China's golf boom on display in Beijing
Tuesday, 19th April 2011 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
The official count of golf courses in China is 596, Wang Li-Wei, Deputy Director General of the China Golf Association, announced at the mid-March event at the China National Convention Center. The CGA projects that the country will have 1,000, along with 20 million golfers to play on them, by 2020.
It's hard to get a reliable count of the number of courses in the country without a strong community of local course developers or managers, and where new course construction occupies a strange extra-legal gray area. But my rough estimates based on talking to people in the industry indicate that the number of courses has grown 150 percent from the 300 to 400 estimate of three years ago. George Geng, national sales manager for Rainbird, one of the world's biggest suppliers of irrigation systems for golf courses, says his company has 100 projects in the country this year.
From modern China's first course more than 20 years ago in Guangdong province, the Chinese golf world now extends as far west as Xinjiang province and as far north as Heilongjiang. The hotspots, unsurprisingly, are still in the south—the Pearl River Delta, with its warm weather and proximity to Hong Kong; tropical Hainan Island; and Yunnan province, whose moderate climate and impressive landscape makes it an ideal home for golf resorts.
The rapid development of courses, unrivaled anywhere else in the world, should make a golf expo in China a hot property. That's the bet being made by Reed Exhibitions, the UK-based event management firm which purchased the China Golf Show three months ago through its Reed Exhibitions Greater China, and organized it via joint venture Reed Guanghe. Reed secured the partnership of the Professional Golf Association of America, which is extending its PGA Merchandise Show into Asia via the China Golf Show and the Asia Golf Show (scheduled for October 20-22 in Guangzhou).
"This is the best golf show we've ever had in China," said David Liu, chief China representative for Arnold Palmer Design Company. "Traffic is good, and the show is managed better." It was Liu's first time attending the China Golf Show for Arnold Palmer, but he says he has been active in the Chinese golf market for more than 10 years, originally as a sales representative for Club Car. His positive impression was echoed by everyone I spoke with, including RainBird's Geng. "This year is much better than last year," he said. "There are more people, and more of the architects from the US."
At least one exhibiting architect, Dye Designs, inked a new design contract at the show. The new project is a two-course job in Yunnan, where Dye already has projects in various phases of development. O'Brien McGarey, president of Dye Designs, says that shows like this offer designers and their clients a chance to shop around for some of the services and goods they need to subcontract or purchase.
"He walked the floor with our head designer, Cynthia Dye," McGarey said of the company's newest client. "He checked out the John Deere booth, ordered some materials, met a Korean architect he might use to design homes next to the course."
Not surpisingly, considering that golf courses are still inaccessible for so many Chinese citizens, simulators drew a lot of attention at the show. AboutGolf's booth was a hit...
... and a long putt away was the booth of copycat AboutGolf, which claims a relationship that the American simulator supplier denies.
Tags: golf, trade shows
Tiger Woods, Liu Xiang together in Beijing
Thursday, 14th April 2011 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
The Beijing visit was part of an Asia tour for Woods and Nike Golf, "Make it Matter," which included a stop at Shenzhen's Mission Hills and South Korea's Jade Palace Golf Club.
Woods was fresh off a third-place tie at The Masters last weekend, and Vegas oddsmakers have him the as favorite to win the US Open in June.
Liu Xiang's most recent accomplishment was his 13.09-second Asian games gold medal. Next month in Shanghai, he faces American David Oliver, who ran the fastest 100-meter hurdles time in the world last year, May 15 at the Samsung Diamond League Dunlop Shanghai Golden Grand Prix.
Tiger Woods/Liu Xiang image: Xinhua
Tags: athletics, golf, Liu Xiang, Tiger Woods
Gold medals and golf: What Olympic inclusion means for the game in China
Thursday, 15th October 2009 ~ Sam ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
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 (0)
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 (0)
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
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