China will seek to emulate the success of South Korean women's golfers on the international stage after the China Golf Association (CGA) and Orient Golf Group established the brand-new China LPGA Tour.

The tour's debut season this year will feature at least seven stages in Beijing, Yantai, Shanghai, Ningbo, Wenzhou, Urumqi and Kashi, with a year-ending finale in Xiamen in December.

"It's a giant step forward for women's golf in China," said Zhang Xiaoning, CGA secretary-general.

"The establishment of the China LPGA tour means we now have our own professional tour like the US LPGA, Korea LPGA and Japan LPGA and will provide more competition chances for Chinese female golfers."

To keep apace with international golf, the China LPGA will also set up new rankings and order of merit systems.

"An advanced rankings system is the best way to inspire players to play their best golf," Zhang added.

Korean women have long been a dominating force thanks to their prestigious KLPG tour, where budding stars cultivate their skills before going abroad and challenging the best players in the top-flight tour US LPGA.

"Equivalent to the Korea and Japan LPGAs, the China format will promote the sport at the grassroots and nurture stars for the world's top tour the US LPGA," said Zhang.

TK Pen, owner of Orient Golf, a 10-strong chain of clubs around the Chinese mainland and Chinese Taipei, said the 2009 season will incorporate the four existing Orient Masters Tour events and culminate in the fourth edition of the season-ending China Ladies Open. The five events are seen as a cradle for the new China LPGA tour.

CGA and Orient Golf are optimistic more events will be included on the China LPGA tour this year.

"We will try to introduce some other women's golf tournaments into the tour this year. Then we will increase the number of tour events year by year."

Adding to their confidence to make the China LPGA a great success, golf is being considered for inclusion in the 2016 Olympic Games.

Zhang said the CGA is also working closely with other organizations to court the International Olympic Committee (IOC). "We've been making efforts with other organizations to make it into a reality," Zhang said. "It will have a global impact on the sport's development once it's introduced to the Olympics again."

Golf world No 1 Tiger Woods has written to the United State's IOC member backing the sport's inclusion.

Ireland's Padraig Harrington, Fiji's Vijay Singh, Europe 2010 Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie and Spain's Sergio Garcia have also written to their respective IOC representatives.

Zhang said golf would gain profoundly if it were to become an Olympic sport, especially in China where it would attract much more government funding.

"The future is totally different if the sport gains the support of the whole nation," he said.

The last time Olympic golf medals were up for grabs was in 1904 at the St Louis Games. The sport is vying with baseball, karate, roller sports, rugby sevens, softball and squash. The IOC's final vote for two sports is scheduled for October.

(China Daily April 29, 2009)