Hong Kong Open off life support and looking to a healthy future
Not long ago, the event looked down and out but everything is rosy at Fanling again with a world-class field
One year is hardly a long time, especially for an event that has been going on since 1959. But one year ago the venerable Hong Kong Open, the oldest professional sporting event in Hong Kong, was basically on life support. The event had no title sponsor and had lost its traditional early December date.
Dire as those issues were, both could eventually be resolved. Far more pressing was the class warfare the Hong Kong golf course found itself squarely in the midst of thanks to the populist agenda of a local politician.
In late 2013, when Secretary for Development Paul Chan Mo-po said the Hong Kong Golf Club at Fanling might be taken back for redevelopment, the alarms bells rang loud and clear.
The grass is green, the sun is shining and the birds are singing. Yes, the Hong Kong Open lives once again
Public sentiment initially supported the idea of one of the most exclusive clubs in Hong Kong playing one of the world's most exclusive sports being forced to give something back. Understandably, potential sponsors were not exactly lining up to align themselves with the Hong Kong Open.
But since then the furore has died down slightly and former title sponsor UBS is back once again with a multi-event commitment.
World number seven Justin Rose and number eight Dustin Johnson are here and the Mega Events Fund has kicked in US$2 million for the purse.
The grass is green, the sun is shining and the birds are singing. Yes, the Hong Kong Open lives once again.
Chan's initial suggestion about possibly expropriating the land was a wake-up to the club membership, who knew they had to be more accessible and accountable to the community and steps have been taken towards that.