Ken Chu: exclusive interview with China's Golf King

“China will be the world’s second largest golf power by 2020, with 20 million players.”

The Golf King of China. This is how this young gentleman of 42 years is known, who has under his command the largest golf resort in the world and one of the most impressive leisure empires on the planet. His enterprising father had the vision a decade ago that this strange sport played abroad with a club and a little ball would have a great future in his country.

And he got it right. In barely a decade, thanks to the driving force of Mission Hills, golf has grown unstoppably in the Asian country, with some 600 courses and around five million players, according to estimates by Ken Chu, president and CEO of Missio Hills Group. This business emporium was founded in 1992, eight years after it built the first golf course in China since the time of Mao, who banned it because he considered it a sport for millionaires. In this exclusive interview for Andalucía Golf / España Golf , the businessman talks about his tourism empire and the past, present and future of golf in China.

Mission Hills has been the main driving force in China’s sports and leisure industry. We have hosted more than 100 international tournaments. Mission Hills’ properties span more than 40 square kilometers, including 22 championship courses designed by renowned players and architects from five continents, five-star resorts, award-winning spas and volcanic mineral springs, international convention centers, golf academies and the largest tennis academy in Asia. Mission Hills is also the official training venue for China’s tennis, soccer and golf associations. Mission Hills’ successful recipe for success is based on the vision that still holds true today, which is to promote international goodwill through golf. Now that it has passed on to my generation, I have only added a few additional ingredients to enrich this vision.

The evolved view is now “golf and more”. I am a disbeliever in the “golf widows” phenomenon. Therefore, we have built a whole range of amenities beyond golf, such as spas, stores, entertainment and children’s attractions for the wife and kids to enjoy their time at Mission Hills while the husband goes out on the golf course. This “game changer” tactic has attracted the non-golfing population to visit a golf destination as a family while customizing their leisure experiences, and opened doors for the traditionally male-dominated game in Asia. Of course, we also encourage women and juniors to play golf with our annual ladies golf events and junior tournament series. In addition, under-16s enjoy free access to three of our golf courses as part of the group’s commitment to the development of junior golf in the region.

-It is now 25 years since the founding of Mission Hills Group. What has the Group meant in all this time for the development of golf in China with the construction of its resorts with 22 golf courses?

Considering the entire 550-year history of golf, my father with his vision, courage, strategy and tenacity established the monumental and unprecedented Mission Hills resorts in just ten years. He was ahead of his time turning wasteland in Shenzhen and Hainan into the largest golf club in the world. Frankly, in the past no one would have imagined that one day the world’s largest golf facilities would be in that location. He established China as the center of golf and said China was ready to compete with the world’s most famous resorts.

The successful recipe for Mission Hills is based on the vision that still holds true today, which is to promote international goodwill through golf. Now that it has passed to my generation, I have only added a few additional ingredients to enrich this vision.

-What projects is Mission Hills Group currently involved in and what expansion plans do you have in the short and medium term?

The group’s “golf and more” leisure philosophy has catalyzed our tourism-related business expansion as a multi-generational family leisure center. Mission Hills Centerville Shenzhen and Haikou are two HOPSCA (Hotels, Offices, Parks, Shopping, Culture and Arts) mixed-use developments with a focus on “retail-tainment” and “edu-tainment”, providing recreational services, entertainment, shopping, leisure and cultural experiences. The group has also extended its foray into the hospitality industry by partnering with world-renowned hotel brands such as Hard Rock, Renaissance and the Ritz-Carlton. This collaboration has resulted in the opening of the first Ritz-Carlton golf resort in Haikou, as well as the imminent launch of the Hard Rock Hotel in Shenzhen, the first Hard Rock Hotel in China.

Other major projects include Movie Town in Haikou in partnership with China’s largest film production company, Huayi Brothers Media Corporate and award-winning director Feng Xiaogang, and China’s first Wet’n’Wild park in collaboration with Australia’s leading entertainment group and largest theme park operator, Village Roadshow Limited. Wet’n’Wild Haikou features the largest and newest collection of slides and attractions for the whole family.

In March 2016, Mission Hills partnered with six-time Grand Slam champion Boris Becker with the goal of developing the sport in China that will give rise to the future Chinese Grand Slam champion. In collaboration with Mission Hills, the tennis superstar created the first Boris Becker Tennis Academy here in China.

In February 2017, Mission Hills partnered with Futbol Club Barcelona (FCB) to jointly open a major soccer academy in Haikou. The FCB Escola in Haikou will be FCB’s first overseas soccer school run directly by FCB. The FCB Escola in Haikou will be staffed by FCB’s coaching staff and will follow the same training methods as FCB’s youth teams. FCB and Mission Hills will also open an interactive Futbol Club Barcelona zone at Mission Hills Haikou. Scheduled to open in 2017, the 7,000-square-meter FCB facility will offer visitors an immersive and interactive experience to bring people closer to the Barça brand, highlighting its stars and history, as well as the philosophy and values of the legendary club. It will also house a hospitality establishment and store with official FCB merchandise.

My plan and strategy for the future is to continue to play the role of a super-connector, bringing to China more international branded offerings and experiences ranging from dining, entertainment and retail to health and wellness. Mission Hills will continue to open new markets and explore novel projects to offer visitors a more diverse and vibrant experience.

-Approximately how many tee times are recorded per year at the 22 Mission Hills courses and what nationalities predominate among the players?

There are more than 16 million annual visitors to Mission Hills, of which 1.5 million visitors are golfers. Mission Hills developments not only attract visitors from China, but also from many other countries such as Australia, Russia, the United States, the United Kingdom and Korea.

-Could it be said that Mission Hills is the business group that has invested the most in the tourism industry in China so far? What figures would we be talking about?

Founded in 1992, Mission Hills is recognized as the world’s leading golf brand and is synonymous with leisure, wellness, entertainment and luxury residences. A pioneer in China’s hospitality, sports and leisure industry, Mission Hills brought golf to China and has been the main driving force behind China’s sports and leisure industry ever since. With integrated leisure destinations in Shenzhen, Dongguan and Hainan, Mission Hills has hosted more than 100 world-class international tournaments and invested more than US$5 billion in China over the past 25 years.

-There are disparate figures on the number of Chinese people playing golf and the number of courses in the country. What are the approximate numbers and what are the prospects for growth in the coming years?

The demand for golf in China is increasing at an exponential rate. Let’s examine the supply and demand situation for golf in China and, for comparison, the United States and Japan.

In the United States there are 18,000 golf courses and 26 million golfers, in Japan, there are 2,500 golf courses and 13 million golfers, and in China (population 1.5 billion), where the game was introduced just over two decades ago, there are some 600 golf courses and five million golfers.

As you can see, there is huge room for growth. By 2020, the China Golf Association predicts there will be some 20 million Chinese golfers, making China the number two golfing nation in the world.

-In 2004, the Chinese government banned the construction of golf courses on the grounds that there had been widespread illegal use of farmland. The tropical island of Hainan, where Mission Hills Haikou was built, was not affected by the ban as it was a territory that was in the interest of tourism development. What policy are the authorities currently applying in this regard, are new courses being authorized?

-Many fields were closed to extract groundwater illegally, or large amounts of farmland or nature reserve areas were used. I support what the government has done, especially since the ban was intended to conserve farmland and water supplies to serve the population.

Mission Hills Shenzhen and Dongguan were built on a barren plot of wasteland on the desolate outskirts of Shenzhen and Dongguan, with no infrastructure and uninhabitable. Similarly, Mission Hills Haikou was built on a barren landscape of lava rocks where for 10,000 years no one had lived. Mission Hills not only provided jobs for the local community, but also focuses on responsible development in the context of community, culture and environment.

Sustainable development is one of the key guiding principles at Mission Hills. Understanding the importance of protecting the environment and ecology, Mission Hills has implemented several initiatives to reduce carbon, energy and water consumption at all of our resorts to minimize any negative impact due to our operations.

-Due to green fees or membership fees, Chinese golf courses, and even driving ranges, are not affordable for the vast majority of the local population. What could be done to facilitate access to the sport for large sections of the population, and should the authorities encourage the construction of public courses?

-In the past, 99 percent of golf clubs in China were membership-based. As the economy advances and living standards improve, more Chinese will start playing golf. The leisure and tourism industry in China will continue to develop and grow. Golf in China is more driven by domestic demand, but also by international demand. Much of that will depend on the location of resorts.

However, compared to the United States, golf in China is still in its infancy stage. It is the mission and goal of Mission Hills to popularize the sport in China. What we are trying to do is to expose more people to the game and let them see and experience for themselves that golf is not just a sport for the elites, but that it offers physical and mental health benefits and can be played and enjoyed by everyone. That’s why we created the world’s largest golf club at Mission Hills Haikou.

There are two challenges to the continued growth of gaming in China: visibility and accessibility. We have developed a three-pronged initiative to address them. On the one hand, bringing the world’s biggest tournaments to China. On the other, developing new tournaments on Chinese soil that have the potential to one day become China’s own brand of famous tournaments (e.g., the Mission Hills Celebrity Pro-Am); and finally, ‘nurturing’ tomorrow’s champions through a series of youth programs and educational initiatives in order to inspire future generations of players. Examples include the Mission Hills Golf Series Junior Tour, our partnership with the Faldo Series and the ANNIKA Invitational at Mission Hills.

-In contrast to what is happening in China, in most of the countries with a great golfing tradition, the number of golfers is decreasing, mainly due to the lower incorporation of new generations to the sport. What do you think could be done to make golf more attractive to younger people?

Mission Hills is building a vacation destination suitable for multi-generations to have quality time and fun together. Our vision is to be a world leading brand and a pioneer in the global leisure and tourism industry. The group’s mission is to move forward with time and inspire the 3H: Happy, Healthy, Harmonious lifestyle and experiences for all. What I am trying to do is to create a platform for business, leisure, family gatherings and multi-generational projects that can be enjoyed by all.

The recipe for Mission Hills’ success is based on the vision that is still valid and very relevant today, which is to focus on championing golf in line with the 3A’s: Available, Affordable, Acceptable, and establishing Mission Hills in the number one position in the world of golf. As I mentioned earlier, as I moved on to my generation, I added some additional ingredients to enrich this vision several years ago, “golf and more,” building an international leisure vacation brand blending golf with elements such as sports, hospitality, health and wellness, travel, conferences, education, culture, dining, shopping and real estate development.

-In 1995, Mission Hills Shenzhen hosted the World Golf Cup, the first major global tournament to be played in China, which was televised throughout the country. In 2001 Tiger Woods, invited by Mission Hills, visited China for the first time. What did these events mean for the development of golf in your country?

-It has always been the vision of Mission Hills to promote international goodwill through golf. We are committed to developing the game of golf in China. China has the largest population in the world and the development of golf in the country will create the foundation for a strong game globally. By hosting several international tournaments, Mission Hills has provided an opportunity for the Chinese to see golf at the highest level in person.

The spread of international tournaments has proven to be very successful. It is a vehicle to bring the world to China and introduce China to the world. The recent Mission Hills World Celebrity Pro-Am was a star-studded tournament that brings together world-famous celebrities with top international golfers on Blackstone’s award-winning 7,777-yard course. This glittering event was broadcast in more than 200 countries and more than 500 million households watched the tournament. The international tournaments will arouse public interest in the host venue and strengthen Haikou’s international tourism reputation and influence.

Bringing international tournaments to China helps create and incubate new tournaments on Chinese soil. Potentially, China will one day also create its own brand of famous international tournaments. Moreover, international tournaments also support the pipeline of competitive golfers in China. The many programs and initiatives for young golfers held during tournament week open doors for them, allowing them to enter the world stage and compete internationally.

-Chinese professional golf is evolving by leaps and bounds, and some stars are already shining. Chinese golfers have had success on the European Tour, including Li Haotong’s victory at the Volvo Open China in 2016, and in women’s golf Feng Shanshan stood out last year with her bronze medal at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics. How do you see the immediate future for China’s top professionals? Feng has already won a major (the LPGA Championship in 2012), but could the men also be on the verge of winning a first Grand Slam title?

-Golf has returned to the Olympic Games after an absence of more than 100 years. Feng Shanshan won the bronze medal at last year’s Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. Li Haotong together with Wu Ah Shun were runners-up in the World Cup team competition also last year. These successes are undoubtedly good for new players and also encourage young golfers and professional golfers in China to achieve their dreams. It will help a lot, similar to how Yao Ming has transformed basketball in China. We need our golf heroes to help give a bigger push to the popularization of the sport.

-In recent years, the country’s authorities have ordered the closure of more than a hundred golf courses and in 2015 the Communist Party, faced with the alleged corruption practices of some of its representatives for perks in golf clubs, banned the practice of this sport to its 88 million members. Although last year that production was lifted, how did those measures affect golf in China?

-For some, golf is still perceived as a rich man’s game, because the golfing population is much larger than the supply of golf courses, and golf in China is still in its infancy, having started only 30 years ago. Ninety-nine percent of clubs are membership-based, so it may be perceived by some as a luxury game. What Mission Hills has done is to continuously be the pioneer in the development of the sport, such as positioning Mission Hills Haikou as a membership-free public golf club, thus eliminating the barrier of becoming a member to play golf. One no longer needs to invest in an expensive membership in order to play golf.

-Finally, for someone in Europe planning a golf vacation abroad, what are the main reasons why they should choose Mission Hills?

-Mission Hills is an integrated international resort destination that caters to families and multiple generations with leisure and lifestyle experiences ranging from golf on award-winning championship courses to the world’s largest spa, international gourmet gawwwstronomy, hot springs in environments that recreate five continents, theme parks and attractions.

Known as the “Hawaii of the East”, Hainan boasts clean air, clear blue skies, a unique volcanic landscape, pristine beaches and pleasant tropical weather all year round. Haikou, the capital of Hainan, is considered one of the best cities in China in terms of air quality, excellent water quality and ecology. The climate is a paradise for those looking to escape a cold winter. In addition, citizens of 26 countries are exempt from visa requirements when visiting Hainan Province, and the island offers hassle-free visas to travelers from other countries when they arrive there.