The rehabilitation of the sports and recreation complex that has a 77-hectare 18-hole golf course along the legendary Paoay Lake in Ilocos Norte is now on final stages, being readied for tourists in this northern Luzon gateway.

This bid has been pushed by the provincial government and the Department of Tourism (DOT) since 2018 but was hampered by the pandemic.

“We will see developments later this year,” DOT regional director Jeff Ortega said during the Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas forum in La Union on Tuesday.

The golf course in Barangay Suba, Paoay, Ilocos Norte is the only golf course in the province and one of the few in the Ilocos Region.

Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA) allotted PHP12 million for the golf course redevelopment, while tapping private investors to help create tailor-fit golf packages for both leisure and professional golfers.

Under the Marcos administration, the DOT is poised to make the Philippines the next premier destination for golfers to have a share in the multibillion-dollar golf tourism industry.

DOT records show that the global golf tourism market is expected to grow to more than USD41.87 billion by 2030.

The Paoay Golf Course used to host a number of golf players, particularly Korean, Japanese and Chinese nationals, but visitors stopped coming when chartered flights to the Laoag International Airport stopped.

Once restored, Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Joseph Manotoc earlier said the golf course will further boost the tourism industry in the province with the increasing number of local and international tourists visiting the province all year round. (PNA)