By Design - Summer 2019

GROWING THE GAME Agile Golf & Country Club in Zhongshan, which opened in 2000. “The challenges were always many, because in some of our initial attempts, we had no idea if a club golf market would even exist, or if people would understand or appreciate the concept and, if so, would it help promote and sell real estate?” says Hollinger. “Would the club or community lifestyle become popular, and would people pay a premium to move away from their concrete jungles in order to exist there and possibly work? Would they feel safe and could a golf club concept thrive and grow, and what level of quality of management and care would it require? “Well, the answers all proved to be a resounding yes, and we always aim very high on an international scale, with the level of design quality with both golf architecture, community landscaping as well as structural architecture. All we produced was very well received in numerous locations and became strong keys to our success. “It seemed China had been waiting for an impetus to push a better living residential and community lifestyle and well-designed and well-managed golf residential communities provided the stimulus. It was the exact right product at the right time in the right place.” The R&A’s Golf Around the World report states that Asia accounted for 32 percent of all new current golf projects worldwide in 2017. Much of this growth can be attributed in China, where 187 new courses opened between 2010 and 2017, according to the report. “The benefits have been many,” says Hollinger. Golf has grown dramatically within China, in spite of recent government attitudes towards this western sport and use of land and water—that is another story altogether. “The quality of residential development has risen drastically in many cities away from urban sprawl towards a more environmentally-sensitive green theme. These developments have caused neighboring developments to improve and upgrade in order to remain competitive. This has generated significant urban renewal situations in specific areas which have transformed many cities in China and throughout Asia in general.” JMP Golf Design Group completed a number of the first round of residential golf communities within mainland China. “These communities have transformed specific regions of major cities in a way that nothing else could possibly do, as in quality of life and quality of natural setting,” says Hollinger. “These communities are heavily utilized and coveted and have changed the course of urban development in some areas. We were amazed and quite pleased to learn over time that more than two-thirds of residential buyers within these developments were not even golfers—they just loved the environment that the golf course helped create. While we did this kind of project in other countries, the demand for it in mainland China was significant. I went on to help create more than 20 of these types of projects in China alone.” Myotha National Golf Club Myanmar (formerly Burma) is one of the most exotic and least developed countries in Asia. There are over 50 million people but less than 20 golf courses. “Most of these courses are very spartan, rudimentary layouts that were established by British interests long ago and mostly played by government and military staff to this day,” says Brian Curley, 16 | By Design