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Golf in China is a growing industry, with numerous
golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...
courses being established, especially in the province of
Hainan Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slightly l ...
. In 2011, there were around 358,000 core players (aged over 18 and play more than 8 rounds a year) among the Chinese population, with a growth rate of 7.5%,China Golf Industry Report (2011), http://www.forwardgolf.com.cn/en/newsshow.asp?id=1109 and that figure was projected to grow to about 20 million by 2020. For the general public, golf is considered to be prohibitively expensive. However, it is seen as the top recreational sport for businesspeople and officials. The sport attracts both foreign investment and overseas golfers, who come from such countries as South Korea, Australia, and Japan for the relatively inexpensive fees. China holds such tournaments as the
WGC-HSBC Champions The WGC-HSBC Champions was a professional golf tournament, held annually in China. Inaugurated in 2005, the first seven editions were played at the Sheshan Golf Club in Shanghai, then moved to the Mission Hills Golf Club in Shenzhen for a singl ...
in
Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
,
TCL Classic The TCL Classic was a men's professional golf tournament which was played on a course designed by American Robert Trent Jones, Jr. at Yalong Bay Golf Club in Sanya on Hainan Island, People's Republic of China four times between 2002 and 2007. ...
on
Hainan Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slightly l ...
Island, the
Volvo China Open The Volvo China Open is a men's golf tournament that has been held annually in China since 1995. The event is organised by the China Golf Association and has been co-sanctioned by the European Tour since 2004. It has also featured as part of the ...
and the
BMW Asian Open The BMW Asian Open was a men's professional golf tournament that was co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and the European Tour. The event was founded in 2001, as part of the European Tour's drive to expand into Asia, and China in particular. The firs ...
. Among the country's most successful golfers are
Zhang Lianwei Zhang Lianwei (; born 2 May 1965) is a Chinese professional golfer. Zhang was the first golfer from the People's Republic of China to achieve substantial success on the international professional circuit. In January 2003 he became the first Ch ...
and
Liang Wenchong Liang Wenchong (, born 2 August 1978) is a Chinese professional golfer. He was the highest ranked golfer from the People's Republic of China and the first Chinese golfer to have reached the top 100 of the Official World Golf Ranking. He succeeded ...
.


History

Chuiwan Chuiwan () was a game in ancient China. Its rules resemble modern golf. The book ''Dongxuan lu'' (東軒錄), written by Wei Tai ((魏泰) fl. 1050–1100) of the Song dynasty, describes how a southern Tang official teaches his daughter how ...
, a stick and ball game with some similarities to golf, was played in China as early as 1000 AD, with evidence existing from the
Song dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
.''Verification of the fact that Golf originated from Chuiwan''
, Ling Hongling, Professor of Physical Education, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou, P.R. China
The sport was banned up until the middle of the 1980s by the
Chinese Communist Party The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victoriou ...
as being too bourgeois. The first golf course constructed in China opened in 1984. It was the Chung Shan Hot Springs in
Zhongshan Zhongshan (; ) is a prefecture-level city in the south of the Pearl River Delta in Guangdong province, China. As of the 2020 census, the whole city with 4,418,060 inhabitants is now part of the Guangzhou–Shenzhen conurbation with 65,565,622 i ...
, based on a design by
Arnold Palmer Arnold Daniel Palmer (September 10, 1929 – September 25, 2016) was an American professional golfer who is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most charismatic players in the sport's history. Dating back to 1955, he won numerous ev ...
. The first international tournament held in China was the 1995 World Cup at Mission Hills in
Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...
province. China's first regularly scheduled tournament was the 2004 BMW Asian Open. In 2005, the Volvo China Open was held in China, followed by the HSBC Champions in 2006. Despite a ban in 2004 that limits the number of golf courses in China due to environmental impact concerns, the number has more than tripled since 2004. At that time, only 170 courses existed. By 2009 there were almost 600. Around 2008, growth rate of the golf industry is 25 to 30 percent per year. In 2011, the rate was moderated by a much larger base, decreased to 7.5% (45 new courses). The number of courses rose further to 683 by January 2017, when the government ordered 111 of them closed due to water and land conservation concerns. At that time, all of China's province-level divisions except
Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...
had at least one course in operation. At the 2007 National People's Congress, acknowledging that the construction of new golf courses is not only a waste of public money, but also an illegal use of space, Premier
Wen Jiabao Wen Jiabao (born 15 September 1942) is a retired Chinese politician who served as the Premier of the State Council from 2003 to 2013. In his capacity as head of government, Wen was regarded as the leading figure behind China's economic policy ...
said to the Congress that contracts in building new golf courses should be highly discouraged. The government currently imposes a 24 percent tax on golf clubs. In October 2015, the
Chinese Communist Party The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victoriou ...
banned all its members from joining golf clubs among other displays of extravagance as part of China's anti-corruption campaign. Several months later, the party clarified its position in an editorial in ''
China Daily ''China Daily'' () is an English-language daily newspaper owned by the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party. Overview ''China Daily'' has the widest print circulation of any English-language newspaper in China. T ...
'', stating that party members were not to accept free memberships or rounds.


Customer costs

Green fees and memberships in China are often expensive relative to developed nations. Average green fees for non-members are usually at least US$100, and often far more expensive. For example, at the
Tomson Shanghai Pudong Golf Club Tomson is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include: Surname * Arthur Tomson (1859–1905), English artist * Chris Tomson (b. 1984), American musician * Jack Tomson (1918–2001), British hockey player * Laurence Tom ...
, home to the BMW Asian Open on the European Tour, the initiation fee $170,000 with $1,800 a year dues. Condos sell for $22 million. The green fee for guest golfers is $125 plus caddie on weekdays, and $180 plus caddie on weekends. At that particular club, however, out of the 700 members, 300 are from overseas. At Shanghai's
Sheshan International Golf Club Sheshan, formerly known as Zose, is a pair of hills in Songjiang District in western Shanghai, China. The two hills are distinguished as East and , although the more important western hill is also called Sheshan on its own. East Sheshan has an e ...
where such tournaments as the
HSBC Champions The WGC-HSBC Champions was a professional golf golf tournament, tournament, held annually in China. Inaugurated in 2005, the first seven editions were played at the Sheshan Golf Club in Shanghai, then moved to the Mission Hills Golf Club in Shenz ...
is played, the initiation fee is $230,000.


Clubs and courses

There are currently about 500 golf courses in the country, the first of which was constructed in 1984. Mission Hills is one of the leading firms, owning courses around the country. Its
Mission Hills Golf Club Mission Hills Shenzhen is a twelve course 18-hole course golf resort, located in the town of Guanlan () in Shenzhen, between the cities of Shenzhen and Dongguan. It is accredited as the world's largest golf facility by the Guinness World Records ...
near Shenzhen has 12 courses, making it the world's largest golfing complex.


Competitions and tournaments


Players

Numerous world-class players have emerged from China, including: *
Liang Wenchong Liang Wenchong (, born 2 August 1978) is a Chinese professional golfer. He was the highest ranked golfer from the People's Republic of China and the first Chinese golfer to have reached the top 100 of the Official World Golf Ranking. He succeeded ...
is one of the top Chinese golfers, and the first to win a top pro event. In 2010, he won the
Chengdu Open The Chengdu Open is a men's ATP Tour 250 series tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was a new tournament added to the 2016 ATP World Tour and replaces the ATP Malaysian Open event held in Kuala Lumpur. It takes place at the Sichuan Inte ...
. *
Shanshan Feng Shanshan Feng (, ; born 5 August 1989) is a Chinese former professional golfer who previously played on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour. She was the first player from China to become a member of the LPGA Tour, which she joined in 2008. Feng had 10 v ...
became the first Chinese golfer of either sex to win a major championship when she won the 2012 LPGA Championship. *
Wu Ashun Wu Ashun (born 22 June 1985) is a Chinese professional golfer. He has won four times on the European Tour and twice on the Japan Golf Tour. Professional career Wu played on the Asian Tour in 2008 and 2009. His best finish was T-4 at the 2009 Sin ...
has won three times on the
European Tour The European Tour (currently known as the DP World Tour for sponsorship reasons), legally the PGA European Tour is the leading men's professional golf tour in Europe. The organisation also operates the European Senior Tour (for players aged fift ...
and represented China at the
2016 Olympic Games ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro d ...
. *
Christopher Tsui Christopher Tsui (born 1981 in Hong Kong) is a businessman and a Cartier Racing Award, Champion Thoroughbred Horse racing, racehorse owner. Educated in Paris and London, he graduated in 2008 from Cass Business School with a master's in Managemen ...
qualified for the
Canadian Tour PGA Tour Canada, commonly referred to as the Canadian Tour, is a men's professional golf tour headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. The United States based PGA Tour took over operation of the tour on November 1, 2012, at which time it was renamed PG ...
in 2009 *
Zhang Lianwei Zhang Lianwei (; born 2 May 1965) is a Chinese professional golfer. Zhang was the first golfer from the People's Republic of China to achieve substantial success on the international professional circuit. In January 2003 he became the first Ch ...
won 5 Asian Tour events * Guan Tianlang won the 2012
Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship The Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship is an annual amateur golf tournament. It is played at various locations throughout Asia-Pacific. It is organized by the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC) and was first played in 2009. It was organized in ...
at age 14, and in the following year's Masters, while still 14, became the youngest player ever to make the cut at a men's major championship.


By province


Hainan

Hainan Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slightly l ...
is exempt from the nationwide ban on the creation of new golf courses. In the province, the leader in course construction is Mission Hills, having created 10 courses.


Mission Hills Haikou golf complex

Under construction since 2006, the
Mission Hills Haikou Mission Hills Haikou is a golf complex in Haikou, Hainan, China. Located around 10 km south of the center of Haikou, it comprises 10 golf courses, and at the north end, hotels including a Ritz Carlton and Renaissance, condominiums, a water p ...
is a multibillion-dollar project. This 80 km² complex (1.5 times the size of Manhattan), opened in 2011, will contain 22 golf courses and luxury hotels when fully built out. It will be one of the largest golf complexes in the world. The resort hosted of the
World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
in
2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
.


See also

*
Sports tourism Sports tourism refers to travel which involves either observing or participating in a sporting event while staying apart from the tourists' usual environment. Sport tourism is a fast-growing sector of the global travel industry and equates to $ ...
*
Golf at the Asian Games Golf was an event at the Asian Games for the first time in 1982, when the games were held in New Delhi, India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the ...


References


External links


China Golf Association, official website
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