Priciest round of golf
China is one of the most expensive places in the world to play golf, according to a new study of the fledgling market...
The average initiation fee for a course is more £25,000 and it typically costs about £80 to play a round on weekends, firmly establishing golf as an "elitist" sport, according to the study of China released Monday by the Budapest-based KPMG Golf Advisory Practice.
Perhaps that's not shocking, but it's still amazing to find more than 300 courses in the country, which didn't build its first course until 1984. And residential development is helping to drive high-end new developments, much like in other countries around the world, the study says.
In another recent report, KPMG identified Portugal, Spain and Turkey as the countries likely to emerge as the next "hot spots" for golf. The Golf Travel Insight study for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, polled 80 golf tour operators in 21 countries, who said they expected golf tourism to continue to grow more quickly in Portugal than in any other country in the region, including Spain.
Dubai, which was fourth on the list, continues to grow in popularity, despite charging the highest green fees in the region, the survey found. A weekend round on a course in the Emirates now costs an average of £104 compared to £67 in Portugal, the second most expensive country.
Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia were also tabbed as emerging destinations growing in popularity among golfers.
Noticeably absent from the list are the traditional U.K. golf centers. Great Britain and Ireland account for 40 per cent of the courses in the region, but generated only about 12 per cent of the golf-tourism revenue in the study.
"From our research it seems well established destinations are not losing market share thanks to their deep golfing traditions and the quality of their golf," said Andrea Sartori, Head of KPMG's golf advisory practice for the region. "But the growing competition doesn't leave much room for further growth."
Source: International Herald Tribune