The Beijing government recently slapped a luxury tax on golf clubs and balls as part of the efforts to close the nation's yawning wealth gap, but golfers are critical of the move as they say it fails to recognise the game is a healthy sport with widespread appeal.
From April 1 a 10 per cent consumption tax was placed on golf balls and clubs. The legal adjustment also targets yachts and high-end watches.
'The new tax is unfortunate as far as the growth of golf is concerned,' said Li Hao, owner of the Beijing Honghua Intenational Golf Club. 'In the mind of the government, golf is a luxury. They do not consider it to be a sport, more a form of entertainment. It is bad news for golf in China and for investors in the sport.'
The growth of golf on the mainland has come in for some official criticism in recent years, largely over its use of scarce land resources and large quantities of water. To counter the criticism of excessive water use, many courses now use treated waste water to keep their fairways green. The Honghua course draws its water from the same treatment plant that will be used to water the Olympic Green, Li said, adding that they had built their own water treatment plant for their sister course, the Beijing CBD International Golf Club.
'The government appreciates this and supports our initiative to conserve scarce resources,' he said.
Aside from the new tax on clubs and balls, green fees were already taxed at more than 20 per cent, Li said. He said the government also used to tax sports like tennis and snooker as luxury recreations, but those levies have since been dropped. 'I think the same will happen with golf. Someday they will accept it is a sport and a very healthy way to spend a few hours, so they will drop the taxes.'
