Mission Hills execs look to cap purses in China

• By Ryan Ballengee
• Nov 29, 2011 2:41 PM ET

Owners of China's Mission Hills Golf Club are pushing for a cap on purses for golf tournaments hosted in the country.

Tenniel Chu, part of the family that runs the club, does not want Chinese events to be perceived as a money grab.

"China has deep pockets but the last thing we want to do is to raise financial expectations to levels which are non-proportional to tradition and established events," he said, according to AFP.

The Chus were overshadowed by the Lake Malaren Shanghai Masters, an unsanctioned event run by IMG at a resort owned by the Shi family. The event carried a purse of $5 million for the 30-man field, with millions more paid in appearance fees.

Chu urged an armistice in the race to create lavish late-season events and called to create a package of Chinese events that grow the game in the region.

"We have to collectively find ways to help stimulate the growth of golf in China and Asia in the most systematic way, rather than go head-to-head with each other and stage untraditional exhibition matches which do not compliment the world federations," he said.