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Golf boom hits bunker
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Xiao Gang, a manager of the Beijing-based North Star Group, finds it
hard to believe the vast area of beautiful golf course behind him is
illegal.
After all, he has had a membership here for the past two years.
Xiao visits the Xinye Golf Club near the North Fifth Ring Road almost
every weekend. Little did he know that it is one of eight around the
city lacking official approval.
The news raised eyebrows around the city when it was broken by the media
last week.
And it also threw into sharp focus some major problems faced by China. A
rash of speculative golf course construction is gobbling up arable land
and water, both in short supply around Beijing.
The statistics are equally surprising: Beijing has 19 golf courses
within easy reach of the city and another 10 under construction. But
what sounds like a golfers' paradise comes at a price.
The city government has suspended approvals for new golf courses and
started monitoring existing facilities to cut down on the massive loss
of arable land to unauthorized projects.
Golf courses currently under construction but lacking authorization will
be bunkered and those already approved officially will be closely
supervised in terms of land occupation, water consumption and
environmental protection.
Statistics show that the 29 courses existing or under construction
occupy a whopping 3,708 hectares of land.
The get-tough stance is in response to the State Council's pledge to
crack down on reckless land snatches in the construction of golf
courses.
Staff at Beijing Xinye Golf Club told Beijing Weekend that they do not
know the detail of the ban on their course but say the club is still
open for business. They refused a photographer entrance.
While the local government had earlier hoped to 'green' and beautify the
capital through golf courses on abandoned garbage disposal sites and
wasteland, the reality has been prime arable land near famous scenic
spots, expressways and rivers and lakes being snatched for development.
Ironically, the figures do not stack up - despite membership fees
exceeding US$35,000 being required at some courses.
Among the 19 completed golf courses, at least half are in the red,
according to industry observers.
To balance the books, some developers have built luxury villas nearby,
responding to the booming real estate market in Beijing.
Beijing Taiwei Golf Club Co Ltd, under construction in north Beijing's
suburb Changping District, has expensive mountain villas, entertainment
facilities and other sports services being built alongside the golf
course.
According to Song Guangjie, general manager of Taiwei, the golf resort
and villas will be the most expensive of their kind in the city.
The sale of villas is a very profitable business. Each villa costs
between 6-12 million yuan (US$700,000 to US$1.4 million). Song has 36
such villas capable of realizing in excess of 300 million yuan (US$37
miilion).
The cost by comparison of an 18-hole golf course in China is about 153
million yuan (US$18.4 million). Song can get back twice of his
investment just one year after the villas are completed. It generally
takes an average of 12 years or even longer to get back the investment
in a golf club.
But this profit means more arable land being occupied.
Golf course projects have been listed with road construction, property
development and urbanization programmes as major factors engulfing
230,279 hectares of arable land across China last year.
A report by People's Daily indicated that there are 176 golf courses in
26 provinces, undoubtedly a conservative estimate as the figure does not
take into account those under construction or still on the drawing
board.
Construction is leaping ahead of demand.
According to InfoYou, a professional research and consultation company
specializing in golf-related information, many clubs in the city are in
a financial crisis.
About half are running at a loss even though the number of golfers in
Beijing increases by 30 per cent every year.
"In North China, there are 200,000 golfers and 90,000 of them are in
Beijing," said Fan Bin, vice-director of Beijing Golf Association. "But
90 per cent of them are foreigners."
Take Beijing Golf Club, one of the first golf courses in the city. Its
statistics for 2001 show that 91 per cent of its members are Japanese, 3
per cent South Koreans, 2 per cent Americans and Europeans and another 2
per cent are from Hong Kong and Taiwan.
In contrast to American or German counterparts charging less than US$10
a session, Chinese can expect to fork out 200,000 to 300,000 yuan
(US$24,096 to US$36,144) for a golf club membership. Some charge as much
as US$150,000. For those wanting to play without membership, the cost
usually ranges from 300 yuan (US$36) to 800 yuan (US$96) per hour.
"It is actually a sport for the rich," Fan Bin said. "Once the economy
is dampened, golf courses and nearby property often face a crisis."
Fan said Japan's 12-year economic recession and the Southeast Asian
financial crisis have discouraged golfers from spending money in China.
"It is obviously unfair to waste vast precious land and water resources
in Beijing to serve a few rich people," said Luo Guangwen, professor of
Beijing Tourism College. "The government's ban would be a way of saving
for a rainy day.
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