Key ambition is to grow grassroots golf in China - Mission Hills chief

The growth of the 2026 Hainan Classic presented by MAEXTRO has been tipped to bring long-term benefits for grassroots golf in China.

The tournament made its second appearance as a co-sanctioned DP World Tour event to kick off this year’s Asian Swing, following last year’s inaugural appearance on the schedule.

Marco Penge’s 2025 win came on the Blackstone Course at Mission Hills in Haikou but this year’s event saw the resort’s Vintage Course also in use, with a celebrity pro-am format in the first two rounds and other new features including the GolfSixes Mini League event for junior players.

Tenniel Chu, vice-chairman of the China Golf Association and Mission Hills Group, said: “This has always been our key ambition at Mission Hills, to grow the grassroots and junior and amateur golf development.

“We are very fortunate to continue to work with the China Golf Association and we have also invited the R&A together to do the GolfSixes.

“Every international golf event we host, we always do a golf clinic with our juniors and invite the top professionals to share their knowledge and skills and inspire the next generation. That’s how we see the baton passing to the next generation.”

Runner-up Jorge Campillo’s opening 65 was made on the Vintage Course, where champion Jordan Gumberg then shot 66 on Friday.

Chu said: “Vintage Course is one of the classic course layouts. It is not as long as the Blackstone but it’s very strategic in terms of the shot placement, the greens are extremely undulating, so it’s definitely a very rewarding course that all the players enjoy very much.

“I think the Vintage Course is a little bit less demanding compared to the Blackstone’s grand stage and the length of it. But nevertheless both courses have their challenges.

"A lot of the players who did not make the cut are staying behind and enjoying the amenities and facilities, the ten other golf courses at Mission Hills here where they can enjoy themselves."

Gumberg effusively praised the venue in his press conference after receiving the trophy and said: “Both golf courses are unbelievable.

"The fact that you have - is it ten golf courses here? And all of them are designed by great, historic course designers – there’s not a bad hole on this golf course. They’re tough, they’re very, very tough, you have to be on the whole time.

"I only got to see two golf courses here but I’d really look forward to seeing the others.”

This week's pro-am, won at a canter by Zi Wang and his amateur partner Quianzhou Wang, also featured the likes of former NBA star Yi Jianlian who showcased a smooth swing for a man standing 7ft tall.

The team format and the multi-course set-up echo the annual Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, played across St Andrew’s, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns in Scotland, and Chu said: “To have the amateurs to be on the same stage with the professionals, to play this type of format, is really, truly a remarkable experience.

“There’s primarily one on the US tour (the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am) and one other one in the European Tour at St Andrew’s, and now we are having the first one here in Asia.

“Having the DP World Tour’s first Asian Swing event here at Mission Hills is definitely a lot of excitement from the players’ perspective, and also from the amateurs experiencing this celebrity pro-am format.

“It’s the first time they have played in two different golf courses in one tournament, so for the amateurs it’s definitely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

“Thank you to the DP World Tour for making this happen in Hainan Island and Mission Hills.”