Genzon Golf Club

The verdict

Genzon Golf Club sits in the Longgang district on the eastern side of Shenzhen, where the city gives way to forested hills and a large internal lake that the architect Neil Haworth, of Nelson and Haworth, made the centerpiece of the whole property. The club opened its two championship courses in 2008, both par 72, the A course at about 7,145 yards and the B course at about 7,218 yards, set around the water and the rolling, wooded terrain above it.

Our verdict: this is a serious tournament venue, not a holiday resort, and the pedigree is the point. Genzon staged the DP World Tour Shenzhen International from 2015 to 2017, and since being renamed Hidden Grace Golf Club it has hosted the Volvo China Open, China's flagship national open. The conditioning, the scale of the lake, and the demand of the closing holes are tour standard. The one catch is access, because this is a private club, and that shapes any plan to play here.

The holes worth the trip

The lake is the engine of both courses. Haworth routed the holes so that water is constantly in view from the clubhouse and repeatedly in play on the round, with several approaches and tee shots flirting with the shoreline. The terrain rolls and tumbles through forest above the water, so the courses combine the strategic demand of carrying or skirting the lake with the shot shaping that sloping, tree lined fairways require.

Tournament setup tells you how much the layout has to offer. When the Shenzhen International was played here from 2015 to 2017, the course produced strong champions in Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Soomin Lee and Bernd Wiesberger, and the venue has since been trusted with the Volvo China Open. A par 72 that stretches past 7,200 yards from the back, with water on the closing stretch, gives a tour field a real test and a member a memorable walk.

What stays with you is the sense of scale and the quality of the conditioning. This is a course built to host the best players in Asia and Europe, and even from forward tees the framing around the lake and the standard of presentation make it feel like an event rather than a casual round.

Where to stay nearby

Shenzhen has a deep bench of international hotels across the city, from Futian and Luohu in the center to the quieter east near Longgang, so most visitors base in the city and travel out to the club for the day when an invitation comes together. The proximity to Hong Kong also makes a combined trip straightforward by high speed rail or the border crossings.

For a fuller southern China golf trip, Genzon pairs naturally with the sprawling golf city of Mission Hills on the Shenzhen and Dongguan border, while the warm island resorts of Hainan, such as Yalong Bay in Sanya, make a good second leg in winter.

Looking for a base? See our recommended hotels and resorts near Genzon.