In the rough at ST Andrews, Bangkok

       Two hackers discover the joys of playing one of the world's most popular golf courses, in air-conditioned comfort It was an amateur player's dream come true - a round at the home of golf, the famous St Andrews course in Scotland. But as my playing partner and I teed up on the first hole, there was none of that chilly wind the area is famous for, no waiting for another group to hit off, and most importantly for two not very confident mug amateurs, no spectators to giggle when we fluffed our shots.
       FOUR: A player hits a drive at the ‘Pebble Beach’ course.
       As I took a practice swing and looked down the intimidating fairway to see which part of the rough or the water my ball would probably land in, the only sound was the gentle purr of the air-conditioning. We may have been hitting off on the iconic old course at St Andrews, but we were actually in the basement of a new office tower in the heart of Bangkok.
       We were trying to improve our game by taking a lesson and playing a round at the Wilding Golf Performance Center, which opened in August at the Interchange Building on the corner of Asoke and Sukhumvit roads. We were teed up in front of Asia's first 3D SimSurround Simulator, which was set up in a mini amphitheatre, with three huge screens - one directly in front of us and one on both sides. Our instructor, experienced Australian professional coach Koray Safak, wanted to see us hit a few balls before he started giving us some tips on how to improve our games, and we'd chosen to play the old course at St Andrews.
       My playing partner, a colleague called the Wombat (a stocky, hairy, burrowing Australian marsupial with short limbs), did his best to get an edge as I prepared to tee off: "If this technology is accurate, your ball should land in the long grass in the rough," he said reassuringly.
       ON A ROLL: A putting instructor with a student.
       After a couple of practice swings in a vain attempt to loosen up, I teed up my ball and belted it - straight into the long grass in the rough on the right side of the fairway. The Wombat cheered. Then it was his turn.
       "Watch out for that deep bunker on the left," I said as he sized up the long hole in front of us. My advice was enough to put him off - he topped his tee shot and while it did go straight, it covered only about 100 metres. After only one poor shot each, coach Koray stepped in.
       In no time at all, he had us both hitting longer and straighter.
       Thanks to the many cameras set up in the amphitheatre which are connected to the main computer and which record every stroke, he was able to replay our shots in slow motion (even comparing them side by side with a video of PGA pro Stuart Appleby), point out when our arms should have been straight or bent, and see just what we were doing right and what we were doing wrong. The "wrongs" were in the majority.
       The beauty of playing a realistic round of golf controlled by a computer is that not only can you play some of the best courses in the world, you can also replay each shot to see why your ball ended up buried in one of those diabolical Scottish bunkers or plunged into the water faster than a bird of prey after a fish. And if you're not taking things too seriously, like us, with the click of a mouse you can also delete that wayward tee shot that bounced off the Rolls Royce in the car park or the one which went through the window of the clubhouse and emptied the 19th hole bar in record time.
       FINE TUNING: A technician helps a player adjust her swing.
       Another great thing we noted was we could play a round really quickly as there was no walking involved - after four holes neither of us had raised a sweat. We didn't have to walk to our next shot - the computer took us there automatically. We were sipping cool drinks, the air-conditioning was perfect, and the old course at St Andrews stretched out before us. The only thing that wasn't perfect was our game, but it was improving, thanks to our coach.
       The most challenging hole we played was the notorious "Road Hole" at St Andrews made famous by Japanese golfer Tommy Nakajima in 1978, who took four shots to get out of the deep pot bunker next to the green when in contention for the British Open. Since then the bunker's been dubbed the "Sands of Nakajima" and St Andrews' 17th - a dog-leg to the right, very close to the beautiful stone building on the course which houses a hotel - is considered the hardest par-4 in the world.
       By this stage our confidence was growing, thanks to some helpful hints from our mentor Koray, and we both chose to tee off with an oversized driver - a mean looking weapon by golfing standards.
       CUSTOMISED: Clubs are made to fit.
       I gave my tee shot everything I had - which admittedly wasn't much - and it took off like a rocket, straight over the fence and into the grounds of the hotel. "You just killed a gardener," the Wombat sniggered.
       Then it was his turn. His shot started well, then mid-flight it took a right turn, sailed over the fence into the hotel grounds and bounced off a window. "They sure do make tough glass in Scotland," I said. With the click of the mouse we deleted both shots and tried again, this time with a three-wood. We realised we weren't quite ready to wield heavy weapons.
       At the end of our very enjoyable round, we were both over the moon. Not only had we played some of the most famous holes in golf, we had also had some first-class coaching and our games had improved, all without walking anywhere or raising a sweat.
       The centre is the brainchild of Shane Wilding, who has more than 15 years of top level teaching and coaching experience in the US, Australia and Asia. Wilding, who coached on the PGA seniors tour from 2003-2006 with renowned players such as Curtis Strange, Ben Crenshaw, David Eger and Graham Marsh, as well as Australian PGA players including Peter Lonard, Rod Pampling and Paul Gow, now puts his efforts into lifting the standards of young Thai golfers.
       THE CROWD GOES WILD: This player had his cheer squad along.
       One of Wilding's success stories is Suchaya Tangkamolprasert, who was recently crowned the world's top junior for girls aged 13-14 at the World Junior Championship in San Diego. "The Thai juniors we train are a very talented group," said Wilding. "It's important to train them young and here we have the equipment and technology that's not available anywhere else in this part of the world."
       The Wilding Golf Performance Center uses an impressive array of equipment and technology which includes 12 swing bays using the high-tech AboutGolf Simulators, two putting studios and a VIP Corporate Suite complete with Asia's first 3D SimSurround Simulator, all set up in a mini amphitheatre.
       The Performance Center is staffed by a team of professional, multi-lingual instructors and utilises an exclusive array of multiple-angle video cameras, swing and putting-analysis software, motion sensors and launch monitors.
       Also available are custom club-fitting facilities in the Equipment Performance Lab that uses the world's top radar tracking system to match a golfer's particular swing and body type to the equipment best suited to his or her game.
       TECHNICAL HELP: Young players study their swings.
       "Soon we will have another big centre opening up in Thong Lor and it's a monster with 25 bays," said Wilding. "We also have a center up and running in Ratchadamri and we're searching for a suitable site in either Sathon or Silom roads."
       Now that the Wombat and I had conquered - sorry, played - St Andrews, and came away with a renewed confidence in our games after some very helpful tips, we have set our sites on demolishing another tough course - Pebble Beach.
       Relate Search: Wilding Golf Performance Center, PGA pro Stuart Appleby, Rolls Royce, Curtis Strange, Ben Crenshaw, David Eger, Graham Marsh, Peter Lonard, Rod Pampling, Paul Gow