Japan's Mizuno becomes 1st sponsor for China's new golf tour

Asian Economic News, August 22, 2005

BEIJING, Aug. 17 Kyodo

Japan's Mizuno Corp. has become the first official sponsor for the 2005 season of a new Chinese golf tournament that kicked off Wednesday in Beijing, the tour's organizers and a Mizuno official said.

Under the deal, the major sporting goods maker will supply uniforms for organizing staff in the first leg of the China Tour, and will also provide the official ball in tournaments that will take place later in the year, they said.

The organizers did not release the terms of the deal, citing commercial confidentiality.

The $100,000 tournament, which began Wednesday at a Beijing golf club, will wrap up Friday. Three more tours are scheduled this year, including one in the southern city of Kunming in September.

''Our aim is to strengthen our ties with the China Golf Association and to boost our brand image in China as the country's golf-playing population increases,'' said Tetsuro Kimura, spokesman at Shanghai Mizuno Corp.

Golf is gaining popularity in the world's most populous nation, with about 500,000 people playing the sport. Professional players in the country number about 70.