Golf Asia Show

On Sunday, March 11th, it was time to pack my bags and head out for another adventure in the golf course industry.  The show season is upon us and I have attended the BTME in England and then back for the big show (Golf Industry Show) in Las Vegas.  Now I am off to Beijing, China for the Golf Asia Show.

Overseas travel requires some special preparation and months ahead of time one must check on not only the validity of the passport but also a visa when going into China.  A few years ago I had spent a full day at the Chinese Embassy, in LA, getting a last minute travel visa and was fortunate that I could avoid that this year.

Even though I live in LA there are few direct flights going over to Beijing as San Francisco appears to be the more frequently used hub at least for United.  An early arrival at LAX resulted in checking in and waiting and that would be the rule for the day.  After a short flight up the coast I had a two hour layover in San Francisco.  As usual there were a few familiar faces in the waiting room headed over to China so a good chance to catch up with some turf guys.  Rick Elyea, with Simplot, chatted with me about the market in China and old times as we had started off in the business together in the Chicago golf market.  Along came Gary Brawley, with Tripp Davis Golf Course Architects, and he caught us up on the project he was working on near Tianjin.

As large as China is, the golf community is well connected just like in the USA.  The project that Gary was working on appears to have my old friend, Kevin Adams, on site and Kevin was one of my classmates a few years back at Michigan State University.  Louise Liam is also working on that project and she was a featured speaker at an educational seminar that Shenzhen Longer Fertilizer presented on Tuesday to a large group of Chinese Golf Course Superintendents.

The Seminar also featured a local golf course superintendent from the nearby Shadow Creek Golf Club.  It is a beautiful design near the airport and Darren Moore is an Australian that has worked at several projects in Hong Kong and Asia.

I am not sure why but I seemed to adjust to the time zone change (16 hrs.) pretty readily this trip.  Up at my normal 4:30 AM and try to get to sleep by 9 PM.  For now I don’t even want to think about what time it is back in LA.  I will worry about that on the following Monday.

The flight over was very pleasant and somehow I booked a nice exit seat with plenty of legroom.  Had a nice couple sitting next to me that worked with orphanages in Beijing to help find homes for special needs children.  Quite interesting to hear of their travels and that they had adopted 3 Chinese children themselves to add to their 3 own biological children.  While in flight there was a minor medical emergency that required some professional assistance.  My seatmate was also a Registered Nurse so he took his little medical kit and dealt with the situation.  After that our row of 3 seats was given some special attention with the extra wine and cheese flowing our way from the 1st class cabin.  Being a Good Samaritan is the right thing to do and it does have its rewards as well as sitting next to the people who really are heroes in many ways!

For those of you, who shutter at taking a cross country flight, then think of about 13-14 hours to get across from CA to Beijing.  The flight actually does not spend a lot of time out over the ocean but does travel in an arc and across the Bering Strait in Alaska to get to China.

China weather is overcast and cold.  Cool season grasses are still dormant and about ready to green up.  Daytime temps are about 50 degrees and night time temps go down into the freezing range.

Wednesday is my writing day so I have several articles to finish for various magazines and will visit some famous tourist sites today as well.  Right now I am thinking about watching the sun rise over the Great Wall of China and perhaps some tea at the palace area for lunch. Talking time to smell the roses while on special assignment for GCI.

The last two nights have been celebrations with a group of superintendents and a variety of people from the commercial industry.

If you have never been to one of these special VIP dinners it is quite the function.  Imagine a round table that seats 10 or so people.  The table is covered with a glass “lazy susan” that can be rotated to share the food.  Some of the American group has fondly referred to these as the spinner dinner. 

The service staff starts off by bringing out the beverages.  This can vary from tea to beer, juice or wine.  I am not sure of the white wine that is consumed but it appears to be fairly potent.  Little sipping glasses are supplied and one of the service staff has the duty to make sure your glass is never empty.  My friends tell me it smells like licorice and goes down like moonshine!  Throughout the evening there will be many toasts and libations at which point people respond to a term best translated to “bottoms up” and then proudly proclaim “Cheers!”

Ample supplies of food start coming out and are placed on the lazy susan.  Slowly these are moved around the table.  While some things look familiar there are always a variety of new items to guess at their makeup.  There is very little beef but did see some pork and also quite a bit of chicken.  Once we rule those out then it becomes a little more difficult.  Peking duck is a local staple and very tasty. 

From the sea comes all types of fish usually with the head and fins still attached but nothing I had ever pulled out of a river or ocean.  Squid and jellyfish were nice delicacies and a plethora of fruits and noodles.

In bed by 9 PM on both evenings…..and let me see add 16 hours to that and it would be …….oh heck why ruin the day?

The Great Wall of China is about an hour and a half drive outside of Beijing.  There are various locations where you can view it but our group went to Badaling.  This is my second visit to the Great Wall and it is just as awesome as the first time there.  Hard to imagine that this structure was built thousands of years ago with nothing but manual labor.  It took hundreds of years to construct and is very stable to this day.  I was told that the wall separates the city of Beijing from the outside. 

Our group walked up the wall about a mile and there was a significant slope in the section we viewed.  Be sure to wear rubber soled shoes if you visit this attraction as the stone walkway can be smooth and you will surely need traction.  There are no elevators and the only way up and down is to walk so bring plenty of water to drink.  There are no benches along the way so be in good shape to go on this expedition.

Our van fit a dozen people quite nicely.  I have come to learn that in China it is all about efficiency and not always about comfort.  You get to know your travelling partners quite well. 

Yesterday I made the decision to totally immerse myself in the culture of China and made the move from a nice 4 star hotel to something in the heart of the city.  The 4 star hotels are often a favorite of the western tourists as they are user friendly in several ways.  There are at least 2 TV channels in English and they do have pretty easy internet connections in every room.  Dining was mostly Chinese food but there were some recognizable dishes of friendly food offerings.  Signage was bi-lingual so easy to find your way around and also to check in and check out.  Hotel operators were fluent in English as well.

At my new hotel I found out quickly that my two word vocabulary of Chinese was not going to suffice if I wanted to survive.  All of a sudden I remembered using pantomime in my earlier years and thought that if I was creative that I would be able to get by.  So far so good.  Although you should see people look when I make the sound of a pig or a cow to indicate pork or beef.  At least with chicken I can flap my wings and not many people notice.

A nice meal last night was followed by a walk through a very old part of town with many shops and stores.  It was quite the global marketplace.  I actually found a hot dog stand but had eaten so no need to test the local hot dogs but I shall remember where this location was….just in case I need a hot dog fix.

Back to the room by 9 PM and then a few hours sleep before a morning wakeup at 4 AM.  We were off to Tiananmen Square to watch the official flag raising.  Thousands of people gather to watch this ceremony as the sun rises.  The national anthem is played and the flag is raised by an honor guard.  My guess is that 98% of the people viewing the ceremony were Chinese and just a few of us were westerners. 

In case you wonder if it is hard to get by with just a few hours sleep…..no worries.  My new hotel has plenty of cold water in the shower and that can get your attention before you go out in the 30 degree Fahrenheit temperatures!

Found some friendly food for breakfast with toast and apples and some coffee instead of the normal tea serving that I have had every day.  Longing for a Diet Coke but will have to settle for the real thing with sugar until I get back home.

I am reaching out to some local supts. today to inform them of the latest info regarding GCI and their new edition for China.  This is creating a big buzz and surely will get broad readership.  While it is preferable to communicate in Chinese, the locals have an insatiable appetite for knowledge and will get things translated to learn the latest and best techniques for maintaining their golf courses in top condition.

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New writing after returning from China and final version……BRW

On Friday, March 16th the China Golf Show 2012 began a 3 day run at the Beijing Convention Center.  Many people were waiting in line to enter the show with great anticipation.  The show is a two part show in that a portion of the trade show is typical of the GIS in Vegas and the rest of the show is for consumers and golfers.  This needs to be taken into account when looking at the total number of attendees.

The show opened at 9 AM and the opening ceremonies were at 9:30.  GCSAA joined with the GCBAA and the various Chinese organizations, that were sponsors of the event, with a lot of speeches regarding the state of golf in China.  Everyone was upbeat with their comments and it looks as though golf, which has been in a slow growth pattern, is ready to start moving forward again.

Rhett Evens, CEO of GCSAA, and Sandy Queen, President of GCSAA, represented the GCSAA and were pleased with the development of seminars at the event and also announced the publishing of Golf Course Management Magazine for China online.

Speaking of seminars…..there were 3 held over the several days of the show and they had a variety of speakers.  They were well attended with about 35-60 in each class.  The first seminar was taught by Ron Carlyle.  Ron is a former US Supt. and has been in Asia for quite a few years building courses, managing them and consulting on various projects.  His presentation was enlightening and covered the topic of Turfgrass Problems and Solutions.  Communication is a universal challenge for turfgrass managers and Ron spoke on proper communication in day to day operations.  He also addressed common turfgrass problems and potential solutions.

A second seminar was a panel discussion on golf course construction and maintenance.  A nice panel included moderator Kurt Huseman, President of the GCBAA and panelists:
•Ken Siems, CGCS Director of Agronomy and Estate Management at Jinhai Lake Golf Club (Beijing)
•John Murtaugh, Global Sales Manager for Flowtronex
•O’Brien McGarey, President and CEO of Dye Designs Group
•Lee Schmidt, Partner in Schmidt Curley  Golf Design
Kurt had a variety of questions that he asked the panel and they were very open in sharing their ideas and experiences.  At the end of the session there were more questions from the audience.  The audience included not only golf course superintendents but also General Managers and owners of various properties in Asia.

The final seminar was taught by Dr. Kevin Frank, PhD who is an associate professor at Michigan State University.  Dr. Frank has been working with a joint program between MSU and Beijing Forestry University to share information on turfgrass research and science between China and the USA.  His presentation covered soil testing and water quality evaluation. 

All of the seminars were taught in English but had simultaneous translation into Chinese.  About 40% of the audience utilized this service.  The seminars were sponsored and supported by the GCBAA and GCSAA and Sandy Queen offered some nice opening remarks.

Back to the trade show after the first seminar was completed.  Traffic was good at the booths in the area of Golf Course Maintenance and Construction.  The typical booths were in evidence with the major players being Toro, Jacobsen, John Deere, Rain Bird, EZ-Go, Club Car, etc.  A variety of booths contained architects and construction companies.  However, there seemed to be a few less architects represented this year as compared to a year ago.  That may have something to do with the slow down in the golf construction.

When I mention slow down I am referring to a hold on golf course development that was handed down by the Chinese government.  I am not aware of the formal charge but most have said that the government has placed a moratorium on golf course building for the moment.  Golf courses are not officially recognized in some areas and are just known as parks.  With the interest in the sport and development across the country I do believe that the parks will soon be considered legitimate enterprises.  Sources indicate that China will have a change in government officials in a year and half and things should start rolling soon after that.

There are a few projects underway but a lot less than a year ago.  I was told that certain areas of the country are considered zones for tourism and that golf development will continue in those areas such as Hainan in the south.

I spent quite a bit of the day in the booth of Shenzhen Longer Fertilizer Company.  I had taught a few seminars for them earlier in the week and was representing Grigg Bros. foliar product line during the show.  This company carries their own line of granular fertilizers as well as some common name brand products from Aqua-Aid, Profile and Milliken.  The booth was very busy for the first 2.5 days of the trade show and then activity slowed down on the final afternoon.  Lots of superintendents stopped by to chat about products and asked a variety of questions about issues on their golf courses.  It was a lot of fun to see some familiar faces from the USA and meet a lot of new acquaintances.

Grigg Bros. is very encouraged with the market in China.  We have been doing a steadily increasing business there and anticipate more growth in 2012.  Some golf courses are using very basic fertilizer programs while others are using the state of the art products on their courses to provide playing conditions similar to the better courses in the USA.

After the first day of the trade show I looked up Abe Summers who is the Event Manager for Reed Guange Exhibitions.  He  indicated that the attendance was up by 30% from the previous year for the trade show.  The entire set of halls were filled with vendors and there was overflow into the entryway.  All in all I would say that the show was a great success.   The traffic in the maintenance and construction side was much better than last year.  The consumer side was packed for all 3 days.  If this is an indicator of the future of Golf in China then it should be very prosperous when things start moving forward again in the near future.

I would be remiss if I did not share some more of the nuances of Beijing and the country of China.  Hard to believe that many of the major cities were quite a bit smaller just 30+ years ago.  It was at that time that the government decided to allow a capitalistic view of doing business.  A lot of businesses developed and free trade became commonplace.  Cities like Beijing have their ancient parts of town with many areas dating back hundreds and thousands of years.  But outside of those temples and walls of the past are a new and vibrant city that is 10 times greater in population than just a few decades ago.

The city is bustling with many super highways that mirror those of LA.  All of those were built in the last 30 years.  In case you wondered why the price of steel and concrete were going up so quickly in the USA it was because much of these materials were being shipped to China for the rapid construction of infrastructure.

Very few foreigners drive in China and they either have drivers with private cars or they take taxis.  One learns quickly that taxi drivers do not speak much English so best to have the name of your destination written on a note you can hand them.  Most all hotels have business cards for this purpose to get you back home and the better hotels have doormen that can write the Chinese characters for something like convention center to get you to your proper destination.  Taxis are inexpensive and a 40 minute ride from the airport costs only $10 as compared to a 5 minute ride in an LA taxi for $20!

Several of the unwritten rules of driving in China include the most often used vehicle accessory is the horn and the least often used is the turn signal.  People change lanes at will and it can be a pretty scary ride for those not familiar with how traffic sort of flows like liquid mercury.  Taxis also are not found at formal taxi stands with proper ques for waiting lines.  One must hail them on the street and I found out there is an art to that.  You wait for a taxi that appears to be empty and then wave your hand to get their attention.  Be sure you feel comfortable that they can get you to your destination before entering the taxi.

In the event that you are offered a ride from an individual other than a taxi driver you take your chances.  These are known as jitney drivers and they charge what they want so be sure you agree on the price before taking the trip.  I took two such jitney rides after trying to hail a taxi for 40 minutes on separate days.  I went against my normal thought process in doing this but got where I wanted to go quickly and at the same or lesser cost than a taxi.  Memo to self……do not do this at home!

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The people of China were warm and fun loving.  I had a great time working with them and sharing stories about the golf industry.  They have a great appetite for information regarding turfgrass science and golf course operations.

While I wish I had a greater knowledge of the language……my use of pantomime (as in the game charades) was useful in getting my points across. 

I interviewed a few people at the China Golf Show and here are a few of their comments.

From Bill Hildenbrand,  Asia Pacific Director for Tripp Davis and Associates Golf Architecture

" I believe the self imposed moratorium on golf course development put in place by the Chinese Government will be a watershed moment for golf course architects, golf course owners and golf course developers.  By leveling the playing field for all parties and establishing a concrete set of guidelines in which to operate from,  China is ensuring the steady, well-planned growth of the game of golf for decades to come. "
From Jim Prusa, Chief Agronomist for Sky2 Golf

“I am thrilled to see the existence and growth of the China Golf Show and hope that it continues to expand.  The golf industry in China needs this show and the fall show in Southern China as well.  Such a gathering of the market place networks new people together – even from other Asian nations.”

Should I get any other quotes I will add them but requested a few from attendees and have not heard back from many…..

Summary statement
The Golf Asia 2012 Show is healthy.  Attendance was strong and up from the previous year.  While there is a moratorium on most golf course development in China, there is strong interest from the people of China.  When the moratorium is lifted there will be tighter rules and restrictions for golf course development and that is a good thing.

For those exhibitors at the show I found a sense of vendors being pleased with both the quantity and quality of traffic at their booths.  I do believe the future for golf in China and all of Asia is promising.

I look forward to my next visit and hope to visit clients and friends about 4 times per year.  It is exciting to watch the growth and development of our wonderful sport in a country that only saw its first golf course about 30 years ago.

Should you ever visit China be sure to visit the golf courses. You won’t be disappointed and several of them are even considered some of the top 100 in the world.  While the golf is of interest to us in the industry, you must be sure to visit the many historic sites and get to know the wonderful people of this country!
 
" I remember in 1988 being invited to China to meet Aylwin Tai,  ( affectionately called the Godfather of golf in China )   watching the first ever group of boys and girls selected to play golf hit practice balls into

 a small pond that served as the driving range.   The balls they used were at least 10 years old and floated.  When the kids ran out of balls they got into a boat and plucked the balls out of the water and started over again.   All the boys and girls were taken from the rice fields adjoining the course and they did not want to go back so their motivation for practicing was at a very high level.

From those humble beginnings,  China now has two golf courses that in my mind would easily be in the Top 100 in the USA, plus they have some of the most spectacular clubhouses in the world.  It is very encouraging to see the wonderful progress that has been made in the first 25 years of golf in China "