Chinanews, Beijing, Nov. 13 – Recently, He Lin, a student who now studies for her second year in college, and her twelve classmates, have obtained the qualification certificate as a state-level golf referee, the China Youth Daily reported.

 

Golf has always been viewed as a sport for the rich. In recent years, as Chinese people's living standards improve, golf has frequently appeared in many business occasions. More people play golf and there is a boom for people to attend golf training classes. Many colleges have begun to open golf classes, too.

 

Recently, the third Social Sports International Forum was held in Guangzhou. At the forum, the South China Normal University said it planned to build one more golf course on its campus. Construction of the golf course might be completed next year, by then the school will open a golf class for students.

 

This is the fourth university that plans to open a golf class. Previously, Shenzhen University, Jinan University and Guangzhou University had already opened golf classes.

 

According to related information, more than 50 universities in China have opened golf classes. In addition, there are over 800 educational bodies (including some vocational schools) that offer golf training classes.

 

In China, there are about 200 golf courses, with 80 of them being located in the Pearl River Delta region. It is estimated that in order to develop golf sports about 100,000 people are needed to work in this industry, either as golf coaches or to do the marketing, either to manage lawns or to involve in product development work. However, due to the lack of personnel training resources, the limited land area and high training costs, the three universities of Shenzhen, Jinan and Guangzhou only recruited a small number of students for their golf classes. The small number of students can hardly meet market demand for golf personnel resources, said Yang Xiaosheng, a professor at the School of Sports Science at South China Normal University.