Nicklaus Course at Chung Shan Hot Spring Golf Club

About the club

This eponymously named course may be Jack Nicklaus' premier creation in China; perhaps predictably, it is the polar opposite of the slightly earlier Palmer course here at the Chung Shan Hot Spring Golf Club. Nicklaus' creation is beset with hills and water hazards that make longer shots a challenge, but he keeps the short game interesting with wide bunkers and sculpted, raised greens. The designer himself came to appreciate the difficulty of his own course on opening day in 1993, when he scored an unimpressive 75. China's own leading player, Liang Wen Chong, from neighboring Yung Mo, however, has made the course his own, winning the Asian Tour Order of Merit here in 2007 and setting the course record with an incredible 62. The champ gives back to the game with a youth the development program that brings in local kids whose families lack the means to join the club.