along the country's excellent road system, and is the main golfing course in the Klang Valley, hemmed in by the Titiwangsa Mountains to the north and east and the Strait of Malacca to the west.

It was once the Glenmarie Rubber Estates, where oil palm was produced, and it's a high-falutin', private course where the Malaysian elite loll about in the ample facilities, including swimming pools, luxurious locker rooms - equipped with a sauna - and excellent practice facilities.

The old rubber estate makes for excellent golf terrain, with rolling hills and some nice, moderate elevation changes, with relatively open interiors on the two courses, with fairways bordered by strange, exotic Malaysian trees, including not-so-exotic palms.

It's a beautiful course, generally regarded as one of the top-10 in Malaysia, with immaculate conditioning and lovely, ornate landscaping.

The Garden course is a little longer than the Valley course, at 6,432 meters, while the Valley measures 6,325 meters.