Line drive taken at golf course ban

BEIJING - Experts called for a lifting of the ban on golf course construction in China, as nearly 600 courses are running without government approval.

Su Derong, head of the golf course committee under the China Golf Association, said there are about 600 18-hole courses on the mainland, but less than a dozen had been approved and given business licenses before the central government introduced a ban on golf course construction in 2004.

Su said the concern for farmland protection and water conservation has been overdone in this case, and the downright prohibition should be replaced with standard procedures and clear criteria to evaluate applications and issue certificates.