By Martin Parry (AFP) – 1 day ago
SINGAPORE — Asian Tour chief Kyi Hla Han believes Chinese players could follow their South Korean counterparts out of the OneAsia Tour, which on Wednesday sought to salvage a boycott of its events.
OneAsia, which was established last year by bringing together tours from China, South Korea and Australia to rival the Asian Tour, was dealt a heavy blow on Tuesday when Korean golfers voted to pull out of its tournaments.
In a statement issued on behalf of 110 Korea Professional Golfers' Association players, they claimed OneAsia was not working on their behalf.
They were unhappy at the number of places available to locals at next week's Maekyung Open and the SK Telecom Open as well as OneAsia simply absorbing existing tournaments and offering nothing new.
Concern was also voiced that it was being dictated by commercial, and not player, interests.
In an open letter, OneAsia chairman Sang Y. Chun and chief executive Ben Sellenger urged them to rethink.
"The Korean Golf Tour and its members are very important to the development and success of OneAsia in developing Korean champions," the letter said.
It warned that if the boycott was carried out at the Maekyung Open next week, KGT eligibility for all remaining OneAsia events would be removed.
"This is obviously the last resort and one which we would like to avoid at all cost."
It said more than 90 positions would be made available to Koreans at the Maekyung tournament and 70 at the SK Telecom.
OneAsia also stressed it was not commercially owned.
"OneAsia is founded by the KPGA, the KGA, China Golf Association and PGA of Australia and has no commercial ownership," it said.
"The object of OneAsia is to maximise elite playing opportunities of the leading golfers from across the region."
Kyi Hla Han said OneAsia was becoming "a laughing stock" and made clear he would welcome Korean players and events back onto the Asian Tour.
"We hope they come back to the Asian Tour," he told AFP, adding that he had been talking to sponsors in Korea who were interested.
The Asian Tour used to host both the Maekyung and SK Telecom events.
"We have been talking to a lot of sponsors in Korea and have been getting a good response," he said.
"We're working on our 2011 schedule already. Sponsors are very interested.
"We just do what other tours like the European Tour do and they are successful. I think the Koreans now realise that."
With most Korean players vowing to skip the remaining nine events on the OneAsia calendar, held mostly in China and Australia, Kyi Hla Han suggested that Chinese golfers would be watching developments very closely.
Asked if they could follow suit, he said: "I was talking to a few Chinese players last week and they feel that too many places (in OneAsia events) are being taken by Australians.
"That could follow Korea. Some players have already shown dissent."
China is a different proposition though, with the China Golf Association a government organisation which has aligned itself with OneAsia and squeezed out the Asian Tour. There is no player representative body, or PGA, in China.
Kyi Hla Han said he was open to further talks with the CGA.
"I think the opportunities for Chinese players have lessened," he said.
"I hope to work with China again. I'd like to hold talks and see if what we have is attractive to them. We can bring tournaments in."
Copyright © 2010 AFP. All rights reserved. More »
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Return on investment: China's wealthy embrace junior golf
CHENGDU, China (Reuters Life!) - China's wealthy have no qualms about spending on luxury lifestyles, but one sport has got them especially excited due to its potential investment returns: golf lessons for the kids.
From the tee to the green, golf is an expensive affair in China and one that is seen as a status symbol. But those who can afford it are signing up their children in droves, hoping to transform them into the next Tiger Woods.
"Many parents and children are becoming engaged in the sport. In the past, golf reached a relatively small group of people, but now it's becoming more and more widespread," said Cui Zhiqiang, vice-president of the China Golf Association.
"The prospects are looking very good, with more people getting involved in junior golf, which is gaining greater public attention and recognition in society."
Once considered bourgeois, golf was banned by China's Communist Party, and the country's first golf course was only built in 1984.
But with an explosion of interest in recent years, some parents are now prepared to fork out around 300,000 yuan ($43,940) year on lessons for the children.
Last weekend, the country's future golf stars teed off in the fourth China Junior Golf Open Tournament held in Chengdu, capital of China's southwestern Sichuan province.
Organised by the China Golf Association with high-profile sponsorship, the tournament costs each participant more than 10,000 yuan, almost 10 times the monthly income of an average Chinese factory worker.
Though statistically less than one percent of China's population play golf today, more courses and rising incomes mean the sport is becoming more accessible to the elite. Yang Manlixiang, 7, has been playing golf for over three years and wants to become a professional golfer. For her, it's more than just a sport.
"Playing golf can earn me a lot of money," Yang said.
Yang's father, Yang Quan, is also prepared to pay big money to train his daughter to go professional in the future.
"I have not carefully calculated the cost of training my daughter to play golf. But I think I need to invest at least four or five million yuan altogether. I need to keep her training and attending tournaments," he said.
While many junior golfers, especially teenagers, dream of going pro, for many more, golf is just a little more than a after-school pursuit akin to piano-playing.
China, where golf was once labelled 'green opium' because it was seen as expensive and elitist, only has around 500 courses, compared to 18,000 courses in the U.S. and an estimated 6,000 in Europe.
While China's state sport system pays for the training of professional athletes in most sports, golf is one of the few in which individuals must cover all the training expenses.
But last year's decision to add golf to the Olympic programme from 2014 has helped further spark interest in developing the sport, and its inclusion will see more government funding for the sport.
When the country's formidable Soviet-style sports system joins wealthy parents in pushing young golfers, China could be a golfing force to be reckoned with in the future.
From the tee to the green, golf is an expensive affair in China and one that is seen as a status symbol. But those who can afford it are signing up their children in droves, hoping to transform them into the next Tiger Woods.
"Many parents and children are becoming engaged in the sport. In the past, golf reached a relatively small group of people, but now it's becoming more and more widespread," said Cui Zhiqiang, vice-president of the China Golf Association.
"The prospects are looking very good, with more people getting involved in junior golf, which is gaining greater public attention and recognition in society."
Once considered bourgeois, golf was banned by China's Communist Party, and the country's first golf course was only built in 1984.
But with an explosion of interest in recent years, some parents are now prepared to fork out around 300,000 yuan ($43,940) year on lessons for the children.
Last weekend, the country's future golf stars teed off in the fourth China Junior Golf Open Tournament held in Chengdu, capital of China's southwestern Sichuan province.
Organised by the China Golf Association with high-profile sponsorship, the tournament costs each participant more than 10,000 yuan, almost 10 times the monthly income of an average Chinese factory worker.
Though statistically less than one percent of China's population play golf today, more courses and rising incomes mean the sport is becoming more accessible to the elite. Yang Manlixiang, 7, has been playing golf for over three years and wants to become a professional golfer. For her, it's more than just a sport.
"Playing golf can earn me a lot of money," Yang said.
Yang's father, Yang Quan, is also prepared to pay big money to train his daughter to go professional in the future.
"I have not carefully calculated the cost of training my daughter to play golf. But I think I need to invest at least four or five million yuan altogether. I need to keep her training and attending tournaments," he said.
While many junior golfers, especially teenagers, dream of going pro, for many more, golf is just a little more than a after-school pursuit akin to piano-playing.
China, where golf was once labelled 'green opium' because it was seen as expensive and elitist, only has around 500 courses, compared to 18,000 courses in the U.S. and an estimated 6,000 in Europe.
While China's state sport system pays for the training of professional athletes in most sports, golf is one of the few in which individuals must cover all the training expenses.
But last year's decision to add golf to the Olympic programme from 2014 has helped further spark interest in developing the sport, and its inclusion will see more government funding for the sport.
When the country's formidable Soviet-style sports system joins wealthy parents in pushing young golfers, China could be a golfing force to be reckoned with in the future.
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