Golfing in Korea

Korea's not really a great place for golf. Because mountains cover 80 percent of the country, what little flat space is available is either farmland or high rise apartments.

That's not to say there aren't any golf facilities, but if this driving range near my apartment is any indication, they're far from luxurious. According to one of my morning students, a typical round costs between $180 and $220. So if you want to play golf, you're better off going overseas.

Because other countries in East Asia are far cheaper and so easy to get to (a week-long trip to Thailand is only about $400), that happens a lot.

This has created a big problem for the country: a service deficit. In the U.S. we hear a lot about the trade deficit with China, but Korea is worried because it "imports" a lot of travel services. Between students studying abroad and people, a lot of money flows out of the country.

In fact, the figure for overseas golf trips alone is nearly $1.2 billion, roughtly equal to the amount the U.S. will spend on the upcoming election.

To solve the problem, Korea wants to make it more lucrative to open new courses, among other things. [Source] While it sounds good, I don't think it will help very much.

One of my students pointed out that a lot of people travel overseas to play golf during the winter, when courses are completely closed. Creating new courses that are also open only during the summer won't help that.

Instead, it will drive down course prices a bit, making golf a bit more accessible to the everyday Joe. Not a bad idea, but I doubt that's what lawmakers are intending.