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Photo: By Peter Wong
Twelve golf courses. Twelve golf legends. Two hundred and sixteen holes. The biggest challenge at Mission Hills Golf Club isn’t getting a tee time. It’s choosing which course to play.
The sprawling nation’s facility stretches across Shenzhen and Dongguan and is China’s biggest golf club. It’s also arguably the most internationally recognized club, and its notable course designers (Annika Sorenstam and Vijay Singh to name two) draw a considerable number of golfers from abroad.
But there’s more to Mission Hills Golf Club than size and namesake courses. Here’s why Mission Hills Golf Club is quickly becoming the hottest go-to spot for today’s adventurous golfer.
Where can you find Ernie Els, Annika Sorenstam, David Leadbetter, Greg Norman and David Duval all in one place? The Ryder Cup? Nope. The World Cup? That’s soccer.
These golfing greats come together, at least in name, about 7,000 miles across the Pacific Ocean at the Mission Hills Golf Club and Resort in Shenzhen, China. The largest golf club in the world, Mission Hills boasts 12 courses, several of which are named after their designers.
“(Many of) the courses are not only named after the players but are also designed by them,” says Lorraine Ho, public relations executive for Mission Hills. “(José María) Olazábal, Duval, Annika, (Nick) Faldo and Els have all played on their courses.”
Even though Singh might not personally invite you to a skins game on his namesake course, you can still challenge your buddies to best ball on any of Mission Hills 216 holes, making it the largest golf club in the world, according to the Guinness Book of World Records 2004. The club’s first course—designed by golf icon Jack Nicklaus and dubbed World Cup Course—is the only non namesake course. It opened in 1995, and since then the club has introduced a new course once every couple of years, with Pete Dye Course and Zhang Lianwei Course scheduled to open this summer.
The widespread facility is just 30 minutes away from Hong Kong, which makes it accessible to international travelers and local players alike. It spans 15 square kilometers, spilling into Shenzhen and Dongguan, and is visitor friendly for passing travelers staying at the course hotel.
“Our memberships range from RMB 480,000 to RMB 1,280,000,” says Ho, which comes out to about $60,000 and $165,000, respectively. “These figures are the entrance fee, excluding monthly fees. But apart from members, we also welcome hotel guests to our courses.”
Although fees can get a little steep, Ho says Mission Hills waives monthly dues for Chartered Diamond Members, i.e., those who belong to the club’s elite membership program. The club also makes it easy for members to schedule a round even when they’re out of town.
“Our members can book their rounds online,” Ho says. “Booking two weeks in advance is a good idea because our club is pretty busy, especially during the weekends.”
How busy? Enough to make you want to book a tee time before you book your flight. Ho says as many as 1,500 rounds of golf are played on a given weekday and about 2,500 rounds on a weekend day, and during peak season, nearly 3,000 rounds of golf are played in just one day...For full story, subscribe to our FREE digital edition....
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