Taiheiyo Club Karuizawa Resort (Asama)

Overview: Asama is the longer of Taiheiyo Club Karuizawa Resort’s two 18-hole highland courses. The current resort information lists par 72 and 6,941 yards, with the course set at roughly 1,300 metres above sea level. Fairways and greens sit in a broad mountain landscape, and Mount Asama provides a recurring visual reference without turning the layout into a postcard-only experience.

History: The resort records an opening date of July 20, 1975, and credits Shunsuke Kato with the course design and later modifications. Asama and Shirakaba form the facility’s 36-hole core. Their highland identity is a product of both the original layout and the continuing work needed to keep a mountain resort course playable through a short, weather-sensitive season.

Did You Know? The 16th is described as a wide, straight par five played towards Mount Asama, while the 17th turns uphill as a par four. The pair makes the mountain visible in two different ways, first as a distant target and then as part of the climb built into the closing sequence.