Most international visitors arrive via Kansai International Airport (KIX) in Osaka, approximately ninety minutes west by car through the rolling hills of the Kansai region. The drive northeast toward Shigaraki traces a gradual ascent into Shiga Prefecture's forested highlands, where the landscape shifts from urban sprawl to the quiet pottery villages and tea-covered slopes that define this corner of ancient Japan. As the road narrows and climbs, signage grows sparse and the air takes on the cool, resinous scent of cedar - a fitting transition into the secluded world of Asamiya Golf Course, tucked deep in the mountains where few foreign golfers venture.