Asia's pride

The Middle Kingdom may not have too many pro players to boast of but it is certainly emerging as the latest El Dorado of golf. And it is not just the prize money that is growing by leaps and bounds. The number of events held in China is so huge that it could well have a tour of itself!

The latest announcement has been that China will host the $1.25 million CGA Championships, a full field event that should give a big boost to Asian golfers. It is not co-sanctioned with Europe or any other Tour, which, in effect, means that the Asian golfers get all the spots barring a few reserved for marquee names, if any.

Golf in China, which was banned during the Cultural Revolution, got a second life when the restrictions were lifted in 1985. Ten years ago, China had less than a dozen golf courses.

Today that figure is cruising past 200. And possibly the best golf resort in the continent is Mission Hills. Located in Shenzen, Mission has 10 championship golf courses in a single resort, each one of them designed by world class players such as Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Vijay Singh, Nick Faldo, Colin Montgomerie, Jumbo Ozaki and Annika Sorenstam.

A decade ago, China had barely a few hundred golfers. Today the number exceeds 2,00,000, almost twice the number of regular golfers that India possesses.

However, pro golfers of quality are still few in China. Zhang Lianwei, who became the first Chinese player to be invited to compete at the Augusta Masters, is their best known player.

Lianwei has won on the European, the Asian and the Canadian Tours. But make no mistake, we could soon see an explosion of Chinese golfers on the professional tours soon.

Since 1997, the only Chinese pro who has regularly been in top the 50 of the Asian Order of Merit is Lianwei. Of late, players like Liang Wen Chong and Li Chao have begun making their mark in the circuit.

Speaking at the 10th edition of the Volvo China Open recently, Mel Pyatt, CEO of Volvo event management, made it clear that his company is looking at China seriously as far as golf promotion is concerned.

Pyatt should know how golf in China has grown over the years; he has been a former European Tour player. Little wonder then Volvo has decided to commit its involvement with increased prize money for the China Open for the next five years.

Two of the last three events on the Asian Tour for 2004 "" the Volvo China Open and the Omega Hong Kong Masters "" form the first two legs of the European Season next year.

Then the European Tour returns to China in April with two co-sanctioned events "" the Johnnie Walker Classic and the Asian Open. That makes four European Tour events in China and that is more than any other country except the UK.

It was only when the ban on golf was lifted that Zhang, a former javelin thrower, took up the game seriously. Four years later, Zhang paid his own way to play at the Chinese Amateur Open and won.

This year also saw Zhang compete in the Masters at Augusta, the first Chinese to participate at a Major. Now Zhang is virtually the Golf ambassador of China and believes that with so many international companies eyeing the rapidly-expanding Chinese market, there is a possibility that the US Tour will consider holding an event in China.

After all, the US PGA did sanction an event "" the $ 3.5 million Shinhan Open "" in Korea this year. Although it was held after the end of the season, it could count towards the main Tour and the Money List in the future.

The Asian Tour is also showing a healthy and attractive schedule. Of the 14 events announced for the first half of the season, six are jointly sanctioned with the European Tour. Three of these are held in China, besides one each in Singapore, Malaysia and Qatar.

In 2004, China hosted five Asian Tour events besides three others co-sanctioned with Europe.

Several tournaments are being planned for next year. The Asian Tour schedule for the first half of 2005 will have the Visa Dynasty Cup in April, followed by the $2 million Johnnie Walker Classic and the $1.5 million BMW Asian Open. In May, there is the Macau Open and in June, a new event "" the $1.25m CGA Championships "" will make an entry.

The second half will have the $300,000 Volkswagen Masters China, the $200,000 Tianjin TEDA Open , the $300,000 Crowne Plaza Shanghai Classic and the $250,000 Sanya Open. Besides, it will also host the $1.3 million Volvo China which will be jointly sanctioned with Europe.