Better than a good walk ruined

Australian golfing great Karrie Webb took four shots to get out of a bunker during the British Open over the weekend, carding 5-over on the par three ninth at Royal Lytham & St Annes.

Despite our admiration for the career of this fellow Aussie (who has won a swag of majors), Shanghaiist couldn’t help feeling a bit better about our own very ordinary golf game upon hearing the news of her bunker blues. After all, we might be bad at golf, but we’re not that bad.

Which is why we only took three shots to get out of most of the bunkers during our recent visit to the Shanghai Grand City Golf Club, a 40-kuai taxi ride from our home near Jing’an Temple.

There’s actually nothing particularly Grand about this nine-hole course west of Hongqiao airport, but it does have a few things going for it. For starters, it’s probably the closest golf to the city centre (apart from the indoor variety, that is ... oh, and Tomson Golf Club in Pudong, but you’ll need a membership worth millions of RMB to have a round there). It’s also a no-nonsense place where, despite the frustrating fact that a caddy is mandatory (a fee is factored into the price of 280 RMB for nine holes), things like dress regulations are readily overlooked. Shanghaiist wore crappy old sneakers with impunity. Who knows, Crocs might even make the grade.

There’s also a large, cheap driving range (64 bays) out there as well, and an incredibly well air-conditioned bar for a few cold ones after the game.

On the downside, the aforementioned bunkers are fairly crusty affairs -- no imported Hainan Island sand here. And for good golfers, the course is hardly a challenge. In fact, anyone with a handicap of less than about 20 will probably finish their round in half an hour. It’s a much better bargain for the hopelessly inadequate golfer, like Shanghaiist or Karrie Webb.

Shanghai Grand City Golf Club. Tel: 6419-3676. Email: grandcity@online.sh.cn