Gold medals and golf: What Olympic inclusion means for the game in China
Thursday, 15th October 2009 ~ Sam ~ Link ~ Comments (1)
2016 gold medalists? Young golfers practice their tee shots on the driving range at Lakeview Golf Club, Kunming
In a country where the Olympics are seen as the summit of sport, the ramifications of last Friday's International Olympic Committee (IOC) announcement that golf and rugby sevens are to be included in the 2016 and 2020 Games will be huge.
Golf, in particular, has had a short and startlingly fast development path in China. From the first golf club, Zhongshan Hot Spring Golf Club, which opened in China in 1984 to Mission Hills, home to the World Cup of Golf with its 12 courses designed by the top industry names such as Nick Faldo, José Maria Olazabal, Greg Norman and Ernie Els, golf in China has mimicked the economy in its rapid growth. The re-admittance of golf into the Olympics could speed up the game's growth in China even more by attracting money, government support and popular interest.
Asian golf in general is booming right now and most recently it was South Korean Y.E. Yang's PGA victory over Tiger Woods in the States that shocked the world. Mirroring Yang's career path many Chinese "first generation" golfers are also from under-privileged family backgrounds and are self-taught, picking up the game in their late teens just as Yang did. Chinese golfer Wu Ashun is an example of this phenomenon; determination and luck have enabled him to work his way up from a 19-year-old first-timer to the top amateur national player and now to a top three ranking on the Omega China Tour.
Wu, whose talent was discovered by a Hong Kong charity fund, is not satisfied yet however and says "I would rather be a small fish in a big pond than a big fish in a small pond." Describing the China Tour as a small tour is no understatement. Most of the golfers outside its top 20 struggle to break even on their travel and accommodation expenses.
It is a situation that Dan Washburn, author of the as yet unpublished book "Par for China," has likened the situation of China's pros to that of the early 20th century in America where professional golfers, who were mostly immigrants, were socially ranked somewhere between traveling salesmen and itinerant farmhands. Of course, the US PGA Tour has since grown to become the largest golf competition in the world and it will be interesting to see how the IOC's latest decision affects the growth of golf in the world's most populous nation.
"Par for China" is more than just a description of golf in China; it also uses the metaphor of the development of golf epitomizing the country's development as a whole. Washburn describes "golf as a barometer of economic growth" and certainly golf has only existed since Deng Xiaoping opened the country in the 1980's. A key issue for the rapidly developing China, both politically and within golf, is land usage rights. The official stance is that golf courses built on farmland are illegal, but on the outskirts of the wealthiest Chinese cities--where the rich of the city meet the poor of the country--the farmland is often obtained through backdoor connections and bribes to local officials. The property is then listed as housing estates and turned into a golf course.
Another aspect of golf that reflects a topical issue in contemporary China is the question of "accessibility for all" versus elitism. As promoted by the IOC, the decision to include golf in the Olympics will certainly bring added funding to the sport in countries such as China and India, but the question remains whether this money will go towards the development of the sport at the grassroots level where it is needed the most or if it will stretch the gap between China's rich and poor even more. The reality, though, is that golf will struggle to ever become the people's game due to exorbitant greens fees (an average round costs $152 USD, the most expensive in the world) exacerbated by the government's well-intentioned efforts to curb construction which decrease supply and put further upward pressure on prices.
China has seemingly been the fastest to rebound from the economic slowdown and the golf industry will likewise continue to flourish, with the China Golf Association predicting that by 2020 China will have 20 million golfers. Tiger Woods has stated that he intends to participate in the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro and having witnessed last year what China can do when they focus their efforts on the Olympics, it would be no surprise to see a Chinese golfer challenging him for the gold.
Tags: Dan Washburn, golf, Mission Hills, Olympics, Omega China Tour, Y.E. Yang, Zhongshan Hot Spring Golf Club
HSBC Champions Gets World Champ Status
Tuesday, 28th April 2009 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (1)
The HSBC Championship is now a World Championship Golf event, one of 100 so sanctioned by the International Federation of PGA Tours. The announcement was made at a Shanghai press conference earlier today. The event's prize money will increase from $5 million to $7 million, and Tiger Woods and Sergio Garcia are both confirmed to compete.The HSBC Championship will take place November 5 through 8 at Sheshan International Golf Club in Shanghai, where it has taken place every year since it started. But IMG Golf global managing director Mark Steinberg said at the press conference that it will likely move to Mission Hills, perhaps as soon as 2011.
This post relies heavily on the reporting of Shanghaiist managing editor Dan Washburn, who attended the press conference and is the only English-language writer closely following China's golf scene. His full report is here.
Tags: Dan Washburn, golf, HSBC Championship, IMG, Mission Hills, Sheshan International Golf Club, Tiger Woods
Aussie wins at Sofitel Zhongshan IGC Open
Tuesday, 28th April 2009 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
Kurt Barnes image: Omega China Tour
Tags: golf, Kurt Barnes, Omega China Tour, Zhongshan Open
Weekend Results: Volvo China Open and F1 Chinese Grand Prix
Tuesday, 21st April 2009 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
Scott Strange won the China Volvo Open (a European Tour event) at Beijing CBD International Golf Course, with a final-round score of 68. Liang Wenchong was the top Chinese player, shooting one over par and finishing in a five-way tie for 25th place (results from Sky Sports). Colin Montogomerie, next year's captain for Europe's Ryder Cup team, got frustrated and made a bit of a scene over some etiquette issues.
F1 Chinese Grand Prix
Red Bull won the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai, but only 70 percent of tickets were sold for China's only Formula One race. F1 president and CEO Bernie Ecclestone said that selling sponsorships has been difficult, but he will continue to bring the event to China. F1's deal with the Shanghai government ends in 2010.
Scott Strange image: Volvo China Open
Tags: Beijing CBD International Golf Course, Chinese Grand Prix, F1, Formula One, golf, Shanghai
News roundup: CBA brawls, Yao, NBA TV, golf, doping
Tuesday, 14th April 2009 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (1)
The last week has been a bit quiet here on CST. We apologize for that and bring you a quick roundup of some of the China's sports news from the past 10 days or so:Big fines in CBA playoff brawl
A total of 330,000 yuan ($48,290 USD) in fines were dished out to five players and two teams for a fight during a Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) playoff game last week. The Guangdong Tigers routed Shandong Gold, 126-79, in Game 3 of the first-round game. The CBA's been a little rowdy this year, and Chinese basketball officials blame it on new rules allowing for more physical play.
The fines, which were accompanied by short suspensions (two and three games for Guangdong players), don't seem to have hurt the Tigers, who went on to win their first second-round game over Dongguan, moving Yi Jianlian's former team one step closer to its fifth championship. The Guangdong roster includes NBA veteran Smush Parker and four members of China's 2008 Olympic team.
Rockets surging, Yao aching
The oft-injured Yao Ming gave Houston Rockets fans a scare when he sat out a game last week with a sore right foot. But 42-year-old center Dikembe Mutombo did exactly what he was brought in for, giving Yao a break and posting 10 points, 15 boards and four blocks last Friday in a win over Golden State. Yao returned to the lineup after tests showed his pain was just due to a bruise, and paced the Rockets with 22 points in a win over the Charlotte Hornets in their final home game. The Rockets lead the Southwest Division and are neck-and-neck with the San Antonio Spurs for third in the West.
NBA TV China
The NBA announced plans for two reality shows in China. The first will be a cheerleading competition airing on CCTV-5 (China's national sports channel) starting May 9. Brewing company Tsing Tsao is the NBA's partner for the show, in which the cheerleaders compete for a trip to train with an NBA cheering team. The second show, sponsored by China Mengniu Dairy, will be a basketball competition broadcast on Shandong Satellite TV. Airing on Fridays starting May 22, NBA Mengniu Basketball Disciple will feature young hoop dreamers competing for a shot at the NBA D-League.
Han gets assist in Sol win
Chinese striker Han Duan notched her first assist for the Los Angeles of the new Women's Professional Soccer league. The Sol beat Sky Blue FC (New York/New Jersey) to improve to 2-0. Han also had a shot on goal but came up short. The Sol play again on Sunday, April 19, against FC Gold Pride.
Doping swimmers suspended
The Chinese Swimming Association announced it would suspended five junior swimmers for two years for testing positive for anabolic steroids last June. The suspensions of Qu Jing, Liu Bingyao, Zuo Ziqiao, Fu Bo and Hu Shaozhi are retroactively effective to the date of the tests, meaning that they are already nearly halfway through their suspensions and will return with plenty of time left to train for the 2012 Olympics. Why did it take so long to issue the suspensions? That old excuse, "the Olympics." Ouyang Kunpeng, once China's top backstroker, was banned for life by the Chinese Swimming Association just weeks before the 2008 Olympics, after a positive anabolic steroids test.
Liang plays his way into fourth major
Liang Wenchong, China's most accomplished golfer to date, qualified for the British Open at a qualifying event in Singapore. Liang finished second in the qualifying tournament to earn a spot at the Open in July. Liang played in the British Open last year--it was his third Major and the first one in which he made the cut. He also played in last year's Masters and the 2007 PGA Championship (Liang makes British Open cut).
Women fail to qualify for China Open
Four women took part in qualifying competitions for the European Tour-sanctioned Volvo China Open, but none were able to qualify. Among the women looking to qualify were Wang Chun (China.org), who qualified for the Japan LPGA Tour in 2007, and Ye Zhaoying, once the world's top female badminton player (Reuters).
Tags: basketball, football, golf, Han Duan, Houston Rockets, Liang Wenchong, NBA, Ouyang Kunpeng, soccer, swimming, Tsingtsao, Yao Ming
Tiger's coming to China
Thursday, 26th March 2009 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
Woods on a billboard above Wangfujing street, summer 2008
Watch the tournament's Web site for news about tickets.
Tags: golf, HSBC Champions, Sheshan, Tiger Woods
Martial artist turned golfer Wu wins at Xiamen
Monday, 23rd March 2009 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
Wu Weihuang
"When I holed the par-putt on 18, I just felt so relieved that I'd finally done it. I've waited 10 years for this moment and it's a great feeling," Wu said. He cited time in the gym during the off-season as a big factor in his win. He had to hold off runners up (Alex) Wu Ashun (吴阿顺 ), from Fujian, and 2008 Omega Championship winner Zhou Jun (周君) for the win. Wu and Zhou each took home 90,000 RMB and a Dell laptop. Also competing in the tournament was Wu Weihuang's son, Wu Jianlong, who shot a 75 and a 78 in the first two rounds.
Here is how some other golfers on CST's radar finished:
Zhang Lianwei 张连伟 (Omega Order of Merit winner 2006, runner-up in 2007 and 2008; first Chinese player invited to play in The Masters Tournament): 282, tied for 7th place
Lu Wen-teh (Taiwan-based Asian Tour player; winner, 2008 Kunming Champioship) 284, 9th place
Li Chao 李超 (winner, 2008 Dell Championship; winner, Omega Order of Merit 2005 and 2007): 287, tied for 14th place
Liao Guiming廖贵明 (Omega Order of Merit winner 2008; winner, 2008 Sofitel Golf Championship): 292, tied for 25th place
Zhou Xunshou 周训书 (16th in 2008 Omega Order of Merit, featured in upcoming book Par for China): 305, 58th place
The tour's next event is the Sofitel Zhongshan IGC Open, at Zhongshan International Golf Club in Nanjing, April 23-26.
Image: World Sport Group
Tags: China Tour, Dell Championship, golf, Li Chao, Liao Guiming, Lu Wen-teh, Omega China Tour, World Sport Group, Wu Ashun, Wu Weihuang, Xiamen, Zhang Lianwei, Zhou Jun, Zhou Xunshou
Father and son to compete at Xiamen golf tournament
Wednesday, 18th March 2009 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
Wu Weihuang at last year's Dell Championship
The elder Wu is a former martial arts champion and also a character who draws crowds on the links, according to World Sport Group, which puts on the tournament as well as the Omega China Tour. The younger Wu is a former basketball player who took up golf at 14, and has progressed rapidly.
"I basically went from shooting in the 90s to shooting in the 70s last summer," says Jianlong, a three handicapper.
The story of the two Wus mirrors the Chinese professional golf world as a whole. Older players on the tour are pretty much all in a second career, coming to golf from other work, often not as professional athletes. The younger players may have gotten an earlier start than their older counterparts, but still have come to the game relatively late compared to players in other parts of the world. For more on the subject, keep an eye on Shanghai-based American sportswriter Dan Washburn, who has been following security guard-turned-pro-golfer Zhou Xunshu, as the central figure of a book on China's development and the growth of golf here.
Related: Lu wins at Kunming, young amateurs shine
Yunnan's top young golfers compete at Faldo Series Asia
Tags: Dell Championship, golf, Omega China Tour, World Sport Group, Wu Jianlong, Wu Weihuang
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