Go Figure Files: China State School Teaching Golf Edition

It's tough to fully grasp the Chinese government's ratched-up war on golf, but as The Telegraph's Neil Connor writes, one state school in Shanghai is teaching golf as an important social skill developer. And now other state schools are following suit.

Jingwulu Primary School, in Jinan, in the eastern Shandong province, introduced the sport to “foster children's strong determination, self-discipline and manners,” headmistress Ji Yankun said.

“I don’t think I am being over dramatic in calling it a gentleman’s sport, as there is so much good etiquette involved,” she told The Telegraph.

The school has installed practice nets in its grounds and drafted in coaches from Shandong Gold Golf Club to provide compulsory training to nine-year-old pupils.

The golf club is also consulting with four other schools to roll out the training across the province.

“Many children have fallen in love with the sport, which has been called 'the green opium',” said Shandong Gold's Jiang Chunqiu, using a phrase which is often used in China to portray golf as highly enjoyable, but a dangerous foreign import.

Well it can be addictive.