Heron Lake Golf Course & Resort

Overview: Heron Lake Golf Course & Resort, also known as Dam Vac, is a lake-oriented parkland course in Vinh Yen, Vinh Phuc, north of Hanoi. Pacific Coast Design is credited with the routing and Phil Ryan is listed as lead architect. The current course record gives an 18-hole, par-72 layout measuring 7,054 yards from the gold tees. The course is built around Dam Vac Lake and a connected system of smaller water features, with mature trees, palms and low-lying land creating a calm setting. Water and wind are the recurring strategic themes, while beach-style bunkers add a sandy visual note to an otherwise green lake landscape.

History: Heron Lake opened in 2010 as part of the development of the Dam Vac area and the expanding golf network around Hanoi. Its most important competitive milestone came when it hosted the golf competition for the 31st Southeast Asian Games in 2022. That event placed the course in an international tournament context and confirmed the value of its flat, water-led routing. The available records disagree on some older architect and yardage descriptions, so this profile follows the current course listing and leaves the documented distinction between course and clubhouse design intact.

Did You Know? The name Heron is connected to the wetland setting around Dam Vac, which has historically attracted herons and other water birds. The name is therefore a direct description of the course environment: the lake is not just a hazard system, but the ecological feature around which the resort's identity was built.