DECEMBER 2014 32 ISSUE 171 SPECIAL FEATURES 24 18 Glitz, Glamour And Game! When golf meets entertainment, you would expect Mission Hills Group to do it biggest and best – and this is exactly what the pioneering leisure and life- style conglomerate delivered with the Mission Hills World Celebrity Pro-Am. 66 Black Hat Tips-Tony Meechai: Black Hat Golf Tips Lawyers have to pass the “bar” examination. Now, here’s the ‘bar’ exams I 24 APGS 2014 Registers High Marks! want you to pass and understand! 10 The 2014 Asia Pacific Golf Summit ended in Singapore on a high note with members of the golf industry giving the event the thumbs up for setting The Great White Shark aka Greg Norman was scathing with the tone and providing a positive outlook for the future of golf in Asia. his response when asked for his opinion on the need to 32 The “Big Easy” Aces It In Malaysia renovate golf courses that have fallen into neglect. “I have There’s no denying the fact that Ernie Els aka the “Big Easy” is ecstatic over one word for this – sustainable. Shame on a lot of developers the golf course he designed on the Malaysian island of Langkawi. It Is COVER STORY and golf course designers in the 80’s and 90’s who built golf earning the golfer/designer top honours on a global scale. courses with unlimited budgets,” was his sharp reply. 36 Rose And Poulter – The Perfect Match Justin Rose and Ian Poulter want golfers to enjoy themselves when play- EQUIPMENT FOCUS ing on their new course at Mission Hills Dongguan in China – and the two Ryder Cup stars did just that when they christened the layout with a 50 Singapore – A Force In Golf? adidas and with his move, the bold initiative to towering flight path and carry those hazards that one-off Match Play challenge. grow the game of golf, tagged as “Hack Golf” used to get in your head. Its two settings deliver Singapore has officially entered the world of golf 40 Will 2015 Be Westwood’s Year To Bag A Major? seems to have lost its direction. It also shut the perfect distance and trajectory for your swing. with a home-grown product that is going to down the headquarters of its subsidiary Adams It’s like having two club heads on one shaft! Asian Golf met up with Westwood after he shot a spectacular hole in revolutionise the way people play golf. It is the Golf in Texas and moved all the staff to Carlsbad. one at the PGA Tour’s CIMB Classic which was played in Malaysia in late 66 perfect product with which to grab the game by 64 Wilson Rolls Out October. In the exclusive interview which covered a wide range of top- the scruff of its neck and give it a mighty boost. All told, 2014 has been a year that TaylorMade would do well to forget. The Tour Proven V4 Irons ics, one area that was of special interest to both Westwood and Asian 68 Pro Tour Golf College: How to Become a World Class Golfer: Golf was his commitment to teaching the game of golf to juniors. 54 Welcome Back TaylorMade! There is no better validation for a set of new golf Building Your Golf Success Vision Statement 58 Flip It And Rip It! 2014 will not be remembered as being a good clubs than being battle-tested in a major tourna- 44 The Year In Review: What Kind Of A Year Was 2014? Imagine that you decided to become a great golfer—a world class golfer. You COBRA Golf has introduced its first-ever front-to- ment. Wilson Golf did just that by putting its year for TaylorMade adidas Golf – the undisput- For most of us in the golf industry, we’d rather forget 2014. It has been a love playing golf so much that you want to make it your career choice, and back FLIPZONE adjustable weight technology. brand new FG Tour V4 irons out on tour and the ed kingpin of the golf equipment world. Sales rough year and we’ll unravel it for you, warts and all. you desperately want to be successful playing it. have been slumped. Its charismatic boss Mark Flip the weight forward for a penetrating ball irons have since recorded three wins. King got moved out to the parent company flight that generates more roll. Or, flip it back for a 48 Special Report From The USRGA: Exciting New Golf Recreational Golf Equipment on the Rise Technology in general has made life so much better than just 50 68 years ago. Travel is safer, terrible diseases have been eliminated, comfort abounds… the list of advances is almost endless. The evolution of golf equipment technology is no exception, having made golf easier to learn and more fun to play. The advancement in golf equipment is one of the strongest traditions of the game. REGULARS 6 Asian Golf Editorial Team 7 Shared Thoughts From Publisher 72 Next Issue ISSUE 171 DECEMBER 2014 SHARED THOUGHTS From The Publisher MIKE SEBASTIAN ANGELA RAYMOND Chief Executive Officer/Managing Editor President or some years now, we have been hearing assist clubs and provide opportunities for them to [ [email protected] ] [ [email protected] ] about and reading reports about the chal- improve their business and adapt in a very com- lenges faced by the golf industry in most petitive sporting market.” of the developed world. Perhaps the most Meanwhile, the blood-bath continues on the re- disheartening trend concerns the United tail floor in the United States. Dick’s Sporting Goods, FStates of America where statistically speaking, one golf the largest retail outlet for golf equipment reports LAWRENCE YOUNG ALICE HO course is said to shut down for good every 48 hours. that “golf still appears to be a work in progress.” And now, this scourge has moved closer to “Everybody’s talked about that the (golf) busi- Editor (New Equipment) Marketing Executive [ [email protected] ] [ [email protected] ] home. Down under in Australia, worrying new ness needs to shrink in order to be more profitable research on the state of the golf industry has found and I think that’s what’s going to happen,” said that the majority of golf clubs in that country are Ed Stack, chairman and CEO of Dick’s. “I think the now in financial trouble. manufacturers are much more disciplined, the retailers are much more disciplined and I think the RAQUEL M. ARCEGA SAIFUL SUFIAN Therefore it is vital that golf business is going to be an okay business. I don’t think it’s going to be a great business but it’s Art Director & Ezine Development Art Director we lead initiatives to going to be an okay business and we’ll hit bottom [ [email protected] ] [ [email protected] ] here in the next quarter probably and we think assist clubs and provide that we’ll see increased profitability going into next year. We think that it’s going to be a more profit- opportunities for them to able year next year.” MYRA PARAS WAYNE LWEE improve their business and Stack told Wall Street analysts, “Our (golf) inven- tory is in great shape. I think the inventory at the Accounts Executive Video Editor/Streaming services vendors (manufacturers) is in better shape than it [ [email protected] ] [ [email protected] ] adapt in a very competitive sporting market.” has been. New work by Golf Australia details that Australia MEDIA PARTNERS may be the worst hit country in the world in terms of Photographers GETTY IMAGES the golf industry, and that more than one in two golf clubs are suffering some form of financial stress. Contributing Professionals IMG ACADEMY, TONY MEECHAI, CHRIS SMEAL, DAVID MILNE & LAWRIE Golf Australia director of golf development, Cam- MONTAGUE (PRO TOUR GOLF COLLEGE), NICK RANDALL, STEVEN GIULIANO eron Wade, said: “Our research tells us that at least http://back9network.com Correspondents ROBIN BARWICK (EUROPE), RISHI NARAIN (INDIA) 50 per cent of the 1,600 golf clubs in Australia are currently under some level of financial distress. Contributing Editors TERRY ANTON, ALAN CAMPBELL, KATHERINE ROBERTS, AAERISHNA SHAHSTHY “Clubs are now facing a number of challenges where consumers are time-poor and have an increas- Printer SPECTRUM ZONE INTERNATIONAL PTE LTD ing number of other recreational pursuit options. [ Blk 1022 Tai Seng Avenue, #02-3528 Tai Seng Industrial Estate Singapore 534415 ] “Therefore it is vital that we lead initiatives to INTERNATIONAL ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES Address ASIA PACIFIC GOLF GROUP (2014) PTE LTD Contact: Mike Sebastian Suite 06-06 Hong Aik Building, 22 Kallang Avenue, Singapore 339413 Email: [email protected] Tel: +65 6323 2800 Fax: +65 6323 2838 Company Registration No: 201405689G or Mobile No: +65 9152 8162 To SubscribeMVYWYPU[VYKPNP[HSPZZ\LZVM(ZPHU.VSMLTHPSHSPJL'HZPHWHJPÄJNVSMNYV\WJVT or register for a free preview at ^^^HZPHWHJPÄJNVSMNYV\WJVT (3390./;:9,:,9=,+5VWHY[VM(ZPHU.VSMTH`ILYLWYVK\JLKPUHU`V[OLYW\ISPJH[PVUZWYPU[LKVYW\ISPZOLK^P[OV\[[OL^YP[[LUWLYTPZZPVUVM[OLW\ISPZOLY 6WPUPVUZPU(ZPHU.VSMHYL[OL^YP[LYZ»HUKHYLUV[ULJLZZHYPS`LUKVYZLKI`(ZPHU.VSM(ZPHU.VSMHJJLW[ZUVYLZWVUZPIPSP[`MVY\UZVSPJP[LKTHU\ZJYPW[Z[YHUZWHYLUJPLZ VYV[OLYTH[LYPHSZ4HU\ZJYPW[ZWOV[VNYHWOZHUKHY[^VYR^PSSUV[ILYL[\YULK\USLZZHJJVTWHUPLKI`HWWYVWYPH[LWVZ[HNL THIS MAGAZINE HAS BEEN PRINTED ON PAPER WHICH IS DERIVED FROM 100 PER CENT SUSTAINABLE PLANTATION FIBRE AND 06 07 ASIAN GOLF MANUFACTURED IN A FACILITY THAT HAS BEEN CERTIFIED TO ISO-14001 ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM STANDARDS. 8 9 ASIANASIAN GOLFGOLF SPORTY Fueled by patented Turbulator Technology and a new face material, the G30® adjustable driver is PING’s longest, most forgiving driver ever.