China Drought Blamed On Golf Courses That Technically Do Not Exist

Carolynne Wheeler on the increasing animosity from state-run media directed at Chinese golf courses using ground water supplies even though a 2004 edict banned the building of new courses, meaning only 10 of the 600 or so technically exist.

“Given the fact that 400 of the more than 600 cities in China are suffering from water shortages, the rapid depleting of underground water to keep the hundreds of golf courses green will likely prove to have severe consequences for many cities in the near future,” read an editorial in the English-language China Daily newspaper, which accused Beijing’s golf courses of using nearly 40 million tons of underground water annually, equal to the amount consumed by 1 million residents a year, despite the city’s water shortages.

Still, this latest round of ranting is likely to pass without much dampening of enthusiasm for the sport.

The go-to guy on all things China and golf, Dan Washburn, is quoted in the story but shares his entire Q&A with the story author on his own site. It makes for an interesting read about the wildly complex golf industry in China.