Golf-Norman to design championship course in Vietnam

LONDON, Apr 16 (Reuters) Former world number one Greg Norman is to design a championship course in the Vung Tau province of Vietnam.

The layout will be part of Vietnam Casino City, the country's first Las Vegas-style resort, said Norman's official Web site (www.shark.com) today.

Site plans contain a massive arts and entertainment district at Xuyen Moc with several theatres and museums, and a cultural centre.

The total development cost is projected at billion.

Phase One will include 1,200 hotel rooms, a casino, 10 restaurants, a swimming pool and Norman's 200-acre golf course and country club.

Xuyen Moc is a two-hour drive east of Ho Chi Minh City.

Norman, who won the British Open in 1986 and 1993, launched his design business 20 years ago.

Among his top courses are the TPC at Sugarloaf in Duluth, Georgia, home of the PGA Tour's BellSouth Classic, the Tiburon Club in Naples, Florida, which hosts the Franklin Templeton Shootout, and the Grand Golf Club in Queensland, venue of the 2001 Australian Open.

REUTERS SAM PM2148