course check
Course
Downtown Golf
Shenzhen Golf Club, surreally located in the heart of the city, offers three great nines – but at no small cost BY THE EDITORS
Background
Less than ten minutes in a cab from the border at Huanggang, amid Shenzhen’s wacky skyscrapers, lies Shenzhen Golf Club – site of one of the best courses in southern China and an oasis of calm in an otherwise manic megalopolis. With its twenty-seven cracking holes and an unbeatable location, this place is a class apart from a sprinkling of uninspiring courses that rim the city’s perimeter. No wonder China’s golfing trailblazer, Zhang Lian-wei, has made the club his base, and the great man can often be seen gorging on mounds of noodles in SGC’s stylish clubhouse before embarking on yet another practice round. Opened for play in 1985, the club has the distinction of being one of the oldest courses on the mainland. Originally designed by Isao “The Tower” Aoki, the layout started life as the domain of Japanese and Korean businessmen and was an attractive, if fairly innocuous challenge. Enter Nelson & Haworth – the design firm who gave us Shanghai’s Sheshan International, the East Course at Kau Sai Chau and a slew of other courses across Asia – who, in the late 90s, were called in to add much needed beef to this parkland layout. 66
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Nelson & Haworth’s changes, which focused mainly on tweaking the g re en complexe s a nd improving the playing surfaces, have turned the course into a formidable challenge, strong enough to host the 2005 Volvo China Open, which England’s Paul Casey won following a playof f w it h fel low countryman Oliver Wilson. The difficulty of the course comes not from the beautiful lychee and pa l m t rees t hat f la n k the fairways, or even the umpteen water hazards that creep into vision on both tee and approach shots. Its length (all three combinations of nines measure in excess of 6,500 yards from the members’ blue tee) is a factor, but not crucial. There’s not even any real rough to speak of. By far and away the trickiest aspect here are the putting surfaces and the obstacles t h at s u r r ou n d t h e m . Although comparisons with, say, Augusta National are a little extreme, there’s absolutely no doubt that the greens at SGC are severe. Multiple tiers, spines, crowns, shoulders – whatever you want to ca l l t hem – ca n ma ke even decent putters look decidedly foolish. This is accentuated by the fact that thanks to excellent conditioning they routinely run in excess of 10 on the stimpmeter. Pitching and chipping, too, call for precision and the greenside bunkering is both plentiful and punishing. Easy bogeys, tough pars s what this course is all about.
Clubhouse / Amenities
Unlike some of the bigger clubs in the immediate region, SGC lacks a tremendous variety of pre- and post-round amenities. The functional yet stylish nineteenth hole houses a decent restaurant, while the outdoor terrace is a popular spot for golfers wanting to dissect their rounds over a post-play pint. The locker rooms – including a Japanese-style onsen (hot bath), at least in the men’s – are particularly wellHKGOLFER.COM
appointed. Massage facilities are also available, but it is advisable to check their availability before you tee off. The one truly disappointing aspect of SGC is the club’s practice facilities. The mat driving range (accompanied by ancient rocklike balls) is out of keeping with the rest of the club and should be addressed.
Verdict
While SGC has had longer than most in getting things right, other Guangdong clubs could do with taking a leaf out of SGC’s book. Yes, the club has the definite advantage of cash – membership fees are high without being exorbitant, while visitor green fees are pretty much the most expensive in Shenzhen – but they appear to have spent money in the right manner. Course maintenance is routinely first-class and sound service ensures that everything runs smoothly – at least most of the time. Of course, the most significant advantage the club has is the course itself: the A/B layout is the toughest of the three combinations, while the B/C course offers the most variety. Undisputedly pricey, but its convenient not to mention jaw-dropping location makes it worth the splurge. A must-play – more so now than ever. Rumours abound that the club’s lease is set to expire in the not too distant future, and given the increased value of the land that the club occupies, getting an extension to that lease will likely be a tough proposition.
Need to Know Shenzhen Golf Club
Green Fees (Visitors): RMB1,360 / 2,190 (WD/WE – includes caddie and cart fee). Getting There: A taxi from the stand at the Huanggang border takes approximately eight minutes and costs RMB30 each way. Contact: Shennan Road, Futian, Shenzhen; Tel: +86 (0)755 330 8888 Yardage: 7,169/6,631. Par: 72. (A/B Course). Course Rating: 72.5/69.9 Architects: Isao Aoki (1985) / Nelson & Haworth (2000).
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