Beijing orders 111 golf courses closed to protect land and water
China's ban on golf is still very much in force following an official announcement that 111 courses are to be closed, despite reports last spring that the government was becoming more relaxed about what Mao Zedong called "a sport for millionaires". The closures are intended to "protect land and water resources". Building work at 47 clubs will be halted and 18 courses were ordered to return their land. Despite new courses being banned since 2004, their number has tripled in that time, with more than 300 international-standard competitions held annually.
Since the days of Mao Zedong -- who once decreed that the game is "a sport for millionaires" -- China has done its best to squash the growth of golf, recently banning all communist party members from joining clubs. However, it seemed like the country was making an about-face last spring when the government-run newspaper Discipline Inspection and Supervision News said the "golf ban" had been lifted.