Andy Kwok with Janet Lin after, far left, presenting her with an honorary membership. SING TAO
Eunice Lam
It is best to keep a 32-hectare site in Fanling Golf Course as part of its greens and fairways so as to promote sports tourism in the city, Hong Kong Golf Club captain Andy Kwok Wing-leung said yesterday.
The call followed the club’s legal victory last week against a SAR administration plan to build public housing on part of the course.
”We have always stressed that it is best to use the Fanling Golf Course to attract mega events to Hong Kong,” he said.
Citing recent championships held in the SAR – including the Link Hong Kong Open last month and LIV Golf Hong Kong tournament in March – he said these events not only brings in the sport’s lovers but also sees participation by non-golfers or youngsters.
Kwok said another major event, the National Games, is also due in September.
”This does not only help make the sport popular but also helps attract tourists to Hong Kong. They come to watch the tournaments, and then carry on to explore different attractions that Hong Kong offers,” he said.
The Fanling Golf Course is made up of three courses, including the “old course” resumed by the government earlier.
The government took back a 32-hectare site from the course last year as part of a plan to turn 9.5 hectares into 12,000 public housing units.
The club earlier lodged a judicial review focused on the authority’s approval of environmental impact assessment report in May 2023 that cleared the way to building public housing.
Last Monday, the high court ordered the administration to consult the public again on the environmental impact assessment report.
Kwok welcomed the court ruling, saying the club would use the three golf courses in Fan Ling as a “business card” to attract tourists from around the world to visit in support of the government’s call to “shape tourism with sports activities” and the concept that “tourism is everywhere in Hong Kong.”
In presenting an honorary membership to Janet Lin Xiyu, who won the bronze medal at this year’s Paris Olympics women’s golf, yesterday Kwok said he hoped that the move would further help to promote the sport among young people in the city and the mainland.
Asked about her future plans, Lin expressed the hope to have her own tournament to offer a bigger stage to young golfers and let them “shine overseas.”
She added: “There’s a lot more we can do to help the kids, who are already playing, to shine, go out and see the bigger stage in the world.
”For those children who haven’t got into golf yet, I think we can come up with different plans to let them know the sport.”
