Golf is regarded to be the game of the rich and famous but the sport can get more opulent when it is played with gold putters, balls and tees. Well-heeled golfers in China can look forward to a dazzling season ahead as Yamaha has planned to launch gold-plated golf clubs only for China. For about 110,000 yuan ($17,000) a pair, it will roll out two clubs, a driver and an iron sporting gold-colored heads. The clubs with the Impres X brand will be available at about 10 stores in Beijing, Shanghai and other cities this month.
The high-end clubs, stamped with the company’s Impres X brand, are vastly different from what is on offer in Japan, where the most expensive set of clubs costs Y700 000 ($9005). Yamaha hopes the made-for-China gold-painted golf clubs will help establish itself as a high-end golf brand in China.‘