2013-11 WGC-HSBC Champions Golf Tournament

Ray attended the final round of the WGC-HSBC Champions golf tournament at Sheshan golf course on the west side of Shanghai.  Forty of the top 50 ranked golfers in the world were playing, and this was the first year it is part of the PGA FedEx cup.







It was an overcast day, but with temperatures in the low 70's, it was comfortable.  It did get foggy and smoggy as the day rolled on, making it harder to see the ball on the long drives.







Ray was able to take a lot of photos, they are allowed in the practice and non-playing areas without restriction.  They are not allowed out on the course on the tee or green, or anywhere close to the players.  Being discreet with a long lens allows for some good closeup photos when the skies a clear and clean.  The caddies and marshals were constantly reminding people not to use their cameras (or camera phones) when the players were hitting though.

Ray watched some of the last groups of players, including Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy and Angel Jimenez),warming up on the driving range, at the chipping green and on the practice putting green.


Groups of 3 were starting on the front and back nine, so Ray started on 18 and walked back towards 9 in order to see all the groups.  The two lead groups were just making the turn when Ray made it to the 10th hole.  He then went back to 18 to walk back a few holes and wait for the lead group.  He went to 16 and watch a few groups then followed Bubba Watson for a couple holes and then took up residence on the par 3, 17th to wait for the final group.

From the 17th, he could also see the 16th green, but it was a ways away.  It was interesting that the caddies would leave the golf  bags about 100 yards from the green if their player was safely on the green.  It was surprising to see bags laying in the fairway as I walked up towards the green.

As the next to the last group walked up 17, he saw Dustin Johnson chip in on 16 for eagle, which just about sealed the tournament.   However, birdies were not rare for any of the golfers in this tourney, so even a 3 shot lead with 2 to play would not be insurmountable, considering Johnson double bogeyed 18 on Saturday.

After the last group was all safely on the 17th green, Ray went to get a spot on the 18th, in the landing zone for the second shot and good view of the green for the final putts.  Johnson put his approach within about 5 feet and 2 putted for par and a 3 shot victory.  About 10 minutes after the last putt, it started to rain lightly, but only lasted about 10 minutes.  Many people scattered and left when the rain started.  There was a nice awards ceremony with drums and fireworks.


The course is well set up for spectators with slopes around many of the greens making for good amphitheater viewing.  The back 9 wraps around some man made lakes and some very large mansions.  Most interesting was a large sailboat docked at one of the homes, because the lake was relatively small and did not appear to have any connections to any larger bodies of water.

The fairways were relatively wide and many are tree lined or edged with water hazards.  Under the trees, the ground was covered with pine needles, even though there were no pine trees.  I later did notice some pine trees on other holes, but they did not appear to be enough to cover the ground under the trees of the entire course, so they must bring them in from other places.

There are a lot of large sand traps, and the sand stands out because it is so white, almost as white as the golf balls themselves.  Can you see the golf ball in the sand trap?

Also new this time was an amusement park on the outer perimeter of the course.  I'm not sure if it is open yet, or just closed for the season or the weekend, but I didn't see any activity during the tournament.