China has teed up an improvement in grassroots golf by launching
its first national league - the 2007 Buick China Golf Club League
(CGCL).
From April 20 to July 10, provincial level competitions will
take place, with winners advancing into five zones - North,
Mid-west, East, Mid-south and South.
After approximately four months of competition, winners from
different zones will battle it out in national finals in
December.
The total prize money for the national finals is 1.06 million
yuan ($130,000), while the champion club will be awarded 200,000
yuan and a Buick GL8.
"The league is a strong engine for the rapid development of the
sport. It is also a strong push for the sport's marketing
development," said Zhang Xiaoning, director of the Multi-ball
Administrative Center.
"The establishment of the CGCL is a new chapter in the sport's
history in China. It will help change people's views on golf, which
has been widely seen as a sport for wealthy people in China."
China has more than 200 golf clubs, and about 1 million golfers
out of a total population of 1.3 billion. This compares to 30
million players from the United States' 250 million population, 16
million out of 120 million people in Japan and 5 million from 48
million in South Korea.
Golf is expensive in China, and the rules and etiquette of the
game are largely unknown. A weekday round of golf at a moderately
priced club can cost about US$125. The price can be three or four
times that much on the weekend.
Zhang said that new league would improve the sport's
organization.
"We will learn from organizing the league competition about how
to control the scale, how to improve the structure and how to
smooth out the process.
"The standard of the game has risen spectacularly in the last
few years and I believe Chinese golf is ready to move to the next
stage."
As a non-Olympic sport, the development of the game in China is
relatively under-funded. The China Golf Association (CGA) has put
much stock in finding a player who will have a similar impact on
the sport as Houston Rockets center Yao Ming has had on
basketball.
"We have been thinking about it every day," said Zhang, also
chief secretary of the CGA.
"Maybe we'll have a female Yao Ming first. I think one important
factor is to select our players rigorously, have systematic,
scientific training and then we'll have top notch players."
It is also believed the CGCL will expand co-operation between
clubs from different provinces and cities.
"It will become the best platform for clubs to compete and share
ideas. Meanwhile, local associations will be pushed to play a more
important role. Their increasing participation will popularize the
sport, enhance the brand of the local clubs and encourage more
local companies to develop the sport's marketing."
(China Daily March 1, 2007)
