China golf construction down for third year in row

The pace of golf construction in China continues to slow. In 2010, 52 new courses opened in the People’s Republic. The number slipped to 45 in 2011 and fell again last year, to 39, according to figures provided in Forward Management Group’s recently released China Golf Industry Report. The nation’s moratorium on golf construction is partly to blame for the decline, of course, but China Daily suggests that the previous pace of construction was simply unsustainable and notes that “designers are far from convinced that the explosion of golf’s popularity in China is petering out.” And let’s give credit where it’s due: While construction has clearly slowed, China’s golf industry continues to add to its inventory. Forward Management now counts 587 courses in the nation, with more are on the way. Optimism reigns because the moratorium is merely “a supposed ban,” says China Daily, which also hints that determined developers can find loopholes in “the opaqueness of the rules.”