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Why golf course membership is now banned in China

Published

10 years ago

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Just in time for the PGA Tour’s annual trip to China for the WGC-HSBC Champions in November, the country’s ruling Communist party officially banned all 88 million of its members from “obtaining, holding or using membership cards for gyms, clubs, golf clubs, or various other types of consumer cards, or entering private clubs,” per a BBC report.

What’s going on here?

Well, to start, China’s relationship with the ball-and-club game is famously complicated. The People’s Republic, where construction of new golf courses has been outlawed since 2004, has seen more courses built since 2004 of than any other country.

And it seems while some hold a less-than-favorable opinion of the game in Western countries, the stance is even more extreme among some in China, most notably those in President Jinping’s government.

From a Reuters report:

“The new rules are a blow to China’s nascent market for golf, which is often seen as providing an opportunity for officials to make shady deals and an extravagance for government employees who should be serving the people.

“In other countries golf is more about the sport, here it’s about the social interaction. If a company boss can’t play with a government official, there’s little point in him spending his money,” said the owner of a golf equipment store in Shanghai.”

Dan Washburn, Chief Content Officer at the Asia Society and author of The Forbidden Game: Golf and the Chinese Dream, writing for CNN Money in April after the closure of 66 “illegal” golf courses (10 percent of the tracks in the country) suggested the ruling party is serious about enforcing the “long-ignored” ban on golf construction.

Following the closures, a party official found himself under investigation for participating in a company golf event.

As Washburn wrote in April:

“China has long had a complicated relationship with golf. Mao Zedong banned it, denouncing golf as the “sport for millionaires.” Even after China opened up and golf re-emerged in the mid-1980s, largely as a way to attract foreign investment, the sport was saddled with serious image problems. It’s not hard to see why.

“Beijing would say new construction is banned, while at the same time local governments would line their pockets with the proceeds from the boom. There didn’t seem to be too many rules in all of this, but one was especially important: When building a golf course in China, don’t call it a golf course.”

And while crackdowns, of some variety, seem to be routine in the country, the scale and publicity of this effort are hard to ignore.

According to Washburn, “There were crackdowns. But most were regional and temporary. And at the end of the year, you could always count on two things: a dramatic increase in the number of golf courses in China, and rumors that the Chinese government was about to legitimize and regulate the industry.”

Whether this recent decision marks a sea change or is mere posturing remains to be seen, but it’s certain the global golf market—from the fledgling PGA Tour China, to equipment companies, to architects design firms—will be watching closely.

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Ben Alberstadt is the Editor-in-Chief at GolfWRX, where he’s led editorial direction and gear coverage since 2018. He first joined the site as a freelance writer in 2012 after years spent working in pro shops and bag rooms at both public and private golf courses, experiences that laid the foundation for his deep knowledge of equipment and all facets of this maddening game. Based in Philadelphia, Ben’s byline has also appeared on PGATour.com, Bleacher Report...and across numerous PGA DFS and fantasy golf platforms. Off the course, Ben is a committed cat rescuer and, of course, a passionate Philadelphia sports fan. Follow him on Instagram @benalberstadt.

9 Comments

9 Comments

  1. glassjaw

    Oct 27, 2015 at 8:09 pm

    The title of this article is very misleading. You say “Why golf course membership is now banned in China”. This sentence is false and is misleading as most of your readers will not catch the truth in the article about who is banned from membership. Golf membership is not banned in China. It is banned for employees of the Chinese Government or “officers” as Chinese call them. I understand that China has 88 million officers but that is still only a fraction of the population.

    Also, as many of your readers know corruption is a way of life in China. Especially for Government workers. Often times it isn’t outright immoral, it has been built into the system. Many of their salaries are incredibly low since getting money from other sources is just part of the game. They are working to change the corruption and one of the ways is by banning travel to Macao and confiscating their Passports so they can’t take their money outside of the country. However this really doesn’t effect most of population, for most of the population golf membership is in fact, not banned.

    Reply Report comment

  3. E.Kirk

    Oct 23, 2015 at 4:22 pm

    Hey, don’t equate communism with corruption, though it is true corruption exist in the goverment.

    One would put forth that lobbying is corruption too.

    Reply Report comment

  4. Nolanski

    Oct 23, 2015 at 3:58 pm

    I know we Americans have our issues but man I’m glad I was born in the United State of America.

    Reply Report comment

  5. Cheapy

    Oct 23, 2015 at 1:51 pm

    Lets not forget, it’s a COMMUNIST country, after all, and as long as the officials can turn their eyes away with pay offs, that’s just how it is. Lets just admit to corruption at the highest level; how do you think we get to have them make everything for us so cheaply?

    Reply Report comment

    • Rich

      Oct 23, 2015 at 5:45 pm

      Communism is not exclusive to corruption and just because it’s a communist country doesn’t mean it’s corrupt. I live in Australia and corruption is everywhere at every level of government and this is a bloody awesome place to live. Corruption comes with power and/or power comes from corruption. Political persuasion has no influence. It happens everywhere.

      Reply Report comment

    • Rwj

      Oct 23, 2015 at 9:07 pm

      Corruption thrives in the U.S. Saying communism is 100% bad is like saying Christopher Columbus discovered the Americas. Most Americans believe the things they see on TV or hear in middle school, very little actual evidence to educate themselves. Communism’s downfall is the same as “democracy,” the people claiming to be professionals at it

      Reply Report comment

      • Tom

        Oct 24, 2015 at 11:19 am

        Or read on the internet…because if it’s on the internet it’s gotta be true…lol (this coming from an American, non the less)

        Reply Report comment

    • Andy

      Oct 23, 2015 at 11:14 pm

      Rich and Rwj

      Both stellar points. Great to read. Measured.

      Andy, Melb AUS

      Reply Report comment

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Tour Rundown: Bend, but don’t break

Published

3 weeks ago

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Aug 4, 2025

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I’m going to gush in this intro paragraph, to get the emo stuff done early. I’ve not pulled harder for a professional to win, than Cameron Young. I coach golf in New York state, and each spring, my best golfers head to a state championship in Poughkeepsie. I first saw Cameron there as a 9th grade student. I saw him three more times after that. I reconnecected with Coach Haas from Wake Forest, an old interview subject from my days on the Old Gold and Black, the Wake newspaper. He was there to watch Cameron. After four years at Wake Forest, Young won on the Korn Ferry Tour, made it to the big tour, almost won two majors, almost won five other events, and finally got the chalice about 25 minutes from the Wake campus. Congratulations, Cameron. You truly are a glass of the finest. #MotherSoDear

OK, let’s move on to the Tour Rundown. The major championship season closed this week in Wales, with the Women’s Open championship. The PGA Tour bounced through Greensboror, N.C., while the PGA Tour Americas hit TO (aka, Toronto) for a long-winded event. The Korn Ferry lads made a stop in Utah, one of just two events for that tour in August. The many-events, golf season is winding down, as we ease from summer toward fall in the northern hemisphere. Let’s bask in the glory of an August sunrise, and run down a quartet of events from the first weekend of the eighth month.

LET/LPGA @ Women’s Open: Miyu bends, but she doesn’t break

Royal Porthcawl was not a known commodity in the major tournament community. The Welsh links had served as host to men’s senior opens, men’s amateurs, and Curtis and Walker Cups in prior years, but never an Open championship for the women or the men. The last-kept secret in UK golf was revealed once again to the world this week, as the best female golfers took to the sandy stage.

Mao Saigo, Grace Kim, Maja Stark, and Minjee Lee hoped to add a second major title to previous wins this season, but only Lee was able to finish inside the top ten. The 2025 playing of the Women’s Open gave us a new-faces gallery from day one. The Kordas and Thitikulls were nowhere to be found, and it was the Mayashitas, Katsus, and Lim Kims that secured the Cymru spotlight. The first round lead was held at 67 by two golfers. One of them battled to the end, while the other posted 81 on day two, and missed the cut. Sitting one shot behind was Miyu Yamashita.

On day two, Yamashita posted the round of the tournament. Her 65 moved her to the front of the aisle, in just her fourth turn around a women’s Open championship. With the pre-event favorites drifting off pace, followers narrowed into two camps: those on the side of an underdog, and others hoping for a weekend charge from back in the pack. In the end, we had a bit of both.

On Saturday, Yamashita bent with 74 on Saturday, offering rays of hope to her pursuing pack. England’s Charley Hull made a run on Sunday closing within one shot before tailing off to a T2 finish with Minami Katsu. Katsu posted the other 65 of the week, on Saturday, but could not overtake her countrywoman, Yamashita. wunderkind Lottie Woad needed one round in the 60s to find her pace, but could only must close-to’s, ending on 284 and a tie with Minjee for eighth.

On Sunday, Yamashita put away the thoughts of Saturday’s struggles, with three-under 33 on the outward half. She closed in plus-one 37, but still won by two, for a first Major and LPGA title.

PGA Tour @ Wyndham: Young gathers first title near home

Cameron Young grew up along the Hudson river, above metro New York, but he also calls Winston-Salem home. He spent four years as a student and athlete at Wake Forest University, then embarked on tour. This week in Greensboro, after a bit of a break, Young opened with 63-62, and revved the engine of Is this the week once more. Runner-up finishes at the Open, the PGA, and a handful of PGA Tour events had followers wonder when the day would come.

On Saturday, Young continued his torrid pace with 65, giving him a five-shot advantage over his closest pursuer. Sunday saw the Scarborough native open with bogey, then reel off five consecutive birdies to remind folks that his time had, at last, arrived. Pars to the 16th, before two harmless bogeys coming home, made Young the 1000th winner of an official PGA Tour event (dating back to before there was a PGA Tour) throughout history. What’s next? I have a suspicion, but I’m not letting on. Mac Meissner closed with 66 to finish solo 2nd, while Mark Hubbard and Alex Noren tied for third.

Korn Ferry Tour @ Utah Championship: Are you Suri it’s Julian?

Who knows exactly when the flower will bloom? Julian Suri played a solid careet at Duke University, then paid his dues on the world’s minor tours for three years. He won twice on two tours in Europe, in 2017. Since then, the grind has continued for the journeyman from New York city. At age 34, Suri broke through in Beehive state, outlasting another grinder (Spencer Levin) and four others, by two shots.

Taylor Montgomery began the week with 62, then posted 64, then 68, and finally, 70. That final round was his undoing. He finished in that second-place tie, two back of the leader. Trace Crowe, Barend Botha, and Kensei Hirata made up the last of the almost quintet. As for Suri, his Sunday play was sublime. His nines were 32 and 31, with his only radar blip a bogey at ten. He closed in style with one final birdie, to double his winning margin. Hogan bloomed late…might Suri?

PGA Tour Americas @ Osprey Valley Open presented by Votorantim Cimentos – CBM Aggregates

Some tournament names run longer than others. This week in Toronto, at the Heathlands course at TPC Toronto, we might have seen the longest tournament title in recorded history. The OVOPBVCCBMA was a splendid affair. It saw three rounds of 62 on Thursday, but of those early risers, only Drew Goodman would stick around until the end. 64 was the low tally on day two, and two of those legionnaires managed to finish inside the top three at week’s end. Saturday brought a 63 from Patrick Newcomb, and he would follow with 64 on Sunday, to finish solo fourth.

Who, then, ended up winning the acronym of the year? It turns out that Carson Bacha had the right stuff in TeeOhhh. Bacha and Jay Card III posted 63 and 64, respectively, on day four, to tie for medalist honors at 23-under 261. Nathan Franks was one shot adrift, despite also closing with 63. If you didn’t go low on Sunday, it was about the check, not the championship.

Bacha and JC3 returned to the 18th hole twice in overtime. Card nearly chipped in from the thick stuff for birdie, while Bacha peeked and shoved a ten-feet attempt at the win. On the second go-round, Card was long with his approach, into the native grasses once more. He was unable to escape, and a routine par from the fairway was enough to earn the former Auburn golfers a first KFT title.

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Photos from the 2025 Wyndham Championship

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Check out links to all our photos below, which we’ll continue to update as more arrive.

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Kurt Kitayama just won his 2nd PGA Tour event at the 3M Open. Kurt is a Bridgestone staffer but with just the ball and bag. Here are the rest of the clubs he used to secure a win at the 2025 3M Open.

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