DAY 4
This was the final day of the tradeshow. Since the tradeshow was both a consumer tradeshow and an industry tradeshow it was a very busy day. In my estimate there was likely 2/3 of the show that had booths with a variety of golf supplies for the golf enthusiast. These items included shoes, clothing, golf clubs and accessories. Most of the major golf magazines were in attendance and a few booths with tourism and golf packages were in the mix as well. A large sector of booths had various types of golf simulators. While I don’t profess to know all there is about swing analyzers and such I can assure you that anybody can play the top courses in the world on these simulators. They were very popular on the consumer side of the show.
All the major brands in golf were there and I spent a little time at two booths on the consumer side. The first one was Williams Golf and how could I help myself with a company that had my same family name. They produced golf clubs, bags and accessories. Then I ventured over to the Titleist booth and it was one of the biggest at the show. Upon entering I was greeted by about 6 people wearing white blazers. Confused I thought I had entered a past president gathering of former GCSAA leaders! So now we know where GCSAA Past Presidents go after retirement!
It was inevitable that some of the consumer people would want to see the professional side of the trade show. This made the show seem a bit busier than it really was on Sunday morning. I estimated that the area covered by the professional side of the golf industry was 100 sq. meters including aisles. Several people that had attended the last several shows commented on the growth and quality of the show compared to several years ago.
A major component of the professional side of the trade show was in the area of golf development. I counted 32 booths with either golf course architects or builders. Golf is booming in China and a number of architects have chosen to be a part of that. I was very impressed that most of the booths had the principal architects on hand. Those architects that I spoke with mentioned that they had anywhere from 6-10 projects underway in China or neighboring countries. While there are no verifiable statistics that I could find I am convinced that there may be closer to 100 golf course projects underway in China.
The country and the people of China have truly embraced the sport. With the vast size of China and the population base it looks as though there may be several decades of growth ahead. Most of my conversations with the local people required translation in and around town. However, at the tradeshow I was pleasantly surprised to find so many vendors that had several people in their companies that spoke fluent English.
Several times I ventured by the booths of Robert Trent Jones II, Rick Jacobsen, Mike Hurdzan, Fream-Dale & Ramsey, and Jacobsen Golf Course Design. All of the architects were very positive and upbeat about the growth of golf in China. Doug Myslinski of Jacobsen Golf Course Design commented on the volume of traffic and the quality as well. Dave Dale from Golfplan (Fream, Dale & Ramsey) was very enthusiastic about the number of potential projects that sought him out during the show. He commented that the show had grown quite nicely over the last 3 years and it was very important for his company to meet current and future clients there. Bruce Charlton, with Robert Trent Jones II was always busy talking to people over the 3 days. Like many of the other architects he quite a few projects going and could see the many opportunities that lie ahead in new golf design as well as some remodeling in China.
While China golf is growing quickly there certainly are other countries that are strong in golf in Asia. I ran into Jim Prusa, former GCSAA Associate Executive Director, and he filled me in on the activity in Korea where Jim manages and consults at a few courses. Jim is also consulting and runs a lab in Korea as well. I ran into several superintendents that were working in Singapore, Cambodia, India, Viet Nam and Japan. Each of them had interesting stories to tell about the cultures they work in explaining similarities and differences to the “norms” of North America. I hope to put GCI in touch with some of these fine gentlemen to share their stories.
One thing that came across loud and clear is that business is done differently in Asia than at home. Labor appears to be plentiful and can be had at a reasonable cost. That was the same concept when I visited Singapore and Malaysia in the early 1990’s. There is a lot more mechanization today than a couple of decades ago but the equipment coming from the USA has at least a 35% tariff on it and at times the equipment cost can be double what it is in the USA. I was impressed by the distribution network from the major equipment suppliers and a lot has changed in the last 2 decades.
Most of my work in China is finished but I hope to follow up with a few people and visit a golf course before I return home. Darren Moore, Director of Maintenance at Shadow Creek, has kindly invited me to visit his course in Beijing. That will surely be a highlight of my trip. Expect one more message from this foreign correspondent before I board the plane back to California.
Bruce Williams, CGCS, is a GCI contributing editor.